This is the Poem composed by the hobbit Bilbo[1]
about Aragorn,
one of the protagonists of The
Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, 1949
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
the crownless again shall be king.
Poem about Aragorn from The
Lord of the Rings, 1937-1949
by J.R.R. Tolkien
Originally, I posted this poem as a ‘Poem of the
Month’ because I am enchanted by the first four lines celebrating hidden,
unexpected worth and strength behind an unpretentious appearance. Lines 5 and 6
appeal to me because I feel drawn to the theme of light emerging from or
despite darkness and hopelessness. However, the main theme of the poem is the
praise of and hope for a redeemer figure which has its place in the book, but
which personally I do not want to be suspected of. So I decided to explain its
context.
The poem has the character of a riddle referring to Aragorn
without mentioning him by name. It is recited twice - in Gandalf´s letter to Frodo in which he
urges him to venture on his journey immediately and by Bilbo during the White
Council at Rivendell - each time with the aim of convincing the audience of
Aragorn´s true identity and significance.
The first four lines are proverbial statements which describe
him in his current existence.[2]
His modest unsettled life as a so-called Ranger and his appearance - he is
described as looking old several times - mislead uninitiated characters who do
not respect him very much. Their unsuspecting attitude enables him to remain
undercover and facilitates his mission to pre-empt and counter the spread of Sauron´s
evil power.
According to the poem Aragorn is incorruptible like
the noble metal gold which resists corrosion. He is strong despite his age, and extreme circumstances can´t knock him
off course or weaken his resolve.
The final four lines foreshadow Aragorn´s role in the
fight against the Dark Lord Sauron and culminate in the prophecy of his destiny
of becoming King of Gondor and the ‘Western World’.[3] They can be understood as referring to
the previous war against Sauron which resulted in Sauron´s defeat. In this war Aragorn´s
ancestor Elendil died and his sword broke. Simultaneously, the lines point to
the looming danger posed by the evil currently emanating and spreading from
Sauron (‘the shadow’) who has regained strength, to the devastation it causes and
the hope for a new and better world. One prediction of the poem comes true
early on at Rivendell, when Elendil´s sword, whose shards Aragorn has inherited,
is indeed renewed before the Fellowship of the Ring set out on their mission.
(p. 276)
Although the poem
is expressive of worship for a redeemer figure, The Lord of the Rings on the whole clearly advocates the
renunciation of absolute power and takes the side of those who resist
temptation and forego the chance to grab the ‘One Ring’ which symbolizes it. The
option that a strong character fighting on the side of good might lead their
cause to victory by appropriating the ring is dismissed as an illusion
underestimating the power of the ring.
After
Boromir suggested during the
White Council that they
use the ring as a weapon to defeat Sauron Elrond sums up its power.
‘Alas, no,’
said Elrond. ‘We cannot use the Ruling Ring. That we now know too well. It
belongs to Sauron and was made by him alone, and is altogether evil. Its
strength, Boromir, is too great for anyone to wield at will, save only those
who have already a great power of their own. But for them it holds an even
deadlier peril. The very desire of it corrupts the heart. Consider Saruman. If
any of the Wise should with this ring overthrow the Lord of Mordor, using his
own arts he would then set himself on Sauron´s throne, and yet another dark
Lord would appear.’ Position 5695, S. 267
That the ring even
has this effect on innately good characters with a high level of integrity
becomes evident when Frodo offers the ring to the elf queen Galadriel who is sorely tempted to accept it. When Sam
repeats the offer saying ‘You´d put things to rights’, she declines because she
is aware that she would be overwhelmed and possessed by its evil powers in the
long run, too. ‘That´s how it would begin. But it would not stop with that, alas!
We will not speak more of it.’ S. 366
As they can´t find
anyone to entrust the Ring to – even Gandalf admits that he is tempted by it - the
White Council (S. 357) decides that the best way to defeat the Dark Lord Sauron
for good would be to destroy it which can only be done by carrying it back to
its origin and throwing it into the fires of the Dark Mountain (Mount Doom).
They assign this
task to the hobbit Frodo because they consider him to be in least danger of
claiming power for himself. Furthermore Sauron underestimates hobbits and thus Frodo
is most likely to approach Mount Doom unnoticed. Nevertheless, he often
struggles to resist Sauron´s power which makes itself felt through the ring. In
the end the ring can only be destroyed because Frodo´s servant and friend Sam
is unconditionally faithful to Frodo and his cause and because luck is on their
side.
The Lord of the Rings further illustrates the psychology of power when supposedly
strong allies against Sauron yield to his evil influence in various ways. Saruman,
who used to be a highly esteemed member of the White Council, covets the ring
himself and has already levied his own army. Leaders like Théoden, King of
Rohan, and Denethor, Steward of Gondor, are about to fall prey to Sauron by
losing their fighting spirit after they had contact with him. Whereas Théoden
changes his mind after his evil counsellor Wormtongue is removed, Denethor
finally kills himself in despair. He neither sees hope for victory nor does he
really wish it as Aragorn´s return would deprive him of his power over Minas
Tirith. Gandalf´s comment is: ‘Even in the heart of our stronghold the enemy
has power to strike us: for his will it is that is at work.’ p. 850
Although Lord of the Rings is first of all a fantasy
novel, its topicality with regard to recent history is evident as leading politicians
who started out as reformers of their countries have turned into authoritarian
rulers. As the example of Russia shows, the rule of law is practically
abolished and the political system is tuned to the advantage of a small
economic and political elite.
The same
holds true for Turkey and its President who has just been granted additional
powers in a referendum whereas parliament has been degraded and the position of
the Prime Minister abolished which is tantamount to the abolition of the
division of powers. The attempted coup d` état of summer 2016 has served as a
justification to fire thousands of teachers, state officials and judges and to label critics as terrorists who
must be detained. Not least,
the warlike attitude of both the Turkish and the Russian government serves to
divert the attention of the population from economic hardship.
Of course,
it would be black and white thinking to compare these rulers with Sauron in The Lord of the Rings but the tendency
to maximise their power not for the sake of the common good but for the sake of
power itself is evident. In George Orwells 1984 this is designated the hallmark of all dictatorships:
'Now I will
tell you the answer to my question. It is this. The Party seeks power entirely
for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are
interested solely in power, pure power. What pure power means you will
understand presently. […] We know that no one ever seizes power with the
intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not
establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the
revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is
persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power.
Now you begin to understand me.'
George Orwell, 1984
George Orwell, 1984
