"Strider" - Ben's Thoughts

"Fellowship" Book 1 kicks into high gear with this chapter. Aragorn has officially arrived, and he's managed to shake things up for our Hobbits. Finally, someone to talk some sense into them. I understand Jacob's point that Strider manages to underscore my complaints about the Hobbits' stupidity to this point in "avoiding" the Black Riders, and that the reader's frustration was probably Tolkien's intent, but Frodo & Co. still make me want to shake some sense into them. Fortunately Strider is here to do the job for me.

Right from the outset -- Strider's sudden and unaccountable appearance in the Hobbits' room -- Strider comes across as about 200% more competent than these silly Hobbits. He manages to put them entirely off balance by just saying a few simple sentences (except for, possibly, Pippin, who to this point has an off-putting "whatever, man" attitude about this whole trip). The really lovely thing about this initial introduction of our favorite mysterious Ranger is just how much personality he has. He snarks off to the Hobbits, insults them, but also expresses his sincere desire to help them. Far from your typical stoic fantasy hero or sour, angsty "Savior of the World" type from modern grimdark fantasy, Aragorn is lively and interesting, exhibiting an interesting mix of world-weariness, grim humor, and overwhelming self-confidence. Look there -- Tolkien managed to characterize Aragorn better in one chapter than he has for Merry and Pippin (and practically the other two Hobbits as well) in the entire rest of the book!

What is interesting to me with this picture of Strider's confidence and charisma is how different I remember him being from the distant, cold, and lordly Aragorn of Book 3 especially. I know it's that whole "responsibility" thing that he assumes as heir apparent of the kingdoms of Men, but I think I like him better this way. We'll see if my prediction -- that Aragorn is much more boring and remote as god-king in "Return of the King" than he is here as a scruffy Ranger -- pans out as I expect. If it does, I see it thusly: the Ranger is who Strider really is. He's a wanderer -- a leader, yes, but a wanderer all the same, not tied down to one kingdom or people, but adventuring hither and yon to champion the cause of justice. How heroic! Makes me wonder what kind of a king he would actually be. I know Tolkien believes in the do-no-wrong variety of prophesized hereditary kings, but it seems like he would be a far better wanderer than ruler (a la Robert Baratheon in Game of Thrones -- a far better warrior than monarch).

Along those same lines, did anyone know that Strider was originally conceived of as a Hobbit himself? Yes, "Strider" was once named "Trotter," and was a overly-tall Hobbit who helps the gang (Frodo was named "Bingo" in this early draft of LOTR) get to Rivendell. Perhaps all this personality is just "Trotter" carrying over. It's interesting to think that Tolkien didn't originally conceive of LOTR as an epic about (at least in part) a king trying to reclaim his kingdom. How different it would be without Aragorn. His quest is one of two main narrative threads going forward, and one that (in my mind) almost engulfs the far more important "Ring" quest in later books.

Now a few examples of just how awesome Strider is. I almost laughed out loud when Frodo was babbling on to Butturbur about the identity and origin of the Black Riders, and Strider just cuts through all the crap: "They come from Mordor." No time for beating around the bush. And what about this speech about why the Hobbits need him:

"'You may escape from Bree, and be allowed to go forward while the Sun is up; but you won't go far. They will come on you in the wild, in some dark place where there is no help. Do you wish them to find you? They are terrible!'"

Gives me the shivers. Finally, a nice Hobbit-slam: "'It would take more than a few days, or weeks, or years, of wandering in the Wild to make you look like Strider . . . And you would die first, unless you are made of sterner stuff than you look to be.'" Burn!

Now to address the narrative. I had remembered that the Hobbits received a letter from Gandalf c/o Butturbur in this chapter, but I forgot that the reason that Frodo didn't receive it earlier was because Butturbur had forgotten to send someone to the Shire with it. That's awfully convenient. While I was reading the letter, I found myself wondering whether it was necessary from a narrative standpoint at all. It does give Butturbur something to do, and I agree with Eric that he is a fun and memorable character (the first of all the stout innkeepers populating every fantasy novel ever!), but wouldn't the tension have been increased if the Hobbits hadn't received a letter and were left in the dark about whether Strider had their best interests at heart? Butturbur's counsel to leave Strider out of it might have borne more weight, then.

I agree with Jacob, though, that Aragorn's poem is lovely. This is what a poem should look like -- short, powerful, and memorable. Without the letter, the poem would have had to wait until Rivendell. It's nice to get a little foreshadowing of the arc Aragorn will take in later books.

On the Black Riders: Aragorn says that "their power is terror," and that they would not dare assault the inn directly, relegating them to more of an existential threat even at this advanced stage. If I'm remembering correctly, they remain that way throughout all of this book -- Aragorn is able to drive them away in the next chapter with a torch, and the same happens in the next book when they confront the raging fords after Frodo safely crosses. It makes them both less and more sinister, which is, I imagine, what Tolkien was aiming at. They were never meant to represent a physical threat. It's too bad that our cultural understanding of the Nazgûl is now irrevocably colored by Jackson's trilogy.

I did have one question, though, about their MO: If Merry is bewitched by the Riders when he is exploring outside the inn, and they are about to whisk him away, why would they do so if they knew (presumably, by the point that they were standing directly over him) that he didn't have the Ring? And why would they stop and leave him when Nob shouts? Who cares about Nob? What's he going to do?

It would be remiss of me to end my commentary without noting that Frodo finally, FINALLY gets a bit of physical description in this chapter. Apparently he is "'[A] stout little fellow with red cheeks. . . . taller than some and fairer than most, and he has a cleft in his chin: perky chap with a bright eye.'" That… is not terribly helpful, actually. I guess I'll take it. Merry and Pippin are still non-entities.

Onward into the Wild!