In Defense of Frodo Baggins

     With the advent of writing my >>>Cosette/Eponine<<< post last Sunday, this is a post that I've been wanting to write since The Hobbit came out. "The Lord of The Rings" trilogy is going to always be a memorable part of my generation. It was an extraordinary piece of work and something that I will always remember. Now, I have never read the books, but I know enough of the storyline from talking to people about it.

     When The Hobbit came out, I couldn't help but notice how some of the reviews that while praising Bilbo for his courage and charming personality, they would come down on Frodo saying that he was wining, complaining, boring, had no character, etc. Similar to the Cosette/Eponine comparisons, this too made me angry and I started to wonder why Frodo, who was the epitome of the Christlike character in the story, was being victimized in such a way.

     Not ever reading the books,  I really didn't know what his literary personality was, I asked a few book experts their opinions on the subject.

Catria from >>>My Unicorn Has Wings<<<:

     Hmmmmmm. My first response is... WHO ON EARTH IS SAYING THAT!!! All of my friends and I love both LotR AND the Hobbit. And we recognize that you CANNOT compare Bilbo and Frodo.

     First off, Bilbo is lighthearted, quirky, fun, and kinda runs around in his own little world. It makes for a great comic film with laughable moments and just a hint of the evil to come in LotR's. He is not supposed to be strong-willed and purposeful.

      Frodo, on the other hand, is very different. There's a strength of character and purpose about him that, even though he is such a little person, you have to admire because he doesn't let it stop him. He is scared. He is even weak. But he is real and relateable because of that. No one is perfect or unbeatable. And we all fall prey. Even Bilbo did. Actually, Bilbo did very much. And as for Frodo having no personality, I suppose that must just be a lack of ability on some people's part to recognize the different people {or Hobbit} types out there. No two people are the same.

      As far as the movies go, Bilbo was supposed to be lighthearted and charming. Frodo was supposed to be messed up and striving for something impossible. That very difference affects their personalities. LotR's is all about defeating evil. The Hobbit is not. No one should try to make it so. And no one should try to make LotR's try to be light. That is not the point. They are two different movies and should be.

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 Cate and Mime from >>>Notebook Sisters<<<

      Cate: Ivy, I HAVE to agree with you on this one. I see the pins on Pinterest (yep, I go there a lot) that say how Sam is the true hero and Frodo is a whiny brat. I've always disagreed too. Of course, without Sam, Frodo wouldn't have made the journey. But Sam didn't carry the Ring. In the extended editions at one point, Sam had the Ring, and he was just as entranced by it as Boromir. So it HAD to be Frodo carrying the Ring.

      I think Elijah Wood did a fine portrayal (and realistic) of Frodo! There were lots of supernatural forces going on in Middle Earth and they were tougher then the physical forces at times.

     Mime: In Frodo's defense, he was stabbed by a Morgul(?) blade, a spear (but that didn't pierce him), shoved around by Faramir (before he let him go), bitten by a poisonous spider, had Gollum sit on his head a few times, not to mention having his finger bitten off. I think he did pretty well under the circumstances. And that's not to say that he had a ring messing with his mind so much he tried to kill Sam.

      Complaining? A little bit. It's true. But realistic. I don't think he was a coward. I mean, he stood up in Rivendell and said he'd take it. I actually found him more of a coward in the book The Fellowship of the Rings, because he kept trying to farm off the ring, first Gandalf, Tombombadil, Galadriel... but I haven't read the rest, so I don't know how his character development went along in the next two books.

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        I was glad that they seemed just as shocked as I was about the whole situation.

      Did Frodo sometimes complain about having to carry the Ring? Yes.

      Did Bilbo complain about the idea of going on a journey? Yes.

      Did Frodo run away from a duty that wasn't rightfully his? No.

      Did Aragorn run away from a duty that was rightfully his? Yes.

      Did Frodo ever doubt Gandalf ? No

      Did Thorin ever doubt Gandalf? Yes...constantly.

      Are people expecting a small person from simple beginnings to carry the fate of the world around his neck and do it with a cheerful attitude?

      Are people expecting a small ordinary person to possess superhuman abilities to lighten his load and quicken his journey?

      Do people expect Frodo to want to carry this burden, to want to change the world, to want to be a glorified  hero?

     I have always likened Frodo Baggins to Aslan from "The Chronicles of Narnia." The difference between the two is that Frodo is ordinary, Aslan is extraordinary, Frodo is mortal, Aslan is immortal, Frodo chose to take the Ring of his own free will, Aslan chose to die for Edmund because it was written in the prophecy.

     The closer Frodo got to Morder and Mount Doom, the more of an effect the Ring had on him. It was weakening him and he was beginning to lose control of senses. Does that make him any less of a hero just because he lost control?

     The true hero wasn't the one who actually threw the Ring into the fire, but the one who stood up amongst all these men and leaders, Frodo Baggins the orphaned son of a farmer, and said he would carry the Ring to Morder. The true hero was the one who watched with admiration as Aragorn turned down his offer to take the Ring for himself.

  

     Frodo Baggins is the hero of the story, sure there are other heroes such as The Fellowship, Faramir, Theodan, Eowyn, Eomer, Galadriel, Arwen (yes, I consider her a hero and I'll do a defense post on her if you doubt her role in the story!), Elrond, and others, but in the end it was Frodo. One small person who changed the course of the future, the livelihood of his people, and the fate of Middle-Earth forever.

Favorites: Top 3 Romantic Couples in Fiction

Matthew Crawley and Lady Mary Crawley

Downton Abbey: Season 2

 Without a doubt my most favorite romantic couple ever!!!! Of course, they had a pretty stereotyped relationship.

 Snobby wealthy girl looks down on a middle class (but very handsome) man.

 After a while the girl realizes that he's an incredible catch.

 She falls in love with him and (best of all) he's in love with her!

Guy proposes, she turns him down.

War starts and he comes back with a second girl...and they're engaged.

She gets a second guy...and they get engaged.

They both still realize they're in love with one another and now they're stuck.

The second girl dies and the second guy is a jerk.

The second guy gets his ass kicked.

On a cold winter night, the guy gets down on one knee and says,

"Lady Mary Crawley, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Girl answers

"Yes!"

They kiss and spin around in the falling snow and the credits roll.

And then comes the wedding....

But that's not until January.

     Stereotyped or not, Mary and Matthew are an incredible couple, just like most of the couples in Downton Abbey. I like the fact that they're both human...and Matthew isn't out for Mary's blood or her money for that matter, and Mary isn't obsessed with Matthew, she's genuinely in love with him. Point being, it's a breath of fresh air to read about real everyday people who go through real everyday problems in a vampire obsessed culture.

   Then comes Fifty Shades of Grey where love is just a cruel game of sex and (basically) abuse. It's an awful thing to read about and I can't understand why any woman in her right mind would even pick up a novel like that. 

    As predictable as Mary and Matthew's storyline may be, it's wonderful to see a man who will defend a woman, who makes mistakes, who knows that he's not perfect, but does the best he can to be the best kind of man out there.

  It's a relief to see a frightened woman who is doing her utmost to be strong and confident, who is in love, but is willing to let go of that love for his happiness, who puts her family before her heart and desires, and will sacrifice her future to atone for her mistakes, even if it means giving up the only man she has ever truly loved.

    I'll take the predictable over the absolute unbelievable.

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Faramir and Lady Eowyn

The Lord of The Rings: The Return of The King

     I've never read The Lord of The Rings, but maybe my love of the three films will make me some kind of Tolkien fan (I hope I didn't commit heresy for saying that). In spite of my lack of knowledge, I loved Faramir and Eowyn and thought that were so totally made for one another. I mean, if any two people deserved some small amount of happiness in the story I really think it would have been them.

      Sadly in the movies you only saw about fifteen minutes of relationship development and that's only in the extended edition. Yet, the simple (rather fast) love story had a deep impact on me. To begin with, their personal lives prior to meeting one another, were very similar. Both were lonely, they were losing their homes as well as their families,  they were willing to die for what they had left, and they were just absolutely desperate to be loved.

     I love the fact that they met in the hospital (or the House of Healing, I guess it's called in the books). and it was the ultimate love at first sight story as well. So even though they know that Middle-Earth is about to end at any second, they both seem to think,  

"We've been through Hell and back. We're tired and have lost just about everything and now, we have finally found what we've spent our entire lives looking for. So if we're going to die, at least we can die knowing that, for half an hour we were the happiest that we have ever been.

     Yet, love and sacrifice conquers all and everyone lives happily ever after and no one deserved a happily ever after more than these two.

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 Gilbert Blythe and Anne Shirley

Anne of Green Gables

      I think anyone who has ever read the books or seen the movies (proud to say, I have done both) have absolutely loved Anne and Gilbert. Ever since that immortal scene in the first story where Gilbert calls Anne carrots and Anne slams his slate over his head. It was the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

      Now, I'll admit, I was sooooo in love with Gilbert when I watched the movies! I thought he was so perfect! I think every girl has always wanted a Gilbert Blythe of their own. His genuine kindness and strength of character was such a needed quality for Anne's feisty and and often times troublesome nature. He never ever doubted Anne's talent and was always a source of guidance, even when she thought she didn't need it.

      In the third movie Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story, Anne's love and devotion for Gilbert is put to the ultimate test when he is MIA in WWI. There's a scene in the film when she tells Diana, "I'm not going to stay here and wait for my husbands funeral." Against all odds, Anne travels Europe to find her husband. Through hardship and pain, they are eventually reunited, but not without consequences in the end.

    When a friend of Anne's is killed she promises him before he dies that she will take care of his son. When Anne and Gilbert go and find him, he's gone. Anne is desperate and terrified that this precious child is lost forever. Then Gilbert says simply, "We will find him. No matter what it takes." That scene always brings tears to my eyes because it makes me realize that not even war or death or destruction can change the love and compassion that Gilbert gives Anne or the inspiration and hope he has always instilled in her.