I got married last weekend, so I've missed posting the past two weeks. Totally worth it, but time to play some catch-up!
This week we read The Old Forest, following Frodo and his friends finally leave the Shire. But the Old Forest is dangerous. The trees have had a history of attacking the Shire, and the hobbits have needed to defend themselves with fire. There's bad blood between them.
Once very deep into the first the hobbits suddenly feel very tired. Sam suspects something and is able to resist, but the other three fall asleep. While asleep, Merry and Pippin get sucked into a large willow tree's trunk, which closes again around them. Frodo collapses into a brook, and Sam has to save him from drowning. Afterwards, Sam points to Merry and Pippin's feet sticking out of the willow tree. Frodo responds:
"What a foul thing to happen! cried Frodo wildly.
Why did we ever come into this dreadful Forest?
I wish we were all back at Crickhollow!"
And after some futile efforts to free them...
But Frodo, without any clear idea of why he did so,
or what he hoped for, ran along the path crying help! help! help!
As it happens, Tom Bombadil is in the area, and responds to their cries for help.
"Frodo sure has lost his resolve quickly."
"How silly his pronouncements of 'what must be done' seem now. How foolish he must feel - his will thwarted not by Black Riders but by trees."
"Sam does not regret coming though. In fact, his purpose may have been proven by this bad turn of events. When Frodo and the others are in danger he does not flee, as Frodo does."
"It is easier to protect friends nearby than complete a Task that is out there."
"This is not the only time in our text that friendship and a Task collide."
"Do go on."
"This parallels the incident at Mount Doom quite nicely. There, Frodo gives up the Quest. There, Sam's friendship endures. There, all hope is lost. And there an unlikely source saves the day."
"Getting one's finger bitten off is hardly a cause for celebration."
"When the alternative is certain capture by Nazgûl? Small price to pay."
"So the Ring overpowers Frodo in the end. Are the trees as powerful as the Ring?"
"Frodo is not nearly as hardened as he becomes - they do not need to be so powerful."
"And yet here the Creative Wizard sets up the structure for his climax. Frodo gives up his senses. Even hope fails. But good prevails.
"It is eucatastrophic."
"And those are not the only two eucatastrophes of our text. Helm's Deep is rescued from defeat by Erkenbrand's last-minute return*. Gandalf's defeat at the hand's of the Witch King is interrupted by the ride of the Rohirrim. The battle of Pellenor Fields is turned by the arrival of the army of the dead. And then there's Saruman's death."
"But eucatastrophes are difficult to predict, and dangerous to depend on. What ethics can be borne of "sometimes things just work out"?""
"To keep holding on."
"Hope is not a strategy."
"But perserverance is. Nothing happens in a vacuum. While one toils at a Task the world continues to turn. That turning may make things easier or may make them harder."
"So then perseverance may not be a good strategy at all, if delay will only increase the Task's difficulty."
"This is true. If you can finish a task, you ought to. Delaying your own victory is gratuitous, revealing you don't want the prize but merely to relish in its taking - or to be seen taking it. But if failure seems imminent, hold on. If defeat is coming at you, delay. Eucatastrophes are not a strategy, but they are possible. Instead of running around shouting Frodo could have buried his face in the grass. Instead he makes a ruckus, and eventually this got Tom's attention. Helm's Deep held off the Uruk-Hai for 3 days. Gandalf stands his ground. The Rohirrim at Pellenor Fields fought fiercely as long as they were able. Surrender is the surest defeat."
"As a counter-example, the Witch-King is gratuitous in victory. He enters Gondor and faces off with Gandalf. He says "Do you not know Death when you see it?" His sword ignites in flames. But suddenly, the Rohirrim announce their arrival with their warhorns. The Witch-King leaves to deal with the new threat. But he appears to have Gandalf at his mercy - or at least he thinks he does. Why not dispatch with Gandalf first, before he can recover? He simply gloats, confident victory is his whenever he wishes it. It doesn't occur to him someone else may rob him of it."
"Is holding on ethical? Isn't that the imperative of all life? If ethics is doing the harder thing, how can our recommendation be to just do what the body does anyway?"
"The body wants to endure simply to endure. What we are recommending is to endure and remain loyal to the Task. It is not to survive and remember the Task. It is to survive, to speak and rally others to the Task - or to give other elements of the Task time to catch up. The Task may be appointed to you, but you need not do it alone. In fact, it is probably akin to the gloating we were speaking of earlier to believe you, alone, can do it."
"So: Hope is not a strategy, but perseverance is. Don't just hope things go your way. But as you hang on, look for new opportunities. As the world turns, seek out new options. When the world gets hard hold on and keep your eyes open. Eucatasrophes come in many forms, and we should not depend on them, but they will not happen without our attention. Helm's Deep, the Rohirrim at Pellenor field, and Gandalf are saved by reinforcements. They came later than expected - but they came."
"Well, hold on. This doesn't align with THE eucatasrophe of the text. Gollum, was thought to be dead, and he certainly is not their reinforcements. And when he was noticed nobody let him bite the Ring off Frodo's fingers. Nor did anybody expect Grima to turn."
"This is a good point."
"How can you reconcile?"
"An inherent property of good is cooperation. The free peoples are brought together by common cause, but only as much as they wish. Sauron's side is compelled by his will, but he shares rule with no one. The Ring gives people the hope they may overthrow him, necessarily leading to conflict. Therefore, when facing evil, if you are able to delay, even with no clear plan, you allow for their petty squabbles to surface."
"Yes! That is what happened in both cases. Saruman taunts Grima one too many times, and he kills him. Gollum and Sauron both seek the Ring, but separately. The Nazgûl would have turned it over to him, but not Gollum. But it still doesn't explain Gollum's fall. I can't justify anyone waiting around for a foe to simply misstep."
"Me neither."
*Silence*
"Pipeweed?"
"Please."
*Edited 3/10. I'd wrongly said Eomer returned to Helm's deep, not Erkenbrand.
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