Chapter 2. "The Council of Elrond" & Chapter 3 "The Ring Goes South" (I)

We have an intense day ahead of us; the Council of Elrond is meeting.

So many things we have known, so many new characters; such a scary view of the world to come has taken shape during the Council. Among such high-born people, the small hobbit, Frodo Baggins, offers himself to take the Ring to Mordor, putting himself in the hands of whoever wants to show him the Road. Sam is going to accompany him, and Merry and Pippin, ignorant of the real danger ahead, are envious of him. Nothing is decided yet, but Gandalf may also accompany them, if indeed they are finally taking the Ring. In the meantime, the prospect of resting in Rivendell is much welcome.

While the hobbits rest and get ready for their journey South, I will not be reading much, since there is only a couple of paragraphs separating this part of the narrative from the paragraph that informs us that the hobbits spend nearly two months in Rivendell. Since Rivendell is a place of learning, I will take the opportunity to dig into as many postponed books and essays as possible. But tomorrow, Brussels awaits: the 7th Biennial Conference of the European Association for the Study of Culture, Literature and the Environment. Looking forward to more learning and many, many, many meetings!

Book II. Chapter 1. "Many Meetings"

Many meetings, indeed! Frodo is safe and wakes up to hear a voice that informs him that he is in the house of Elrond and that is is the morning of October 24th. And that voice is none other than Gandalf's! Frodo feels even more so how much they needed Gandalf, now that he is close at hand. The old wizard informs him of many things: he was held captive, the wound almost killed Frodo (he was fading, close to becoming a wraith himself), the Dark Lord has many servants, and Glorfilndel is an Elf-lord of a house of princes. They are now safe in Rivendell, where a power lies to withstand that of Mordor, at least for a while, and Rivendell is the perfect place to rest, to gain strength of body and soul.

The joy of seeing again his friends safe and sounds overwhelming, but nothing can compare to what Frodo feels when he sees Bilbo at the great feast!

But there are also new meetings: Glóin, Elrond, and Arwen; and the Elves really look out of this world. After the darkness of the last episodes, the calm light, the music and the warmth at Rivendell heals us like a balm. We are going to rest here a while. But tomorrow we have a long day: The Council of Elrond is meeting.

"Flight to the Ford" (XI)

Noro lim, noro lim, Asfaloth! Don't you just love the sound of these words?

I still remember the first time I read this part from The Lord of the Rings, staying up in bed until 4 in the morning, moving to the next chapter - and the next book - just to see whether Frodo had survived, and then go to sleep after so much excitement. The Black Riders appear out of nowhere and it is thanks to Glorfindel and Asfaloth that Frodo can make it. The Black Riders attempt to control his will and, for a while, Frodo is unable to move, but Glorfindel's instructions to his horse - Noro lim, noro lim, Asfaloth - and Asfaloth's extraordinary speed and resilience save the day. I still remember visualising a weak, wounded hobbit confronting the Black Riders, ordering them to go back to Mordor "and follow me no more", and the final touch of the waters taking Riders and horses - poor horses - away.

I personally believe that the changes made in the film reduced the power of this scene. I understand that the character of Arwen needed to be further developed so that his relationship with Aragorn could  work better on screen, which would have been more difficult had she remained the "lady in waiting" of the books. However, the poignancy of a small, terrified hobbit on the brink of death, challenging the Riders despite his physical and emotional pain is completely lost when it is Arwen who rides the horse taking Frodo in his arms. 

"Go back to the Kand of Mordor and follow me no more!"

This last effort has proven too much for Frodo. After seeing Riders and horses carried away by the water, he can only faint. For the next four days, he will be sleeping, recovering at Rivendell, in the Last Homely House East of the Sea.

"Flight to the Ford" (X)

I am glad there is not much to read today because I am exhausted. And so are the hobbits, altough I have a lovely bed waiting for me, which the hobbits must really envy. They have barely slept five hours and, although revitalised by Glorfindel's drink, hobbits are no Elves and they find it difficult to keep up with his pace. So would I, mind you; so would any mortal, in fact. Frodo's pain has redoubled and he seems to be drifting into darkness; according to the narrator, he "almost welcomed the coming of night, for then the world seemed less pale and empty". To be in a world of colour and not being able to enjoy it... that's the devilish work of the Enemy of whom, by the way, there is no sign. This is most suspicious; they must be waiting somewhere to make their attack more effective. But Glorfindel must certainly be aware of that. And Asfaloth is a great, fast horse. He will soon play a decisive role.

"Flight to the Ford" (IX)

The weather has finally changed and has managed to lift the hobbits' spirits; even Frodo seems to be able to ride happily again, although the shadows of his mind keep on playing tricks. However, today we are able to ride without many worries, even allowed to rest by the stone trolls who looked so menacing until an old bird's nest is discovered behind one's ears. Sam's abilities as a poet are revealed and the menacing sound of hooves approaching the hobbits ended up being those of the horse ridden by... Glorfindel!!! Of course! Bells and Black Riders do not go well together. If you remember, Glorfindel had left Rivendell in search of Frodo nine days ago  (and no, he has no news from Gandalf) and he has finally found the walkers. He is, however, less merciful than Strider. At this time, they have not yet set up camp for the night and will be walking until dawn. The hobbits keep on marching as if in a dream. Only Strider seems to be able to match an Elf's resilience.

"Flight to the Ford" (VIII)

The clouds are still thick, but at least the rain has abated, so the hobbits won't have to put up with the humidity in their bones. The streaks of blue sky appearing behind the clouds are not enough to make up for their cheerlessness of their situation, even less so when Strider, after exploring their surroundings, realises that they have moved too far to the north and that they'll have to turn back southwards again. The going gets tough once more, and Frodo's wound becomes the main issue of conversation. Walking is particularly exhausting, and his arm remains lifeless, icy cold. Strider admits that he cannot do much for Frodo in the wilderness, that being the reason why he is so eager to reach Rivendell. If the wound is to be cured, it is in Elrond's hands that hope lies. As always, this is Strider's message to Sam: "Do not give up hope".

They lit a small fire for the night, the wind is chilly and the tree-tops seem to whisper and moan. Frodo cannot find rest; whenever he tries to sleep, the shadows of his pursuers haunt him. We must arrive soon at Rivendell if Frodo is to survive.

"Flight to the Ford" (VII)

Strider is getting anxious. We are almost ten days out from Weathertop, the rain does not stop and we're running low on provisions. As feared, the rain and the hard going are taking their toll on Frodo; his wound is unbearably painful and he is unable to sleep, imagining the black shapes of the servants of the Enemy getting closer to him. Even when he manages to drift into a short sleep and dream about his beloved Shire, the vision seems "faint and dim", and are soon replaced by black shadows. The poison of the knife is taking hold of him.

"Flight to the Ford" (VI)

I know I've said it many times: I love it when it rains. Today it's sunny and warmer again but we've had some glorious rain in the last couple of days here in Granada. I also know that, as the saying goes in Spanish, "It never rains to everyone's taste" and I imagine rain must feel very different when you're tired, wounded, pursued, and carrying a heavy burden. Such has been the lot of my friends in The Lord of the Rings today. After a windy, rainy day, they are all soaked and unable to get any fire to burn. It pains me to imagine how miserable they must feel, particularly Frodo, in so much pain! I love the rain, but I never forget what a privilege it is to be able to enjoy it, having a roof to take shelter from it when I need it. This should not be a privilege, but a right available to everyone. 

"Fligh to the Ford" (V)

Everything is calm, suspiciously calm, I would say. Strider finds it odd to find no trace of the Enemy, but the discovery of a beryl, an elf-stone, which he takes "as a sign that we may pass the Bridge", brings him hope. 

Indeed, they do cross the Bridge in safety, abandoning the Road for a safer but darker route, a "sombre country of dark trees winding among the feet of sullen hills". Instances of pathetic fallacy are prominent here, with the hobbits happy to leave the "cheerless lands", but finding themself in a new country which "seemed threatening and unfriendly". The sight of some ruins reminds Frodo of Bilbo's account and considers that they may be in the spot of his adventures with the trolls. His question concerning the builders of those ruins allows us once again to see the depth of knowledge Strider stores; nothing seems to be forgotten to an heir of Elendil, and Rivendell appears now not only as a destination to long for, but also as a place of special significance for the Ranger: "There my heart is," he tells the hobbits, "but it is not my fate to sit in peace, even in the fair house of Elrond". 

The going gets now tougher as they reach a valley, "narrow, deeply cloven, dark and silent" inhabited by "Trees with old and twisted roots". There is no clear path, and they keep on walking on this tiring area for the next two days. Therefore, I'll see you in two days' time!



P.S. The rain finally arrived in Granada yesterday and I am so happy! Everything smells delicious; walking down the forest of the Alhambra, always a pleasurable experience, was almost magical this morning! 

And the proof that autumn is officially here: the old woman selling chestnuts to the little boy in the window of "Los Italianos" ice-cream parlour. LOVE IT!

 

"Flight to the Ford" (IV)

No word coming out from Frodo yet. Given that the part devoted to narrating today's events is very short, in normal circumstances one should not be worried, but knowing that Frodo is wounded and in pain, his silence is even more eloquent. Today, the sixth day after the attack on Weathertop, we have reached the top of a slope from which we can see a prospect of hills, the Road, and two rivers, one near the Road and another one in the distance, which Strider identifies, respectively, as the Hoarwell (Mitheithel for the Elves) and the Loudwater, the Bruinen of Rivendell. We have to get back to the Road and Strider is worried about how to cross the River, pondering on the strong possibilities of finding the Enemy at the last bridge. Yet, as he very well says, let's not anticipate: "One bridge at a time". Keep on walking.

 

"Flight to the Ford" (III)

Four days without reading, just getting a summary of what happens between October 7th and today, the 11th. This is what the narrator tells us:

"Four days passed, without the ground or the scene changing much, except that behind them Weathertop slowly sank, and before them the distant mountains loomed a little nearer. Yet since that far cry they had seen and heard no sign that the enemy had marked their flight or followed them. They dreaded the dark hours, and kept watch in pairs by night, expecting at any time to see black shapes stalking in the grey night, dimly lit by the cloud-veiled moon; but they saw nothing, and heard no sound but the sigh of withered leaves and grass. Not once did they feel the sense of present evil that had assailed them before the attack in the dell. It seemed too much to hope that the Riders had already lost their trail again. Perhaps they were waiting to make some ambush in a narrow place?
"At the end of the fifth day ..." And this is where we are now. It's 22:34, I've just had an exhausting but tremendously fulfilling day, and I am joining the hobbits on their road while Matthias is preparing some dinner. It seems that, in these four days, the Enemy has given them some respite, but let us not forget, although the narrator does not dwell on that issue, that Frodo is mortally wounded; the Enemy is, in fact, somehow travelling within Frodo's body, in the shape of a splint of a cursed blade. Yet "At the end of the fifth day" we are still not given any details of how Frodo is doing, but we take it that not very well, indeed. All we know is that, "At the end of the fifth day the ground began once more to rise slowly out of the wide shallow valley into which they had descended. Strider now turned their course again north-eastwards, ...". It was too much to have Frodo wounded, I think it's fair that we can walk safey, albeit in fear. Do not despair, Strider is guiding us.

And for me.... it's dinner time! Late. I'm starving.

Interlude (or parenthesis, as you wish)

I knew I said I would be back on the fifth day, since nothing worth writing about is happening these days in The Lord of the Rings, but it's my birthday today and it so happens that, on this same day, Glorfindel left Rivendell. it was the year 3018 of the Third Age, and it was also a Sunday. Although Glorfindel barely appears later on in the narrative - in the film his role was given to Arwen - in a few days he will play a decisive role in helping Frodo cross the Ford of Bruinen. Had it not been for his horse Asfaloth, I am afraid the quest would have ended sooner, and the ending would have not been "eucatastrophic".

I like Glorfindel, and I would have liked to see more of him in The Lord of the Rings, but it's good - if only for my ego, granted - to know that he left Rivendell on my birthday :-)

"Flight to the Ford" (II)

 Things are not looking good for Frodo. He has dozed a bit but the wound causes him enormous pain, and a terrible chill has spread from the shoulder to his arm and side. Sam, Merry and Pippin anxiously wait over him. Strider returns and finds the weapon that has caused the wound; unfortunately, the blade is broken, which means that the missing fraction is in Frodo's shoulder. They cannot risk spending another night on the hill, and there is not much that Strider can do for Frodo other than force the company to continue the journey. 

However, he can alleviate his pain, if only temporarily, by applying Athelas to the wound. After singing strange words to the dagger-hilt and to Frodo, Strider throws the leaves into boiling water, and just the fragrance has a calming effect on the hobbits; on Frodo's wound it lessens both the pain and the chill, but it is not enough to make life return to his arm. It is clear that they have to leave in full daylight and that Frodo cannot walk, so the hobbits and Strider share the load while Frodo rides the pony, which makes him feel even guiltier. Three is company, true, and four even more, but it is not difficult to imagine that Frodo must feel how much happier his friends would be back home.

Athelas

The land is cheerles, the burden is heavy, and the cold voices in the distance chill their hearts. They know that the Enemy is treading on their footsteps but they cannot walk any faster. At the end of the day, Frodo's pain has just begun to wake again, and I have to leave them walking, in fear and pain, sore and heavy-hearted for four days, because it seems that they did nothing other than that during that period of time; or at least nothing that the narrator considered worth talking about. See you on the fifth day! 

"A Knife in the Dark" (VII) & Chapter 12. "Flight to the Ford" (I)

Tonight is the night that the Ring has finally revealed its power to harm Frodo; tonight Frodo has been wounded by the Black Riders and Strider fears that it may be a mortal wound, since the Riders seem to just be waiting for it to follow its course, given that they have not finished him off. In a way, the narrative has been preparing us for this incident: Strider warned the hobbits yesterday that he did not know what they would find when they reached Weathertop and, when they arrive there, what he sees disturbs him. The white flashes of light that we saw three nights ago become meaningful today, when Strider gathers from the evidence left on the site that Gandalf was there and he was attacked by - and therefore fought against - minions of the Enemy. 

Today, we have also been able to enjoy some of the vistas that Tolkien referred to when talking about the layers of history found in The Lord of the Rings,  vistas that come to the surface briefly by Sam's singing part of the song of Gil-Galad, but mostly by the stories that Strider shares with the hobbits, and which allow us to get a glimpse of this many-layered Ranger. Strider is not only knowledgeable in the ways of forests and roads, but also in old lore. In order to cheer the hobbits up, he tells them the tale of Tinúviel, which he describes as "a fair tale, though it is sad, as are all the tales of Middle-earth". We will later know why this tale is so significant for Strider. But not yet. 

I had problems "listening" to the voice of Strider singing whenever I read The Lord of the Rings until Peter Jackson's movies. Now the voice is that of Viggo Mortensen, but I found a nice musical rendition which you can listen to here.

This moment of intimate conviviality is just  the calmess before the storm; the company is finally attacked by the Riders and I am going to bed leaving Frodo seriously wounded. Despite Strider's instructions and the use of fire to repel their enemies, the Ring's power proves to strong for Frodo, who tries in vain to resist the tempation to wear it, thus making himself visible to the Riders, who easily stab him.  Frodo faints, but not before gathering strength to call O Elbereth! Gilthoniel!, attacking one of the Riders and removing the Ring. When he wakes up, Strider shares his fears about Frodo's prospect with Sam, who is devastated to think that he might die. But Strider is not easily defeated, physically or morally. On two occasions today - and not for the last time - he will remind us of the importance of not despairing, of keeping up hope. "You are not alone".

"A Knife in the Dark" (VI)

The hobbits keep on walking, guided by Strider, and this activity seems to have a beneficial effect on them; they look stronger, but considerably thinner. At night, they camp on the feet of the westward slopes of a ridge. "It was the night of the fifth of October, and they were six days out from Bree". For me, it is also the night of the fifth of October, and I just feel like sharing some time with Strider. So, here he is, leading the hobbits. Enjoy!

"A Knife in the Dark" (V)

I love the sound of the verb "plod". It's almost onomatopoeic. I reads the words "All the day they plodded along" and I can not only see the heavy gait of the walkers, but almost hear the sound of their weary feet on the ground: plod, plod, plod. Nothing much has happened apart from that "plodding along", but Strider's words as he points at Weathertop for their immediate destination are not very comforting; he fears what they may find there, being exposed to whoever might be following them. The hobbits hope that they can meet Gandalf there, but Strider is not so sure. The chances are slim; it's more likely that they miss one another. There are unfriendly creatures in the air, and the ranger once again, does not seem to sleep.

"A Knife in the Dark" (IV)

The hobbits and Strider keep plodding along; the days are tiring and the nights comfortless. They are still pestered by midges, but the Neekerbreekers have fortunately been left behind. Nothing else happens during the day worth writing about but, at night, Frodo finds it difficult to fall asleep. Strider cannot answer his question concerning the white flashes they can see in the eastern sky, but he is alert, "standing silent and watchful".

"A Knife in the Dark" (III)

The group is now out of the forest and into a more difficult path. Thankfully, no Black Riders have disturbed their walk, although one cannot say the same of the midges that keep on feeding on hobbits as they walk through Midgewater. As Sam wonders: 'What do they live on when they can't get hobbit?' There are many creatures around,noisy ones, true, but to call them "abominable"... I wouldn't go that far, particularly when there are Black Riders around... Still, I bet it's going to be difficult to sleep with all that neek-breek, breek-neek.

"A Knife in the Dark" (II)

"The next day they began to steer a steady course eastwards; and still all was quiet and peaceful".

And that is all I have to read for today, which is good, because today it was a day to spend with family: my mum's birthday! So, on October 1st, all goes well for the hobbits.