July 30, 2002

Nice Danny...
Jimeous

The examples you give are very good :)

Smeagol is in a position of fear, guilt and his very actions of "sneaking" means he wills to be hidden. So initially the association with disappearing is done via a motivation of fear with the hobbits. It is correct to say its not the only channeling force. Association to the effect, Knowledge and Will can have other results.
As a reminder about Will

Galadriel to Frodo in the Fellowship of the Rings.

"Did not Gandalf tell you that the rings give power according to the measure of each possessor? Before you could use that power you would need to become far stronger, and to train your WILL to the domination of others."

By using your WILL, the ring granted power to its processor.

The Nine Ring of the Nazgul were held by Sauron as stated in the Unfinished Tales

"They (the Nazgul) were by far the most powerful of his servants, and most suitable for such a mission, since they were entirely enslaved to their Nine Rings, which he now himself held...."

With regards to why the Nazgul can see Frodo at Weathertop, its explained in the Sim.

"Those who used the Nine Rings became mighty in their day, kings, sorcerers, and warriors of old. They obtained glory and great wealth... They had, as it seemed, unending life, yet life became unendurable to them. They could walk, if they would, unseen by all eyes in this world beneath the sun, and they could see things in worlds invisible to mortal men..."

In a letter 121 Tolkien wrote

"The Ring of Sauron is only one of the various mythical treatments of the placing of one's life, or power, in some external object, which is thus exposed to capture or destruction with disastrous results to oneself. If I were to 'philosophise' this myth, or at least the Ring of Sauron, I should say it was a mythical way of representing the truth that potency (or perhaps rather potentiality) if it is to be exercised, and produce results, has to be externalised and so as it were passes, to a greater or less degree, out of one's direct control."

The words "if it is to be exercised, and produce results" means there has to be an intention or will of the using of the ring, putting it on isn't going to make one invisible if they have no will to.

The difference between desire and will, is that "will" is a proactive result, where desire is one based on hope. So when the Hobbits recognise the ability to turn invisible, it becomes a willed effect, also an associated one.

But those are just thoughts on the matter, and of course Tom lives outside the boundaries of any Tolkien logic, he is in Tolkien's words...... an enigma :p