September 12, 2003

The Fate of Gullom
Imlar

Well I thought I would put in my 2 cents worth about whether or not it would have been a better ending if Sam pushed Gullom into the Cracks of Doom with the Ring. I do agree that it is an interesting prospect and does really give Sam a little bit more preeminence, but I agree with Bob Praz that Tolkien's ending still remains the best suited. Gullom is an extremely important character throughout Tolkien's works. EXTREMELY. I'd say he is one of the most DEEP, WELL PRESENTED, and INTERESTING characters that Tolkien created. He is someone that wasn't very moral to start with but that has been utterly corrupted with the ring. Yet, shadows of his old life still loom on him, and he struggles at to WHO he really is. He seems to be a nuisance, and many times the characters were tempted to kill him from Bilbo in the Hobbit all the way to Sam on the way up Mount Doom. If Sam had pushed him in at the climax, it would have made it more difficult to reconcile Gullom's use, as well at the role of fate. Shure, he did other things, like get them into Mordor, but his continuous befriending & betraying of the Hobbits HAD to lead up to his IMPORTANCE in the quest, even though it was unintentional. This brings out the wisdom of Gandalf's words about rashly dealing out death and life. Hope this made a LITTLE bit of sense...I just think the ending Tolkien settled with was more wise, deep, and powerful.

All peace.