The One Ring

What happened to Frodo's finger?!

Those familiar with the epic tale of Frodo and the one ring will be able to answer the above question quickly and concisely with: “It was bitten off!” And, fair enough. Frodo’s finger (along with the one ring) was separated from his hand by the tenacious, jealous, and conniving teeth of Gollum.

But, as with all great literary metaphor the answer is not so simply, and is more accurately posited as: “Why was Frodo’s finger bitten off?”

A simple and succinct answer comes to mind again in the form of: “Because Gollum wanted it pretty badly and it was on Frodo’s finger”.

Still not good enough, however. So a final postulation of the question might be: “In a metaphorical sense, why did Frodo lose a piece of himself while also losing the one ring?”

Now that we have the right question, or a form of it, we can dig a little deeper. Firstly, the idea of the one ring: a ring to unify all power in the land of Middle-Earth into one single entity. So eloquently put by Tolkien: “One ring to rule them all, One ring to find them. One ring to bring them all, and in darkness bind them”. In this particular case, it was a ring to transcend all other rings of power, to provide the wearer unlimited power. The fact that such a ring landed in the hands of a humble hobbit of the Shire is baffling to say the least. Or is it? There is an interesting idea to tease out here as well. Why would a hobbit, in particular Frodo, be destined to destroy such an inconceivably powerful object? I think the answer lies in the humility of such a race. The hobbits do not live by power, but by community. The shire is not a land of Kings and Queens, it is not a land of warring clans dueling it out, it is not a land of violence. The shire is a land of tranquility through co-operation. The stability of the community is maintained by each hobbit playing his part correctly. There is no room for tyrannical behavior in such a place, and more to the point, hardly any desire for it. As close as any one place could be, the shire is a Utopia of civilization. Partly due to its easy-going inhabitants, and partly due to its seclusion from the rest of Middle-Earth. In this way, Frodo was the perfect person to bear the ring to Mount Doom. This idea seems to be bulwarked by other characters (non-hobbits) complete aversion or obsession with the ring. Gandalf grows angry with Bilbo when he suggest that Gandalf take possession of the ring, Aragorn flat-out refuses to touch the thing, and Boromir is driven to insanity and violence in order to obtain it. All these men are more or less honorable and good, but the allure of power is very real in their minds. In Frodo’s mind however, there is no higher goal, no status greater, than to destroy and become destroyer of the ring. He is playing his part humbly and bravely in the service of the world, and quite appropriately, the Shire as well.

But, back to Frodo’s finger. While Frodo is surprisingly aloof about the ring and its powers, he does find chances to put it on throughout his journey to Mordor. While he does so only in instances of preservation, he is directly exposed to the rings power, and experiences the full force of its enchantments. He feels the rings pull. He feels the desire that rests in the hearts of his enemies and allies. The lust for power is growing insides him. This all culminates in the final scenes of the rings existence, when Frodo and Samwise have arrived at the fires of Mount Doom, and are preparing to destroy the ring once and for all. Frodo is at the lip of the Volcano, and peering into the fire below, knowing what will become of the ring and what will be lost to the world; to his world. In an act of uncharacteristic lust, Frodo declares he will not destroy the ring, but dons it instead. Just as he is slipping the ring over his finger, Gollum, a long time owner and keeper of the ring (who is worthy of his own commentary) emerges and begins wrestling for the ring of power. Gollum bites at the hand of Frodo, and even though Frodo is at this point invisible, he hits his target. Frodos finger is severed, and Gollum has won his prize. But, in his orgasmic excitement, Gollum slips into the fires below, destroying himself, Frodo’s finger, and the almighty One Ring.

Frodo losing his finger is no trivial matter of violence and rage. It is a powerful metaphor signifying what one must relinquish in order to achieve their destiny. That is: a piece of yourself: sometimes willingly, and sometimes not. There are flaws that exist in us all, parts of us that are less than good, and true self-actualization cannot be achieved without first the shedding of those less than good parts. In Frodo’s case, it was the finger that had borne the ring, or more appropriately, the lust for power that existed within himself, however small and new it may have been. While devastating at the time, from that episode arose a new and stronger Frodo. Without this episode, Frodo might have never returned to save his home, the war would not have ended, and Middle-Earth would have been an objectively worse place. There is greater metaphor within as well, which is: the betterment of you is the betterment of everyone and everything. Put more poignantly, better people make for a better world. To learn and grow from our experiences, experiences that we undertake with courage and truth, is the most transformative and strengthening thing for not only ourselves, but for humanity. Frodo’s voluntary acceptance of his destiny, his bravery in the face of unfathomable adversity, saved the world. And while he may have faltered in the end, it was the help of his friends, and even his enemies, that saved Middle-Earth.

All of us are capable of great good, as long as we accept and face the challenges that present themself to us with humility, bravery, and truth.