Little correction! The three elven rings were made after the One Ring, not before. I got my rings mixed up lol. Thanks to the folks that pointed it out!
We can blame both Jackson and Bakshi for condensing their prologues in the same way, creating a weird alternative canon in pop culture. They could have spent the extra two sentences describing it. "It started with the forging of the great rings. Made by the elves to preserve the splendor of the ancient world. But they had all been deceived, for the dark lord in the fires of mount doom crafted the master ring... [Etc]. One by one the free peoples of middle earth fell under his domination. And he captured the rings, claiming them as his own, and he gifted them to the kings of dwarves and men, to bring them under his control. But there were some who resisted... A last alliance of men and elves... [Etc]."
Also, all 19 (minus The One) were for elves. Three made in secret, without Sauron. But the original 16 were also for elves. Sauron recaptured the 16 when he sacked Eregion and redistributed them. They became for other races AFTER Sauron retrieved them from the elves. The poem that tells how many went to each race came after the rings had been redistributed.
Needle-scratch. The Three Rings were made last [of the lesser Rings of Power, edit for clarity], by Celebrimbor alone, probably while Sauron was off making The One in Mordor. And to be clear, the rings were not intended for use by Dwarves or Men. That was just the backup plan Sauron had to go to after the initial plan of dominating Elves trough their rings had failed.
+1. The timeline on production of the various rings is thus: 1. Lesser rings. These were the first made, and were the equivalent of "starter" or "apprentice-level" rings. Sauron assisted in the making of these. They had very limited powers, but Gandalf believed that they were still perilous for Mortals to own. 2. The Rings of Power - - the Seven and the Nine. These were made by the Elven-smiths with the assistance of Sauron. They were not specifically made for Men or for Dwarves, but for Elves. 3. The Three Rings. These were made by Celebrimbor working alone, with no assistance by Sauron at all. They, too, were made only for elves. 4. The One Ring. Made by Sauron alone at Mt. Doom. He poured much of his power into this ring so as to control all the others. This included the Three, even though he had no hand in their making - - they were still made using his techniques, and thus fell under the power of the One Ring. When he put on the One Ring, the Elves were instantly aware of it and took off the rings that they possessed. Sauron made war on the Elves to take all of the Rings back - - he recovered the Seven and the Nine, and gave them as gifts to the Dwarves and to Men, hoping to ensnare them, but only succeeded with Men.
I guess that the rings given to the Dwarves and Men could be seen as a backup plan, but Tolkien certainly doesn't describe any plan to distribute them to others than Dwarves and Men. "The Elves took off their rings" is what he told us. That could mean just the Three, but it is also possible that there were more for the Elves that were destroyed or buried and not numbered with the Three, Seven, or Nine.
What I find interesting is how Celebrimbor making the three rings showed what they could be capable of without Sauron's influence. Of all the rings Sauron directly had a hand in making, one of their primary features appears to be magnifying the wearer's ambitions, ultimately to their ruin, such as how the dwarves accumulated so much gold they brought dragons upon themselves and the men desired power and longevity, which they got by ultimately turning into wraiths. But the three eleven rings worked pretty much as advertised without any drawbacks. With them, Elrond and Galadriel preserved their lands and Gandalf inspired hope in all he came across. But even if they were a more pure form of Sauron's design, because it was his design they still had the same "backdoor feature" that would have allowed him to ensare the bearers wills' just as the seven and nine were supposed to, provided he got the one ring back. It's a fascinating game the ring bearers' had to play
Tolkien noticed something CRITICAL and interesting about power. It does not exist concentrated, with no external manifestation and accoutrements. In all history we always see those who wield power having had to set up various institutions to implement and continue their reign. Often these same powerful people suffer their own downturn due to the operation of these outside mechanisms.
I like this! I never saw the ring as a symbol for, basically, the bureaucracy and oligarchs who he would otherwise need in order to rule if he wasn’t one of the Ainur.
Tolkien, at the time, had the best example of this from the failed Third Reich and their quest for complete domination for not only Europe, but the world as a whole.
I want to know more about those minor rings that were “mere essays into the craft”. Like, maybe one prevents diabetes, or helps you recover from a workout, or makes you a good cook.
Every one of the greater Rings basically just granted power according to the user's desire - staved off world-weariness and the fading of magic for the Elves, multiplied riches for the Dwarves, and enhanced political control and lifespan among Men. Presumably the lesser Rings would do the same with a lower degree of efficacy.
You are entering Douglas Adams territory. 😁 How about a ring of the power to perfectly reliably prevent halitosis? ... It could easily dual-function as a wedding ring.
How about one to enable an author to finish a series for which he finished the first seven of nine planned volumes but then struggled with writer's block for the next 12 years trying to get the 6th volume done?
There may come a day when Jess of the Shire is demonetized, but THIS IS NOT THAT DAY! There may be a force mighty enough to take her gold, but Peter Jackson is not that force! There may be a rule of three in epic speechifying, but... I only had two!
tolkein had a very death-positive message tucked away in many spots in his books, always gently reminding us that death is inevitable, but not inherently bad. the immortal creatures suffer more than many mortals simply in their timelessness
The Ring can be seen as a cypher for the message that evil always contains the seeds of its own destruction. It was the sheer intensity of the desire to possess it, instilled by the Ring itself, that motivated Gollum to follow Frodo to the Crack Of Doom, to take it from him, and then to dance about 'like a mad thing' on a narrow shelf above a pit of molten lava. No divine push needed, Gollum was so overjoyed at getting his 'precious' back he completely forgot about the danger one false step could put him in.
I think that "evil defeats itself" is central to Tolkien's u-catastrophe idea. Gollum, one of the most vile, despicable creatures in the story, certainly an agent of evil if not wholly evil himself, delivers the fatal blow in a moment of sheer joy/relief, having succeeded in his purely selfish goal. Likewise, Gollum inadvertently prevented both Sauron and Saruman from retrieving the ring from the Gladden, simply out of fear/hate of the sun/moon light. Gollum also leads Bildo to the back gate whilst hoping to catch and murder him. Almost everything that Gollum does backfires eventually to the benefit of the good guys.
yeah, I've always loved this notion as is rather than the letters and correspondences of Lucas-like over-leaning into agency of, well, Illuvutar or the great creator made him trip! I mean Gollum was definitely Ring of power-tripping (not the fanfic show), I like that Good is its own karma and invisible hand rather than the overt Greek god in the sky like Zeus playing around with puny mortals in real time in OG Clash of the Titans! This just provoked a train of thought, man!
I just want to say that your style of delivery, of speaking, is just a joy to listen to. Thank you for taking the time to create and share these wonderful video essays 😊
My theory is that all of the rings Sauron had a hand in making did the same thing. They gave the wielder what their race desired most. Dwarves wanted gold, and so the rings gave them gold. Men feared death and wanted power; thus, extended lives and rulership. Hobbits want to hide away, and because they're a type of men, they too fear death; hence, invisibility and extended life. If Hobbits were given other rings, it would have similar results. The One Ring has this property of bestowing what the wielder wants while also being able to control the other rings. When Sauron wears it, he doesn't become invisible, but he is stronger. Tom Bombadil is immune to the ring because he wants for nothing.
Interesting interpretation, but (correct me if I'm wrong) even great Men like Isildur turned invisible when using the One. Because it isn't actually invisibility, it's escaping into the wraith world. So my interpretation is that Maiar like Gandalf, Sauron, and probably just exceptionally strong beings like Galadriel, have a strong spiritual presence and thus would still have a visible appearance in wraith form, but Men are very material beings and thus leave no sign.
Tom Bobaldil wants nothing? Thats not true. He just doesn't need more power to get what he wants. So the ring can't make him promises. The ring uses desires and your wish to have the power to achieve them to manipulate the holder.
This is definitely a part of it! Invisibility is a separate ability though, since it works on everybody. But it preys on people's natural inclinations and desires, and that definitely dictates some of what it is capable of.
12:11 no he didn't have to fight, but Gollum didn't just hand it over as a prize...the Ring was the proposed prize, but since Bilbo had already accidentally found the thing in the dark, and it was already in his pocket, instead of owning up to already having it and because he was in a tight place, he said nothing and asked to be led out of the caves, which Gollum, none the wiser, did. Tolkien put the original Riddle Game denouement in the Prologue, for all those people who still had the copies of The Hobbit before it was retconned and reissued... But it is important to know that even in the original version, Gollum never handed the Ring over.
My assumption with only inductive inference, is that the ring was originally intended to psychically link Sauron with the users of the other rings, through the underlying spirit realm in which elves and Ainur inhabit. However, when Sauron (an immensely powerful being) pours his own essence into The One ring to supercharge it, then it also was charged with His Will (his personality). The reason all beings crave the ring, and crave the power of the ring, is because of Sauron's innate lust for power and control. Smeagol wants blackmail and selfish hordes, Boromir wants to unify Gondor in victorious war. Galadriel wants to be a Noldorian Queen. Sam wants to create a super-garden in all Mordor. But these are all tempting "lies" because Sauron's very personality is naïve. Sauron in his core was naïve and a fool. Thinking that Power and Control would bring about a perfect orderly world. So the ring (being made of his essence) psychically promotes that same flaw to anyone near it. It was never intended to seduce people, like a drug, or trick - because Sauron never intended to lose it. The effect of causing people to be tempted by power was a complete accident, or coincidence. The same with the other lesser 16 rings. They were designed just to be a psychic hack into the minds of the elves, but when The One ring was made to superceded them they became driven by that personality flaw. The flaw of Sauron. The flaw of thinking that control and order could and should be attained by power and force. Gandalf by contrast - being truly wise - also rallies armies to his cause, but instead by inspiring people. Not by domination or force. So there it is. The power of the ring is an accidental pollution on the potential wearer, of the personality flaw of Sauron, which was poured into it upon its creation, as it was the only thing Sauron had access to which was strong enough to do the job - his own Ainur essence.
Thanks. I've been reading this stuff for years and never found an explanation for Author meets character meets object that I could rest on. Knowing what I know about the world and the author (which isn't everything) - this at least makes sense without contradiction.
I like this idea, as a software developer all too often flaws exist in the final product. And I like the idea that the most powerful make mistakes, like an exhaust port for some space base 😉. I personally prefer the idea that Sauron created the ring to stroke the shizer out of his ego. An eternal happiness, built on lies, built on others. Something material to make him feel complete. From that, the "power" of the ring manifests itself. Invisibility representing an ego free from judgment except from itself.
good explanation. But I stay Sauron wanted to see panties. It's an invisibility ring. All he wanted was getting into the womens dresser room. When did the ring give power to anyone who didn't already had the power they got? Sauron is a pervert and the LotR is an anecdote on modern wokeism. 🤣 Makes more sense because it's the simpler and more direct interpretation. No need to span a bow over two continents.
@@JackChurchill101 I continue preaching my stuff )). I believe that what you said is correct but must be reversed. The visions of great changes are not secondary to power and control, but, on the contrary, they are the primary source of all evil and loss in Tolkien's universe. He was a retrograde, after all ). But seriously, from the very beginning Melkor had a desire to get the holy fire from Iluvatar (or at least a piece of it). And that holy fire was creativity. Melkor always wanted to create, and he tried to change the Music creating his own world. Later, Melkor and Sauron both wanted to change the world to their liking. This vision is not even described in the books as it's not the primary focus of them. But we can read that "Evil can't create". It's not a contradiction. Just no one can create anything in Tolkin's universe except Iluvatar. The fate of all the others is to follow the course of His creation as iit unfolds in time. If you want to contradict it, you inevitably do evil (even if you wish to do good). So Sauron's lust for power is actually his lust for creation and transformation, and this is exactly what is in the Ring. Moreover, I believe that the Ring was Sauron, and whoever wore it was possessed by him (though possession doesn't mean mind control - I believe that the soul, or spirit is acually what is written in the Creation for a person / creature to do or to be. Being possessed by Sauron, the spirit of deceit (deception is also a change of the natural course of events, thus it's evil), meant that a person was given an insatiable desire to change the world, and to a large extent, to deceive the others - hence invisibility.
I think you missed out on a big part of the ring symbol, or at least you didn't address it. Rings represent oaths. A king gives rings to those seeking his favor, and in accepting, each becomes the king's man. This is where the idea of wedding rings comes from: the oath-taking, the vow. While the rings are given as gifts, they are actually contracts with obligations, with Heaven as the witness. Forswearing your oath was held to be a great evil. Seeing things this way, you could say that the Men given rings did not die because Sauron willed them to remain alive and in service, so they must. If the dwarven rings made them endlessly dig for wealth, then that too would have been the will of Sauron, that they were compelled to fulfill. But the ring-giver has an oath as well, to be a good king, as we see with the kings in LotR. It is very hard to hold a powerful king to his oath, and great evil happens when he does not, for all in the kingdom are bound to him by oaths. The potential for ruin is immense. Anyway, maybe everybody gets this and that why hardly anyone ever talks about it, because it's so obvious, or ... people don't talk about it because they aren't aware of the custom, or simply aren't putting 2 + 2 together.
Gandalf mentioned that the one ring and by extension the other rings of power could only give power in the boundaries and abilites of their bearers. In Smeagol's case it made him more in addition to making im invisible more aware of sectres and how to use them. If I remember correctly Frodo asked him why he couldn't see or behold the other ringbearers thoughts maybe even influence them and Gandalf answered that Frodo would be destroyed if he tried because it would be a feat far beyond Frodo's abilities.
Very true, though that last bit of advice was from Galadriel. But Frodo did have the inherent strength to use the ring to dominate Gollum - most clearly on the slopes of Mount Doom.
And another interesting point is that Frodo did not spot the hidden Ring of Fire on Gandalf's hand. As I recall, Galadriel is saying that Frodo's abilities with the Ring are growing, so that by the time he meets her, he is aware she also has a ring of power, though only when he is close up. But presumably that was not the case, a very short time before, when Frodo last saw Gandalf, confronting the Balrog. If there was any time that Gandalf might need to use that Ring, it surely was then. But no apparent reaction from Frodo. Even Tolkien nods a bit.
Boromir used the ring in his mind, so much that he became obsessed with possessing it and we all know the end result. Interesting how Boromir does not even have to have physical possession of it for its evil to work
There's definitely a 2 fold power to the ring. It's addictive, but it also has a draw beyond that, something that pulls in even the folks that have never touched it.
Well every characters that encountered Frodon during his journey felt the tentation even Gandalf and Galadriel and Faramir. Faramir knew his brother fell for the ring and despite that he was very kind with Frodon and let him go. I mean Faramir is very underrated imo he could have easily taken the ring for himself...
The ring symbolizes the sin that led Eve to fall, which was curiosity and the desire for power to gain knowledge. This ultimately resulted in the death of her, her husband who followed her, and their descendants for eternity. The righteous will regain immortal bodies in the next world, while the wicked inherit ruin. Tolkien based much of his book on The Bible.
@@Donavon551 I dont think Gollum was really searching for knowledge when he first commit a crime for his precious. Maybe after but he basically found nothing...
For a long time, every few years I start reading The Lord of the Rings on my birthday. Both because it begins with Bilbo's birthday party, and because it's like a old friend that I look forward to visiting with in the shade of a summertime tree. And, of course, another visit that I have come to look forward to is here, on your channel. I was, and am, very glad to have discovered it; your eloquence, intelligence, and love of fantasy and whimsy have provided many enjoyable hours for me and for many others. So, as Monday marked for me the start of yet another read-through, I just wanted to take the opportunity again to genuinely wish you endless success and happiness with your channel, and with all your journeys along the "One Road," as Bilbo would say. Now everybody, duke it out in the comments! To me, the One Ring is the embodiment of Sauron's ability to command and influence. It is not his will, per se, but rather his ability to effect his will on others. This is why, when it was destroyed, his forces scattered, no longer compelled to obey his cruel orders. He was not destroyed by this act, but rendered impotent, and unable to control anything at all in the world. He was reduced to an insubstantial remnant, fated to watch helplessly as the world forgot him, unable to have any effect on it.
"rather his ability to effect his will on others." Id put it like this: Its a tool that manipulates by promising power and enabling your desires, yet it turns you into a tool for Sauron. I wonder how it would have affected characters like gandalf or galadriel? Would they be to able to utilize its power against Sauron? Why didn't it affect Tom Bombardil at all?
@@nostalji93 I believe G&G would have become the people Sauron wanted them to be. Though they would think they were acting of their own will, they would still be manipulated by Sauron's, and working in his best interest, and in their pride they would be unable to recognize or accept that. Keep in mind that everything they talk about is just their own conjecture. They believe they could use the ring to defeat him, but there is no real evidence to think that's correct. Only their own confidence makes them think it so. Tom, I've come to think, was added to LotR merely to be a colorful part of an interesting interlude, there's nothing more to it than that. I don't think Tolkien put a tremendous amount of thought into his place in the greater mythology. He was a favorite character of Tolkien's, and he wanted to include him somehow, but he didn't fit into any of the lore he had been devising. He literally existed before Middle-Earth was given shape, in Tolkien's other works, so when he tells his story it is actually somewhat cleverly true. The Ring has no power because he's really not a part of its story; he comes from somewhere else, somewhere older. But it's still fun to imagine who he might be, I just don't think Tolkien could have given us an answer, or would have wanted to.
@@williampalmer8052Yes about TB. He was from an old poem that Tolkien wrote that he never expected to get published but that Tolkien loved so much that he added him into LotR just so Tom could exist out in the world. Even though the character couldn't be rectified within that literary realm.
@@nostalji93 I think as far as Tom Bombadil is concerned, other commenters have called it. Tom is both self-contained, and an embodiment of the natural order. As such (as least in Tolkien's thought) he has no aspirations to control anything beyond himself, or to enhance his own native strength (which is a mastery of nature itself). So the ring has nothing to gain a hold over him, because he has already everything he desires. In addition, he probably has some quality of natural resilience, of physicality over spirituality, which resists him being drawn into the spirit world, and so he does not become invisible. But I should add that to my knowledge Tolkien never elaborated any more than what was said at the Council of Elrond, and even that was presented as speculation.
Respect for the nearly perfect pronunciation of all those Wagner titles. As a native German speaker, I rarely hear it like that in English speaking videos or productions.
There's still a good way to go for perfection. On this topic, though, I was impressed by the improvement of a US journalist eventually pronouncing the name "Wagenknecht" near-perfectly after first attempts sounded more like "Wagganaught". 🤭
@@Jess_of_the_Shire German directness incomming: Your "Götterdämmerung" sounded for me like "Goethedämmerung" and I asked myself what our Poet Goethe had to do with it. (I have the video on in the background) But the "Dämmerung" Part was great :D
The Three were made before the One. The book says (paraphrased) "as soon as Sauron set the one ring on his finger the elves were aware of him." Further: Sauron, knowing he was betrayed and his plans thwarted, came against the Elves with open war, demanding the Elven rings be delivered to him as they could not have achieved them without his lore. They took off their rings and fled from him. Further: why would the Elves craft the three mightiest rings the world had ever seen if they knew the One would rule them??? Even it was said it would be better if the Three had never been made. I'll agree the timeline is somewhat vague, however. But the Three MUST have been completed before Sauron put the One on his finger.
10:56 I love this description of the Ring’s effect on him by Bilbo… this quote was the only way I could describe how I felt when I started feeling the symptoms of chronic illnesses I didn’t yet know I had. I didn’t know what it was exactly that I felt, only that I felt like “butter that has been scraped over too much bread.” Ever since Tolkien (through Bilbo) gave me the words I needed to express how terrible I felt, I’ve felt like I can imagine better than I used to the effects of the Ring. I’m pretty sure Sauron enjoyed the idea that the Ring (and the lesser rings controlled by it) drained mortals of vitality even as they still lived, until they were mere shadows of themselves.
I was at my only cousin's wedding on Tuesday. For the Pre-Ceremony, she had a few tracks from 'The Hobbit' soundtrack, and for the 'Exit' it was played out with 'Concerning Hobbits' by Howard Shore. Due to me and my siblings Tolkien upbringing, it only seemed to be further confirmation that we were definitely related😄
The One Ring (WIP) D&D 5e stats 1. Advantage on all a. Skill b. Ability checks c. All attack rolls d. saves 2. Proficient a. All skills b. All saves 3. Expertise in a. Perception b. investigation c. insight 4. Other stuff a. Hit points raised to maximize b. see invisible objects c. Slowed aging d. Improved invisibility i. For Sauron at will ii. For everyone BUT Sauron only when worn 1. Ring MUST be removed to become visibile e. Raises armor class base to 18 f. +4 to proficiency bonus 5. Bad stuff a. Slowly corrupts the wearer to see himself as the most important figure alive (when they have the ring). b. Hinders sleeping and resting; eventually several levels of fatigue set in if the ring is worn, or is on the person.
I have always believed that the one ring was self aware, which explains how it becomes larger slipping off a finger when least expected to change bearers in its effort to return to Sauron.
@@gretchenmiller3639 Me too. Gollum wanted to stay underground. The Ring wanted to leave. Bilbo wanted to see mountains. The Ring had a particular mountain 'in mind'. Frodo wanted to go to Mordor. The Ring wanted to go to Mordor. Frodo wanted to cast the Ring into the cracks of Doom. The Ring 'says' "Whoa! Hold your horses there" Smeagol wanted the Ring back. ...well, we saw what happened then.
Always has been. In the books the Ring could not be given up or destroyed on purpose. The Ring has always been accidentally or forcefully taken. Bilbo would have snatched back the ring if not for Gandalf picking it up before he could. The only people the Ring did not corrupt were Isildur who was about to give the ring to Elrond and Ciardin when he was slain. The other was Tom Bombadil who was not just immune to the ring , but able to give it up once holding it.
It's fun to go back through the books after you realize that Frodo actually gains some awareness of the other ring-bearers as he goes along. The voice on Amon Hen telling him "Fool, take it off!" is clearly Gandalf's, and is the first hint in the story that he isn't permanently dead.
I wonder how many ppl know that Annatar sounds VERY finnish (Tolkien read Finnish folklore in native language). Anna - (obv a common name too) is like derivation from the verb "antaa" = to give. -Tar is the feminine ending to status titles, (Queen = KuningaTAR, whereas king is kuningas). Sauron using name Annatar (= Lord of gifts) sounds like a Generous Lady in finnish
I had never considered the point of view that the Ring was already influencing Frodo and making him feel threatened by Bilbo asking - very interesting to think of it that way!
It's not that the One Ring had no power over the three greatest Elven-rings, which weren't really that special. It's that their wise bearers perceived the connection with Sauron when he donned the One Ring and thus took them off so that he couldn't read their minds or corrupt them like the Nine. Later on, Gandalf, Elrond and Galadriel are able to wear their rings all the time because the One is not being regularly worn and never by a powerful being.
One thing that I noticed that I think everyone subconsciously understands but nobody really says outright: Gollum is the one who defeated Sauron. Not intentionally, not knowingly, and not heroically, but just incidentally; Sauron couldn't be defeated by anyone who was good. It took a corrupted, destroyed, greedy, malevolent creature in a surge of his violent madness to defeat Sauron. No good, or even human, person would be able to. Only an evil being acting in an evil way could destroy the evil of Sauron and the ring.
Mm, I'd rather say that the Ring was hoist by its own petard, as a few others have said. It's pretty much the same, content-wise, but the phrasing of your last sentence could be interpreted as saying that evil had to exist. Which I'm sure Tolkien would never want to imply in his writing.
@@NemisCassander I am not sure, evil is the result of free will and makes stories more interesting, so I think evil HAD to exist or at least evil made the world less boring than it would had been as a perfect utopia.
@@ManuelAngelMartin-om4xy I can understand how someone can believe that, but Tolkien certainly didn't. I will grant you that the possibility of evil is inherent in free will, of course. But to say that evil necessarily exists goes far beyond that.
@@NemisCassanderI don't know, I believe "evil" (being that which would go against the will of God/Eru) does not HAVE to exist in Tolkien's work, but it existing is ultimately part of Eru's plan, and thus, its existence makes the creation of Eru more colorful and beautiful. That was what I read from Eru incorporating Melkor's discord into the song of the Ainur. Evil doesn't have to exist, but even it, the direct rebellion against Eru, is merely another tool to enact his perfect plan.
Gollum is evil but for some reason he's *not* drawn to power. I always figured that Gollum's somewhat unusual response to the Ring was the Ring's doing, as part of its plan--but maybe it wasn't. Maybe Gollum was the kind of being who was only corruptible in this really small-time, inept way, and that ultimately kept the Ring hidden away for a long time against its will and maybe even destroyed it in the end. We're told that Gollum was originally some close variant of a hobbit, after all. Maybe the hobbityness of this villain is as important as it existing in some of the heroes.
Years ago I was reading Icelandic sagas, when I realized the ring in the story was an arm ring. Wheather it was for the wrist or upper arm I don’t remember. But now many magic rings for DnD are arm rings not finger rings
1 - A minor point: Sauron's plan was foiled when he put on the Ruling Ring and the three elven ringbearers sensed its power and took theirs off. He wasn't counting on being detected. 2 - As to using a magical ring which confers invisibility in order to evade accountability: today all you'd need is a Supreme Court ruling. 3 - Tolkien seems to be restating a teaching of Christ: What shall it profit a man if he should gain the world and lose his soul? 4 - I'd like a ring which shuts out all noise and distraction. The trouble is, a lot of it's coming from my own mind. Better learn to meditate... 5 - Love how you keep coming up with new, inventive ways to segue into your sponsor.
Another interesting interpretation of 1 is that Sauron was surprised that the Elves would give up the power of their rings. That decision foreshadows the decision of the Council of Elrond to attempt to destroy the One Ring, which also surprises Sauron.
@@cally77777 I started using noise-canceling earbuds on the bus and I find that they have a strange and uncomfortable side effect: when the noise cancellation is on, my brain keeps telling me that my ears are clogged up and not equalizing pressure (I have this problem for real on airplanes, very frequently). Somehow I've instinctively associated a loss of hearing in an inherently noisy environment with an uncomfortable physical condition, and I can actually *feel* it. It's very odd. Turning off the noise cancellation immediately fixes the problem... but then, of course, I can't hear my music very well. I suppose it reminds me a little of how Frodo feels while he's using the Ring.
Always impressed with the way you pronounce Tolkien's names - but I just now, hearing you say "Sauron" a number of times, realized I can do it too and has always been able to! Here is my step by step tutorial: Step 1 - Pronounce it in finlandssvenska. That's it.
Very good video, Jess. Interesting, and quite detailed. Minor corrections are no worry, with the crew of deep fans here to point them out. Two questions: why was Sauron unable to know that the ring was being used by Gollum, repeatedly and often, and thereby know its location? And, why were the ring wraiths "afraid" of people and fighting, if they couldn't be killed? Why wouldn't they continue a house-by-house search and destruction of Bree, for example, in their quest for the ring (after being fooled by Aragorn)?
First question: Sauron's ability to sense the presence of the One Ring is limited by geography. He can sense it when it is claimed in the nearby Sammath Naur, but not when it is deep in caves under the Misty Mountains far away. That thing with Sauron seeing Frodo in the Prancing Pony common room in the Jackson film introduces a plot hole that Tolkien's story doesn't have. Second question: One part of the Nazgûls' fear was an instinctual one, but they also had rational reasons to worry about fighting. If they lost their horses, e.g., they would be slowed down greatly. They were also on a stealth mission and wanted to avoid attracting attention - when news came to Rivendell that the Nine were in the area, Elrond sent people like Glorfindel out, someone they fled from every time they met him. But finally, they certainly could be harmed (as they were on at least two occasions), and forced to return shapeless to Mordor to be given a new shape to wear. The Rangers had the strength of will to resist Nazgûl fear, and in the barrows were blades capable of destroying their forms. Who knows what weapons might have been forged by skilled foes, or come down through the ages? It just takes one lucky blow to ruin their chance of recovering the Ring.
Sauron wasn't alive when Gollum had the ring being resurrected by a Necromancer during Bilbo's Journey according to The Questionably Canon Hobbit Trilogy. Fellowship of the Ring Movie started with Gollum being interrogated by Mordor to reveal "Shire Baggins" so it's clear that Sauron knew about Gollum. The plothole was Bilbo using the ring at the party after that it consistently puts Sauron & Nazgul Gaze upon Frodo when used. I do question why the Ring couldn't be brought to the Pure Lands that Frodo & Bilbo go to after its destruction.
First of all, it's been way too long since I've had the chance to watch a Parttime Hobbit/Jess of the Shire video. Life got in the way the past year, so I have a lot of catching up to do on your channel. Excellent video essay as always! Another critical text of Northern European Ring Lore that you might find interesting which was one of the great influences on Tolkien's thinking is "The Magic Ring" by the Baron de la Motte Fouque, which has been republished and edited by Dr. Amy Sturgis. I would love to see Jess do a deep dive into it with comparisons and contrasts to The Lord of the Rings.
You are such a good story teller. I dont know if you practice what you are going to say, but it sounds like it just flows out of you magically. Its such a cool talent. Thanks for what you do.
I vaguely remember one character saying something like "with the Ring, anything is possible, so long as your desire to wield it is great enough." Although it may have been Boromir who said that, with his source being "I saw it in a dream."
Yeah, the ring deceives people into thinking stuff like that. Just like it deceives people into murdering each other over it. But the One Ring is specifically meant to be in his Master's hand. He is the only one with a will enough to dominate all the others.
I sometimes daydream about having the magical ability to speak and understand every language. It could be a nice fit for a ring, and the ultimate companion for a teleporting ring.
My Hobbit Ring of Power has one ability - To add flavor to otherwise bland food. Now my rice, my beans, and all my sauces are flavored to perfection. I was once a bean pole at 6 feet 160 pounds. The ring has granted me unnaturally tasty food and a big ole pot belly ;-( It is precious to me
Would be funny if the ring was just a decoy, Sauron put his power into a less obvious artifact, and the "corruption" was just the characters suffering the nocebo effect.
Another fine video from you--I really enjoy your insights into Tolkien and his works. Regarding the power of the Ring, at the Council of Elrond, Boromir advocates using the Ring against Sauron. But Elrond replies, "Alas, no...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...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..."
I loved your observation that by creating the Ring, Sauron also created the means by with another could overthrow him. I had not thought of that before; I think Tolkein would have liked it.
According Cory Olson, Bilbo didn’t transform. Frodo saw him that way, but based on Bilbo’s reaction, Frodo is the person who seemed to change and for the first time, Bilbo sees how it affects people and feels badly that Frodo has to bear it. This was on the Exploring TLOTR podcast.
And typically Peter Jackson amped this up to 11, when he had Bilbo quite physically and suddenly transform, and gave us all a jump scare. I mean it was fine in the context of that context of that film. But I can see how it could be done differently, with a focus on Frodo, so that we feel that we're seeing the apparent transformation of Bilbo from his point of view, maybe with a fade/blur film effect.
Good video! I've also thought about the Ring of Gyges as a precursor to The One Ring. One of Plato's contemporaries, Aristotle, also suggested a morality where character traits could be in balance (bravery) or out of balance (rashness and cowardice). It seems to me like the rings of power all operate on this principle as well, tempting and offering the quality you want most: riches to the dwarves, an ability to hide even in plain sight to a hobbit, power to the ambitious such as the human kings, and to all mortals an extension of life. But it also takes your character out of balance. The dwarves became rich but also greedy, ruining themselves with dragons. The men rather than powerful immortal dictators became enslaved wraiths. Gollum hid himself from danger to the point of becoming a pitiful monster living in a cave. Similar to a King Midas, or a genie in a lamp who gives you a little too much of what you wanted. I'm also struck by the similarity between the greed and paranoia of the Ring and the temptation of the Dark Side in Star Wars. If you strive to hold on to what's not yours then getting what you want is only the beginning of your problems. Now you have to keep it, and become paranoid of enemies real or imagined who might take it away from you. That encourages you to hoard as much power as you can to defend the power you've been hoarding, lashing out in fear and anger, until it inevitably twists you into a villain then ends badly.
Very entertaining analysis. I appreciate the thoughtful work you invested in the content of the video. From a long term fan of the Tolkien books and Middle Earth lore
One of my 2 favorite scenes from LOTR was when Sam had the ring and it tried to seduce him with visions of power. He basically laughed at the absurdity of lordly power, showing why only a hobit could be the Ring Bearer. The other great scene was when Frodo tested Galadriel, turning the tables on her.
Fantastic presentation. I arrived at a similar conclusion the other day and it’s nice to see that I’m not far off the line of more well informed enthusiasts.
That's a bad take, it implies that only one person can create something and everyone else who creates something similar is only able due to copying. I have invented things, only to find out that it has already been invented. If i was to manufacture and sell my inventions then your argument would fit logically, but it does not make it true.
You forgot the "In the darkness bind them". Frodo uses this on Gollum to bind his service (for a time), well I guess Gollum used this on himself technically as he swore upon the ring. I guess you mentioned it with binding the Humans and Dwarfs to his will, but this was one of the few examples in the books where that power was directly used by someone other than Sauron.
I think when talking about the inspirations Tolkien had for LOTR it would be nice to mention Finnish folklore and mythology. Not only because the Finnish Kalevala, folklore and language impacted and inspired the stories (heavily), but also because these tales are far lesser-known than most old norse /greek myths that I see mentioned! :)
I believe in the Arabian nights there were some magic rings connected to genies. Well, some genies were connected to magic lamps, there were others connected to rings. But then again, it’s been probably 25 years since I read the Arabian nights, so I may be mistaken.
In the original (well, earliest-written) story of Aladdin, there is both a ring-genie and a lamp-genie. (Oddly, "Aladdin" was added to the 1001 Nights in the 1700s by a French translator, who apparently got it from the Syrian storyteller Hanna Diyab--it wasn't in the text before then.)
My ring would give the ability to see a person's inner beauty, like in the movie Shallow Hal. Not only would one be able to know what one was dealing with, it would also mean the really good potential partners would also be incredibly hot.
I love all of your videos, especially when they touch on the subject of an author’s thoughts. I mean, as a writer, I’ve definitely rewrote parts of the stories I’m working on due to thoughts I’ve had or perfect names coming to me. I have no doubt many authors would edit and add new material to published work if given the opportunity. If I had a ring of power, what power would I wish for? I think I like the idea of understanding and being able to speak in all languages and knowing their nuances. Language is fascinating to me, in every form, even, most especially the curse words, for the flavor.
@@stephenwooten8661Bombadil trick him its not really like Frodon give it to him and he offered it to Galadriel but not sure he would have give it to her in the end
@cap8588 I'm not sure what you mean by tricked, he said let me see this ring and Frodo, without hesitation gave it to him. I do think he would have given the ring to Galadriel.
@@stephenwooten8661 well "let me see this ring" is not the same as "give it to me". And for Galadriel ye maybe... I said it tricks him cause he did some "magic tricks" with the ring lol
You're forgetting Tom Bombadil. He was playing around with it and even put it on. But the ring had absolutely no power whatsoever over him. He didn't even turn invisible. He voluntarily gave it back to the Hobbits.
I'd like to point out, that not only did Tolkien revise The Hobbit to make Gollum's behaviour with the Ring more suitable, he also explained revision 1 of The Hobbit WITHIN The Lord of the Rings story. In The LOTR Bilbo confesses to lying about his first encounter with Gollum, having told Gandalf and others that it was given to him; he didn't want them to think him a thief. Tolkien even goes so far as to have Bilbo mention that the lie was also in his first version of his written account of the Journey to the Lonely Mountain (because in the lore, Bilbo wrote The Hobbit, not Tolkien). I've always thought that the dedication Tolkien had to preserving the canon of his world is extraordinary.
To be fair, the Hobbits do this at great risk to themselves. Using the ring casually to avoid annoying neighbors some might argue is an abuse of that power. Unnecessary doxing, direct to Sauron. When one uses the ring a timer starts which ends after Sauron's ghouls stab you into pillow feathers & dust.
@@tjk3430 that's mostly movie lore. In the book, the nazgul only knew that the hobbits were in Bree, because they had several spies there that informed them. As Merry discovered, they were already in town before Frodo had slipped the Ring on.
@@tjk3430Bilbo didn't know what the Ring was, and Frodo could "safely" use the Ring when not near Sauron's minions, outside Mordor, or not in a seeing-chair gazing upon Sauron from afar.
I swear you’re like my favorite video essay channel another great one. Have you done a deep dive yet on the mouth of Sauron, and exactly what kind of creature he is, or the physical manifestations of him? I always wonder about his ability to linger as a body-less being and how as his power grew there became more and more physical manifestations of that. just a thought for a future video!
no one mentions the other elven ring- Nunya- the ring of commerce As for saying it more easily, you nearly did it yourself. "The more you tighten your grip, the more systems will slip through your fingers."
Hold on, hold on. What are you talking about? - The Three Rings were the last that were made. - The One Ring had power over the 3. - Gandalf took the One Ring in his own hand, before throwing it in the fire.
Also, none of the rings of power actually left Eregion until after Sauron sacked it. He took all the rings, sans the three which were forged without his knowledge, and distributed them to men and dwarves.
RE: The One Ring as Character; I'm mostly on board with this idea but I also see it as being an Organizing Principle. "One Ring to Bind Them" makes this clear and explicit, as well. The original purpose was to bind all the other rings (and those who wore them) into a common purpose as defined by Sauron, but clearly it will work equally well if no-one is wearing the Ring, which is why the Fellowship gets named in reference to it. I've also often thought that, if LOTR is an extended allegory for the 20th century then "the Ring" is meant to be interpreted purely in a symbolic and metaphorical way, and the role of "Spy Rings" in the middle 20th century was a completely confused thing with spies and counter-spies, double and even triple agents. The Secrecy aspect of the Ring as experienced by both Bilbo and Frodo (and presumably by Smeagol, early on) is another nod to the nature of human intelligence gathering; "Spy rings" use a "ring" and "cell" structure in order to evade detection.
^^ The concept of Binding is a little too easy to ignore post-1945. Take, for example, the lyric from the hymn "Bind us together / with cords that cannot be broken". Fascination, a word passed down from Latin into English, provides its ideological basis etymologically: something which binds your attention. Also, the idea of "binding to common purpose" plays a key role in any type of conspiracy, and moreover, the most successful conspiracies tend to have common features, such as ( a ) there are no more than 2 or 3 co-conspirators, with odds against success increasing exponentially with additional members, and ( b ) preventing outsiders from gaining knowledge of or insight into the conspiracy won't protect the conspiracy from internal disagreements and betrayals. It might seem a bit superstitious to focus on the symbolic role of numbers in LOTR as compared with reality, but it is a fact that 2-3 (as many as there are Elf Rings) is the most successful or stable number in this type of evaluation, and that 5 is a natural limit when it comes to human brains and our abilities to recognize patterns where there actually are patterns. That is to say, if there are 6 people (including yourself) in a conspiracy of some kind or another there are simply too many possible combinations of the other 5 people to be able to completely identify who has done what and with whom against You, should they desire to remove you from the Ring.
The ring contained Sauron's soul inside it, so he could regenerate his body should he die. It's Sauron's voice that was talking to Bilbo and Frodo and golem.
I did learn something from this video! Now for your question, I think I'd agree with you on that. Teleportation would be REALLY cool. But just keep in mind that every cool ability has its drawbacks. The one to teleporting anywhere is probably teleporting somewhere you don't want to be, or maybe even accidentally breaking the law with it. Anyways, I think this was a really cool video, and yeah!
In Tolkien's conception, the Rings of Power were a manifestation of how Tolkien viewed technology. Technology is a "force multiplier". It takes a power or an ability that is natural to us, and makes it many times more potent. We tend to think of this as an unmitigated good, and particularly in the past, people didn't think that there was much of a cost for this increase of power. Tolkien recognized dangers inherent in technology that most people still don't recognize even today, though more have come to recognize. The first danger is that in order to create this kind of force multiplier technology, what we are really doing is externalizing something of ourselves. We are taking something that is natural to us, a natural power, even a part of ourselves, and we are putting it into an external object, a machine. Tolkien recognized that this has an effect of diminishing us. We gain power through the magnification provided by the machine / technology, but we also lose something of ourselves. We gain external power, but lose something internal. This point does reflect Tolkien's view on technology, but it also generally reflects philosophically and spiritually the effect upon a person of evil generally, but especially of seeking power over others and seeking to control. It inherently diminishes you. You become less fully you. You begin to lose yourself. The second danger is that technology is addictive. The power that it provides us becomes so essential to us that we cannot live without it both at an individual level and at a societal level. It possesses us. It changes us and our entire culture. I would hazard to say that there are few things that have impacted the development of modern culture more than technology. It has determined who we have become as a people. It is literally impossible for us to give up technology. Almost no one would even think of it, and the only people who actually do it, are regarded mostly as cooks and they literally have to turn their back on our entire society. The third danger is that technology is almost inherently exploitative. The technological revolution is built, of course, on the scientific revolution. The most important axiom of the scientific revolution was / is Francis Bacon's statement "Knowledge is power". This has (re)defined the entire modern world's relationship with knowledge and the natural world. In the past, the philosophers, the wise, sought knowledge for the sake of love. Knowledge was its own reward. They wanted to know, because they loved the thing known. In the modern world, through the scientific and technological revolutions, this was transformed to knowledge being a means to power and control. No longer do our wise men seek to know things because they love the world, because they love knowing... they seek to know things so that they can control things. It is inherently exploitative. This gives birth to one of the biggest problems of the modern world, the combination of the two axioms "Knowledge is power" and "Power tends to corrupt". Just as in the Lord of the Rings where the Ring is the greatest danger to the wise, in our world, technology and its corrosive effects have perverted our intellectuals more than anyone else. Because their very intellectual pursuit itself has been perverted into something that corrupts. There is probably more that could be said and more that could be drawn out on the dangers and negative influences of technology, but I want to move on to looking more at the Rings directly in the world of Middle Earth. Understanding the concept of externalization of power (in Tolkien's view of technology) is, I think, central to understanding what the Rings of Power are and how they work. What Sauron taught the smiths of Eregion, seems to have been the ability to externalize aspects of their own Elvish nature, which is to say the powers of their immortal Elvish nature, into the rings (a magical version of what we do with technology). This provided the Elves with the ability to magnify the powers that were natural to them, what Sam would have called their "Elvish magic". This magical ability seems to have been directly tied to Sauron's own nature, his own unique powers (perhaps those natural to a Maia, or perhaps even specific to him). Because when Sauron created the One Ring, it enabled him to see the minds and influence the minds of the wearers of all the other Rings of Power. Even the power of the Three Elven rings, though they had never been touched by Sauron, or tainted by him, still was tied to the One Ring, and their power lasted only so long as the One Ring lasted. The idea that the Elvish ring makers put something of their own nature into the rings, explains some of the effects of those rings on the mortal bearers that Sauron later gave them to. The Dwarves and the Men. A mortal who wears a great ring does not die, because the nature and power that the Elves put into the rings, was that of their immortal nature. They do not age, and as such, a mortal who wears a great ring, effectively does not age. However, the nature of the mortal is not elevated or changed, it is merely over-shadowed. So they don't receive more life, they just continue on and the life that is appropriate to their nature, which was meant to be lived over 100 years, or 200 years, can be stretched over thousands of years. Thus becoming an unending weariness. It should be noted that when creatures that are, by nature, immortal wear a great ring, they do not become invisible. Rather the ring that they wear becomes invisible, as per Galadriel. I think this is because the ring does not overshadow their nature. Mortal creatures who wear a great ring become invisible because the power and nature that is in the ring is overshadowing them, they are becoming lost in it. In Tolkien's world, this is also explainable because the immortal beings, like the Elves, live at once in both the spiritual world and the physical world. Remember Glorfindel when Frodo had begun to fade, or Legolas and his attitude towards the Dead Men of the Dwimmorberg. Mortal creatures do not live at once in both realms, the spiritual realm is invisible to them. What happens to them when the put on a great ring, is that they appear to become a shade in the physical world, but become visible and able to see in the spiritual world. This also suggests that their mortal nature is being overridden by the immortal nature of the ring maker(s). All of this also explains why no one can use the One Ring, except by becoming Sauron. Sauron literally put his own nature into the Ring. His nature overshadows and consumes who ever wears it. Further, to use its powers, is literally to wield a part of Sauron's nature. This turns you into Sauron, and to do it effectively, you would have to become Sauron. The addictive nature of the rings, I think, comes down to the desire for control and power, as you said. The characters in the story who have the least desire for power and control, have the least temptation for the rings, and can use the Three Elvish rings without danger, even though those would be dangerous to mortals. The only character in the story who is completely and utterly unaffected by the One Ring, is Tom Bombadil, who is also the only character in the story who has completely and utterly given up the desire to control anything. He lives in a strange state of being master, without trying to control anything. Everything in "his land" owns itself and completely is itself. This shows that the true path to being complete master of yourself, and being completely yourself, is to give up control of everything else. In letting everything else be itself, he is able to completely be himself. Where as, the Ring, which is Sauron's nature, which is the desire and the ability to control and "be a master of other wills", robs people of their own self, and leaves them empty and hollow. They become nearly nothing.
You are right that it is literally impossible to give up technology, as that is literally how humans survive. (As an aside, the word you were looking for was 'kooks', not 'cooks'.) Technology is simply applied knowledge. The wheel is technology. All means of making fire are technology. Anyone that attempted to truly shun technology would not be able to cook food or wear clothes or build shelter. The reason people are considered odd for taking a strong stance against technology is because they aren't shunning technology entirely (since they literally cannot do so and live), but instead are picking some arbitrary point in time where they think technology should have stopped advancing.
In addition to the other mistakes that have already been pointed out, Sauron did have control over the three elven rings - but only when he had the one. After the initial use, the three were not worn again until Sauron lost the one.
Great video! With all of your mention of epic operas, ancient texts and folklore, my favourite moment turned out to be your nod to "This is Spinal Tap". 🤣
Fabulous job of explaining the history of the concept and the powers of the One Ring. Love your question. My Hobbit Ring power of choice? I want the ability to love all, unconditionally. Because if there is one thing I've learned through my increasingly long life, it is that at the heart of all yearnings is the desire to experience unending love, and since love comes from within us, it has to start there.
Being able to heal injury or disease, or at least recover from them, would be very helpful. Being able to withstand sensory bombardment, too. So many things are loud, or bright, or flashing, and these hurt and cause all sorts of neuro symptoms.
In the formative decades of Tolkien's life, Hegelian philosophy was very strong in Britain. A lot of bad things can be said about that philosophy, but one thing nobocy can deny that Hegel added a lot to the understanding of power. He describes some of the ideas in Tolkien's letter quoted in the video: To Hegel, power lies in relationships. A master cannot be a master without a servant, and vice versa. This is not just logically true, it is psychologically true: The master-and-servant context the two live in will shape them, do things to them, and once established, the master is bound by the relationship potentially as much as the servant. Since they are shaped by the relationship, this will manifest in the things they make (in the broadest sense), and that is where the loss of control Tolkien mentions comes about.
It is interesting that once putting on the ring the bearer did not receive the power of Sauron though so much of his life force was bound within it and to receive it again, Sauron would have become whole again and able to take physical form. His power was, we can conclude, some how locked away within it. Sauron being the only one who had the key to unlock it!
Great video, Jess. There are some interviews on RUclips with his children and in those videos Tolkien describes "The Ring" represents coercion (the use of force to persuade someone to do something that they are unwilling to do), i.e. the machine (today this would be A.I.)
Really enjoyed this interpretation. There's this archetype that I don't think gets used too often now wherein the villain transforms or in some way mutilates himself in the pursuit of power, ultimately destroying himself in the process. It resonates on a very primal level and there's likely some deeper truth to it - which I think you've hit on here. Instead of being what they are, these characters obsess over "taking power that isn't theirs" and destroy themselves in the doing. Taken as a whole with the supporting literature, it does seem like that was what Tolkien was getting at here. Interestingly, it makes the Ring a sort of transferrable doom. Hmm... Sounds like the name of a metal band that writes songs about contract law.
good work on this especially mentioning other stories with the ring i never knew those existed. looks like you could write lyrics like joanna newsom you seem to have so much knowledge about these old stories myths legends ..
The argument about hiw the desire of (an external) power devour the wielder just inspired me a story about a theme i care abta lot: enforcing willpower (and control) versus trusting inspiration (feeligs and spirit)
I very much appreciate your exploration of power in the Ring and in the hearts of the rational creatures of Middle Earth. Unlike some comments, none of this is an analogy for something in our present or past, but it is a reflection of the reality of the world we live in and the corruptibility of our hearts. I especially appreciate what you said about how Sauron had to put his power into the ring in order to use it to dominate others and so it actually became his destruction. Another angle on this that I think Tolkien would have thought about is that all power ultimately comes from Iluvatar. The Ring would not have had any control over Iluvatar and, in Tolkien's mind, that which is directing all that happens while not forcing anyone to do that which they do not choose to do, ensures that all will work out according to the way it must be. This does not mean that every story will end well from someone's perspective, but ultimately all will end for the good. That most certainly would mean that something created for such an evil end as the One Ring would ultimately mean the defeat of one who poured his power into it. Well, it is much more complicated than that, but worth considering.
My Ring would free me of all weariness and tiredness. Never needing to rest, having a whole third of my life bestowed upon me. Also, I appreciate the effort you put into pronouncing the German Titles, you really nailed it.
I rarely ever actually bother liking and subscribing, but that pun "power slips through your fingers" compelled me too come back to my watched list, find this again and like and subscribe XD Keep rocking!
Ring of teleportation for sure, I too love traveling and would love to jump around like Jumper (the movie)! I love your set, it reminds me of my best friends old reading room from when we grew up!!
Sauron had no hand in the making of the Three. They were made solely by Celebrimbor after Sauron had left Eregion to begin work on the One. The Three were completed and given to Elrond, Galadriel and Cirdan before Sauron finished the One. When Sauron completed the One and donned it for the first time, the wearers of the Three became aware of both his true identity and his intent (Ash nazg durbatuluk; Ash nazg gimbatul; Ash nazg thrakatuluk, ag burzum-ishi krimpatul). The wearers of the Three immediately took off their Rings, but not before Sauron became aware of them. Although Sauron did not get the time to bend the wearers of the Three to his will, he at least knew that his plan to use the sixteen subordinate Rings, that he and Celebrimbor together had crafted, to control the elves was well and truly scuppered.
*Edit:* I apologize for the following bit. Someone commenting pointed out that there is more than one edition of The Hobbit. I didn't know that, and I'd only ever encountered the revised editions. I do wish you had been more explicit that The Hobbit itself was revised, and that LOTR wasn't a sort of "retcon" of the ring from The Hobbit. 12:12 this is not exactly accurate, from my recollection. It's true that Bilbo does not fight Golem for the ring. He finds it before meeting Golem, because it has slipped off Golem's finger. Golem does go looking for it at the end of the riddle contest, but he's looking for it because he half suspects that it's what Bilbo has in his pocket, and also because if Bilbo doesn't have it, Golem wants to use it to sneak up on Bilbo and kill him. Also, while it is in a certain like, divine providence that Golem falls into the cracks of Doom, it's also the Ring being used against itself. At one point, earlier, as they're climbing the mountain, Golem attacks, and Frodo grasps the ring and tells Golem something like "If you touch me again, you yourself shall be cast into the cracks of Doom!". And it's clear that at that moment, the power of the Ring is in him. So, the Ring defeats itself.
To put it in D&D terms, its primary funvtion was effectively a phylactery (allowing the owner to come vacknfrom desth as long as it remains intact, circa Koschei).. There's its (what I consider) secondary effect which is based on the user (for example, making hobbits go invisible, or vanishing on Tom Bombadil's hand), or controlling other rings of power when on Sauron's hand. However, it could be the other eay around, with the phylactery role being secondary to the "variable by user" role.
As a german person i have to say, you did really well with pronouncing the german names. The mythology nerd in me has to say that Wagners Opera is not really that accurate to the original myth of the Niebelungen. A lot of mythology nerds and the people that actually work in the academic field of norse mythology actually strongly dislike the Opera. I got snubbed for saying I like the story of the opera as well as the version from norse and germanic mythology. Also there are multiple versions of this Saga out there since the story streches across a lot of countries and times. It's also the best known legend in Germany. I could imagine Tolkin not liking the idea of a componist adapting an old germanic and nordic mythos and just ignoring that as much as possible while using the more "original" legend as inspiration. Anyways, there even is a new movie comming out about the Niebelungen focusing on and named after the character Hagen. He is the one that betrays Siegfried/Sigurd. Also, its historically very interesting because we still don't really know how much of the legend is true but we do know some of the people actually lived and similar battles happend. But timeslines are wonky and all that. Also there have been searches for the Rheingold, the treasure Hagen has allegedly thrown in to the Rhein but it hasn't been found. Its really a fascinating topic of you like legends like the Arthurien stories or mythology and or even history.
My opinion? The ring is designed to have multiple functions: 1. Sauron as Annatar - it enhances the already-present natural abilities of the wearer to their fullest possible potential. Warriors become demons on the battlefield, hobbits become invisible, and wizards (same species as Sauron) become as powerful as Morgoth. 2. Sauron as the Dark Lord - allows the wearer to control all those who fall to or feel the temptation of the ring (which is why Dwarves are never used in Sauron's army, they weren't tempted by the ring, they were tempted with the gold that the ring's power would allow them to unearth) 3. Sauron as Sauron - his own life force (an a majority of it) was used to make the ring in the first place, so the ring is more Sauron than Sauron is by the time Celimbrimbor completed the other rings. As a result, the ring has a will of its own. Sauron's will... And Sauron did not care about his body as much as his body cared about the ring. If a wizard or elf used the ring, the ring would overpower their will and de facto, the wearer would be nothing more than a ring wraith in the end, piloted and sustained by the will of Sauron, even if Sauron's body was permanently destroyed (which was impossible without destroying the ring in the first place)
Little correction! The three elven rings were made after the One Ring, not before. I got my rings mixed up lol. Thanks to the folks that pointed it out!
One of those rings grants the power of perfect remembering to pin comments.
We can blame both Jackson and Bakshi for condensing their prologues in the same way, creating a weird alternative canon in pop culture.
They could have spent the extra two sentences describing it.
"It started with the forging of the great rings. Made by the elves to preserve the splendor of the ancient world.
But they had all been deceived, for the dark lord in the fires of mount doom crafted the master ring... [Etc].
One by one the free peoples of middle earth fell under his domination. And he captured the rings, claiming them as his own, and he gifted them to the kings of dwarves and men, to bring them under his control.
But there were some who resisted... A last alliance of men and elves... [Etc]."
Close but still wrong. The 16 were made in SA 1500, the Three were made in SA 1590, and The One was made in SA 1600.
Also, all 19 (minus The One) were for elves. Three made in secret, without Sauron. But the original 16 were also for elves. Sauron recaptured the 16 when he sacked Eregion and redistributed them. They became for other races AFTER Sauron retrieved them from the elves. The poem that tells how many went to each race came after the rings had been redistributed.
We'll let you pass this time. 😄
Needle-scratch. The Three Rings were made last [of the lesser Rings of Power, edit for clarity], by Celebrimbor alone, probably while Sauron was off making The One in Mordor. And to be clear, the rings were not intended for use by Dwarves or Men. That was just the backup plan Sauron had to go to after the initial plan of dominating Elves trough their rings had failed.
I came here to make this correction, Sauron never touched the Three.
+1. The timeline on production of the various rings is thus: 1. Lesser rings. These were the first made, and were the equivalent of "starter" or "apprentice-level" rings. Sauron assisted in the making of these. They had very limited powers, but Gandalf believed that they were still perilous for Mortals to own. 2. The Rings of Power - - the Seven and the Nine. These were made by the Elven-smiths with the assistance of Sauron. They were not specifically made for Men or for Dwarves, but for Elves. 3. The Three Rings. These were made by Celebrimbor working alone, with no assistance by Sauron at all. They, too, were made only for elves. 4. The One Ring. Made by Sauron alone at Mt. Doom. He poured much of his power into this ring so as to control all the others. This included the Three, even though he had no hand in their making - - they were still made using his techniques, and thus fell under the power of the One Ring. When he put on the One Ring, the Elves were instantly aware of it and took off the rings that they possessed. Sauron made war on the Elves to take all of the Rings back - - he recovered the Seven and the Nine, and gave them as gifts to the Dwarves and to Men, hoping to ensnare them, but only succeeded with Men.
I was about to post something about this too but yall beat me to it
I guess that the rings given to the Dwarves and Men could be seen as a backup plan, but Tolkien certainly doesn't describe any plan to distribute them to others than Dwarves and Men. "The Elves took off their rings" is what he told us. That could mean just the Three, but it is also possible that there were more for the Elves that were destroyed or buried and not numbered with the Three, Seven, or Nine.
What I find interesting is how Celebrimbor making the three rings showed what they could be capable of without Sauron's influence. Of all the rings Sauron directly had a hand in making, one of their primary features appears to be magnifying the wearer's ambitions, ultimately to their ruin, such as how the dwarves accumulated so much gold they brought dragons upon themselves and the men desired power and longevity, which they got by ultimately turning into wraiths.
But the three eleven rings worked pretty much as advertised without any drawbacks. With them, Elrond and Galadriel preserved their lands and Gandalf inspired hope in all he came across. But even if they were a more pure form of Sauron's design, because it was his design they still had the same "backdoor feature" that would have allowed him to ensare the bearers wills' just as the seven and nine were supposed to, provided he got the one ring back. It's a fascinating game the ring bearers' had to play
Tolkien noticed something CRITICAL and interesting about power. It does not exist concentrated, with no external manifestation and accoutrements. In all history we always see those who wield power having had to set up various institutions to implement and continue their reign. Often these same powerful people suffer their own downturn due to the operation of these outside mechanisms.
I like this! I never saw the ring as a symbol for, basically, the bureaucracy and oligarchs who he would otherwise need in order to rule if he wasn’t one of the Ainur.
It's a shadow on the wall of Plato's cave
Tolkien, at the time, had the best example of this from the failed Third Reich and their quest for complete domination for not only Europe, but the world as a whole.
@@xtheory He wrote/planned much of this before WWII started. But it was very relevant for the time, and continues to be.
@@ghostdreamer7272Evil and the quest for power are eternal.
“Hey Galadriel, what’s that on your finger?”
“Nenya.”
“What’s Nenya?”
“Nen-ya business!”
What's Nenya, precious?
I believe gandalf had the ring of fire 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥. The elves had air water and spirit. Never did find out what all the rings powers were though.
@@Variable-2-actual my bad. I’ll fix that.
@@zacharyclark3693 Vilya look at that! Narya gone and messed it all up!
Nenya deez nuts!
I want to know more about those minor rings that were “mere essays into the craft”. Like, maybe one prevents diabetes, or helps you recover from a workout, or makes you a good cook.
Every one of the greater Rings basically just granted power according to the user's desire - staved off world-weariness and the fading of magic for the Elves, multiplied riches for the Dwarves, and enhanced political control and lifespan among Men. Presumably the lesser Rings would do the same with a lower degree of efficacy.
You are entering Douglas Adams territory. 😁
How about a ring of the power to perfectly reliably prevent halitosis? ... It could easily dual-function as a wedding ring.
@@Dowlphin Or the ring that prevents or cures hangovers. It could double as a ring that produces wealth.
How about one to enable an author to finish a series for which he finished the first seven of nine planned volumes but then struggled with writer's block for the next 12 years trying to get the 6th volume done?
Cures a hangover.
Please do not demonetize me! I am not trying to rob you! I'm trying to help you.
RUclips: *angry monster Bilbo screeches*
There may come a day when Jess of the Shire is demonetized, but THIS IS NOT THAT DAY! There may be a force mighty enough to take her gold, but Peter Jackson is not that force! There may be a rule of three in epic speechifying, but... I only had two!
🫶
tolkein had a very death-positive message tucked away in many spots in his books, always gently reminding us that death is inevitable, but not inherently bad. the immortal creatures suffer more than many mortals simply in their timelessness
Death is something which God will ultimately eliminate for His people. Death = the wages of sin.
The Ring can be seen as a cypher for the message that evil always contains the seeds of its own destruction. It was the sheer intensity of the desire to possess it, instilled by the Ring itself, that motivated Gollum to follow Frodo to the Crack Of Doom, to take it from him, and then to dance about 'like a mad thing' on a narrow shelf above a pit of molten lava. No divine push needed, Gollum was so overjoyed at getting his 'precious' back he completely forgot about the danger one false step could put him in.
I think that "evil defeats itself" is central to Tolkien's u-catastrophe idea. Gollum, one of the most vile, despicable creatures in the story, certainly an agent of evil if not wholly evil himself, delivers the fatal blow in a moment of sheer joy/relief, having succeeded in his purely selfish goal. Likewise, Gollum inadvertently prevented both Sauron and Saruman from retrieving the ring from the Gladden, simply out of fear/hate of the sun/moon light. Gollum also leads Bildo to the back gate whilst hoping to catch and murder him. Almost everything that Gollum does backfires eventually to the benefit of the good guys.
The Ring is a metaphor for heroine, man. Nothing more, nothing less. That and nuclear weapons.
@@penultimateh766 Ahhhhhhhhhhhh, no. kkkkkk
yeah, I've always loved this notion as is rather than the letters and correspondences of Lucas-like over-leaning into agency of, well, Illuvutar or the great creator made him trip! I mean Gollum was definitely Ring of power-tripping (not the fanfic show), I like that Good is its own karma and invisible hand rather than the overt Greek god in the sky like Zeus playing around with puny mortals in real time in OG Clash of the Titans! This just provoked a train of thought, man!
@ToxicGamer86454 Somebody stealing YOUR car is evil.
I just want to say that your style of delivery, of speaking, is just a joy to listen to. Thank you for taking the time to create and share these wonderful video essays 😊
She has a nice, soothing voice.
My theory is that all of the rings Sauron had a hand in making did the same thing. They gave the wielder what their race desired most. Dwarves wanted gold, and so the rings gave them gold. Men feared death and wanted power; thus, extended lives and rulership. Hobbits want to hide away, and because they're a type of men, they too fear death; hence, invisibility and extended life. If Hobbits were given other rings, it would have similar results. The One Ring has this property of bestowing what the wielder wants while also being able to control the other rings. When Sauron wears it, he doesn't become invisible, but he is stronger. Tom Bombadil is immune to the ring because he wants for nothing.
Couldn't agree more
Interesting interpretation, but (correct me if I'm wrong) even great Men like Isildur turned invisible when using the One. Because it isn't actually invisibility, it's escaping into the wraith world. So my interpretation is that Maiar like Gandalf, Sauron, and probably just exceptionally strong beings like Galadriel, have a strong spiritual presence and thus would still have a visible appearance in wraith form, but Men are very material beings and thus leave no sign.
Tom Bobaldil wants nothing? Thats not true. He just doesn't need more power to get what he wants. So the ring can't make him promises. The ring uses desires and your wish to have the power to achieve them to manipulate the holder.
This is definitely a part of it! Invisibility is a separate ability though, since it works on everybody. But it preys on people's natural inclinations and desires, and that definitely dictates some of what it is capable of.
@@Jess_of_the_Shire Fascinating!
12:11 no he didn't have to fight, but Gollum didn't just hand it over as a prize...the Ring was the proposed prize, but since Bilbo had already accidentally found the thing in the dark, and it was already in his pocket, instead of owning up to already having it and because he was in a tight place, he said nothing and asked to be led out of the caves, which Gollum, none the wiser, did.
Tolkien put the original Riddle Game denouement in the Prologue, for all those people who still had the copies of The Hobbit before it was retconned and reissued... But it is important to know that even in the original version, Gollum never handed the Ring over.
My assumption with only inductive inference, is that the ring was originally intended to psychically link Sauron with the users of the other rings, through the underlying spirit realm in which elves and Ainur inhabit.
However, when Sauron (an immensely powerful being) pours his own essence into The One ring to supercharge it, then it also was charged with His Will (his personality).
The reason all beings crave the ring, and crave the power of the ring, is because of Sauron's innate lust for power and control. Smeagol wants blackmail and selfish hordes, Boromir wants to unify Gondor in victorious war. Galadriel wants to be a Noldorian Queen. Sam wants to create a super-garden in all Mordor. But these are all tempting "lies" because Sauron's very personality is naïve.
Sauron in his core was naïve and a fool. Thinking that Power and Control would bring about a perfect orderly world. So the ring (being made of his essence) psychically promotes that same flaw to anyone near it.
It was never intended to seduce people, like a drug, or trick - because Sauron never intended to lose it. The effect of causing people to be tempted by power was a complete accident, or coincidence.
The same with the other lesser 16 rings. They were designed just to be a psychic hack into the minds of the elves, but when The One ring was made to superceded them they became driven by that personality flaw. The flaw of Sauron.
The flaw of thinking that control and order could and should be attained by power and force.
Gandalf by contrast - being truly wise - also rallies armies to his cause, but instead by inspiring people. Not by domination or force.
So there it is. The power of the ring is an accidental pollution on the potential wearer, of the personality flaw of Sauron, which was poured into it upon its creation, as it was the only thing Sauron had access to which was strong enough to do the job - his own Ainur essence.
I think that’s the best explanation I have ever heard of it 😮
Thanks. I've been reading this stuff for years and never found an explanation for Author meets character meets object that I could rest on.
Knowing what I know about the world and the author (which isn't everything) - this at least makes sense without contradiction.
I like this idea, as a software developer all too often flaws exist in the final product. And I like the idea that the most powerful make mistakes, like an exhaust port for some space base 😉.
I personally prefer the idea that Sauron created the ring to stroke the shizer out of his ego. An eternal happiness, built on lies, built on others. Something material to make him feel complete. From that, the "power" of the ring manifests itself. Invisibility representing an ego free from judgment except from itself.
good explanation.
But I stay Sauron wanted to see panties. It's an invisibility ring. All he wanted was getting into the womens dresser room.
When did the ring give power to anyone who didn't already had the power they got?
Sauron is a pervert and the LotR is an anecdote on modern wokeism. 🤣
Makes more sense because it's the simpler and more direct interpretation. No need to span a bow over two continents.
@@JackChurchill101 I continue preaching my stuff )). I believe that what you said is correct but must be reversed. The visions of great changes are not secondary to power and control, but, on the contrary, they are the primary source of all evil and loss in Tolkien's universe. He was a retrograde, after all ).
But seriously, from the very beginning Melkor had a desire to get the holy fire from Iluvatar (or at least a piece of it). And that holy fire was creativity. Melkor always wanted to create, and he tried to change the Music creating his own world. Later, Melkor and Sauron both wanted to change the world to their liking. This vision is not even described in the books as it's not the primary focus of them. But we can read that "Evil can't create". It's not a contradiction. Just no one can create anything in Tolkin's universe except Iluvatar. The fate of all the others is to follow the course of His creation as iit unfolds in time. If you want to contradict it, you inevitably do evil (even if you wish to do good).
So Sauron's lust for power is actually his lust for creation and transformation, and this is exactly what is in the Ring. Moreover, I believe that the Ring was Sauron, and whoever wore it was possessed by him (though possession doesn't mean mind control - I believe that the soul, or spirit is acually what is written in the Creation for a person / creature to do or to be. Being possessed by Sauron, the spirit of deceit (deception is also a change of the natural course of events, thus it's evil), meant that a person was given an insatiable desire to change the world, and to a large extent, to deceive the others - hence invisibility.
I think you missed out on a big part of the ring symbol, or at least you didn't address it. Rings represent oaths. A king gives rings to those seeking his favor, and in accepting, each becomes the king's man. This is where the idea of wedding rings comes from: the oath-taking, the vow. While the rings are given as gifts, they are actually contracts with obligations, with Heaven as the witness. Forswearing your oath was held to be a great evil. Seeing things this way, you could say that the Men given rings did not die because Sauron willed them to remain alive and in service, so they must. If the dwarven rings made them endlessly dig for wealth, then that too would have been the will of Sauron, that they were compelled to fulfill. But the ring-giver has an oath as well, to be a good king, as we see with the kings in LotR. It is very hard to hold a powerful king to his oath, and great evil happens when he does not, for all in the kingdom are bound to him by oaths. The potential for ruin is immense. Anyway, maybe everybody gets this and that why hardly anyone ever talks about it, because it's so obvious, or ... people don't talk about it because they aren't aware of the custom, or simply aren't putting 2 + 2 together.
Gandalf mentioned that the one ring and by extension the other rings of power could only give power in the boundaries and abilites of their bearers. In Smeagol's case it made him more in addition to making im invisible more aware of sectres and how to use them. If I remember correctly Frodo asked him why he couldn't see or behold the other ringbearers thoughts maybe even influence them and Gandalf answered that Frodo would be destroyed if he tried because it would be a feat far beyond Frodo's abilities.
Very true, though that last bit of advice was from Galadriel. But Frodo did have the inherent strength to use the ring to dominate Gollum - most clearly on the slopes of Mount Doom.
And another interesting point is that Frodo did not spot the hidden Ring of Fire on Gandalf's hand. As I recall, Galadriel is saying that Frodo's abilities with the Ring are growing, so that by the time he meets her, he is aware she also has a ring of power, though only when he is close up.
But presumably that was not the case, a very short time before, when Frodo last saw Gandalf, confronting the Balrog. If there was any time that Gandalf might need to use that Ring, it surely was then. But no apparent reaction from Frodo.
Even Tolkien nods a bit.
Ye but Gandalf or Galadriel would have this power to command or just destroy the others ring bearers even destroy or submit Sauron
I once heard the ring cycle as music when calling a customer service line. I was on hold for most of it.
That's a very dramatic waiting tune
@@Jess_of_the_Shire Definitely sounds less boring than the standard wait!
@@Jess_of_the_Shire There was some sturm, und there was some drang. It passed the time. By the way, this old guy loves your content.
The longer you listen, the more it lures you into its grasp.
So on hold with a health insurance company then.
Boromir used the ring in his mind, so much that he became obsessed with possessing it and we all know the end result. Interesting how Boromir does not even have to have physical possession of it for its evil to work
Power is, of course, particularly tempting when you feel you are fighting a losing battle - like Boromir and Saruman did.
There's definitely a 2 fold power to the ring. It's addictive, but it also has a draw beyond that, something that pulls in even the folks that have never touched it.
Well every characters that encountered Frodon during his journey felt the tentation even Gandalf and Galadriel and Faramir. Faramir knew his brother fell for the ring and despite that he was very kind with Frodon and let him go. I mean Faramir is very underrated imo he could have easily taken the ring for himself...
The ring symbolizes the sin that led Eve to fall, which was curiosity and the desire for power to gain knowledge. This ultimately resulted in the death of her, her husband who followed her, and their descendants for eternity. The righteous will regain immortal bodies in the next world, while the wicked inherit ruin. Tolkien based much of his book on The Bible.
@@Donavon551 I dont think Gollum was really searching for knowledge when he first commit a crime for his precious. Maybe after but he basically found nothing...
For a long time, every few years I start reading The Lord of the Rings on my birthday. Both because it begins with Bilbo's birthday party, and because it's like a old friend that I look forward to visiting with in the shade of a summertime tree. And, of course, another visit that I have come to look forward to is here, on your channel. I was, and am, very glad to have discovered it; your eloquence, intelligence, and love of fantasy and whimsy have provided many enjoyable hours for me and for many others. So, as Monday marked for me the start of yet another read-through, I just wanted to take the opportunity again to genuinely wish you endless success and happiness with your channel, and with all your journeys along the "One Road," as Bilbo would say.
Now everybody, duke it out in the comments! To me, the One Ring is the embodiment of Sauron's ability to command and influence. It is not his will, per se, but rather his ability to effect his will on others. This is why, when it was destroyed, his forces scattered, no longer compelled to obey his cruel orders. He was not destroyed by this act, but rendered impotent, and unable to control anything at all in the world. He was reduced to an insubstantial remnant, fated to watch helplessly as the world forgot him, unable to have any effect on it.
"rather his ability to effect his will on others." Id put it like this: Its a tool that manipulates by promising power and enabling your desires, yet it turns you into a tool for Sauron. I wonder how it would have affected characters like gandalf or galadriel? Would they be to able to utilize its power against Sauron? Why didn't it affect Tom Bombardil at all?
@@nostalji93 I believe G&G would have become the people Sauron wanted them to be. Though they would think they were acting of their own will, they would still be manipulated by Sauron's, and working in his best interest, and in their pride they would be unable to recognize or accept that. Keep in mind that everything they talk about is just their own conjecture. They believe they could use the ring to defeat him, but there is no real evidence to think that's correct. Only their own confidence makes them think it so.
Tom, I've come to think, was added to LotR merely to be a colorful part of an interesting interlude, there's nothing more to it than that. I don't think Tolkien put a tremendous amount of thought into his place in the greater mythology. He was a favorite character of Tolkien's, and he wanted to include him somehow, but he didn't fit into any of the lore he had been devising. He literally existed before Middle-Earth was given shape, in Tolkien's other works, so when he tells his story it is actually somewhat cleverly true. The Ring has no power because he's really not a part of its story; he comes from somewhere else, somewhere older. But it's still fun to imagine who he might be, I just don't think Tolkien could have given us an answer, or would have wanted to.
@@williampalmer8052Yes about TB. He was from an old poem that Tolkien wrote that he never expected to get published but that Tolkien loved so much that he added him into LotR just so Tom could exist out in the world. Even though the character couldn't be rectified within that literary realm.
@@nostalji93 I think as far as Tom Bombadil is concerned, other commenters have called it. Tom is both self-contained, and an embodiment of the natural order. As such (as least in Tolkien's thought) he has no aspirations to control anything beyond himself, or to enhance his own native strength (which is a mastery of nature itself).
So the ring has nothing to gain a hold over him, because he has already everything he desires. In addition, he probably has some quality of natural resilience, of physicality over spirituality, which resists him being drawn into the spirit world, and so he does not become invisible.
But I should add that to my knowledge Tolkien never elaborated any more than what was said at the Council of Elrond, and even that was presented as speculation.
Respect for the nearly perfect pronunciation of all those Wagner titles. As a native German speaker, I rarely hear it like that in English speaking videos or productions.
I'm so glad I got them right! You have no idea how many takes it took me to get Götterdämmerung somewhat right
@@Jess_of_the_Shire I sense a Patreon blooper wheel within your future haha.
There's still a good way to go for perfection.
On this topic, though, I was impressed by the improvement of a US journalist eventually pronouncing the name "Wagenknecht" near-perfectly after first attempts sounded more like "Wagganaught". 🤭
@@Jess_of_the_Shire German directness incomming: Your "Götterdämmerung" sounded for me like "Goethedämmerung" and I asked myself what our Poet Goethe had to do with it. (I have the video on in the background) But the "Dämmerung" Part was great :D
@@Jess_of_the_Shire Please say that word five times quickly.
The Three were made before the One. The book says (paraphrased) "as soon as Sauron set the one ring on his finger the elves were aware of him." Further: Sauron, knowing he was betrayed and his plans thwarted, came against the Elves with open war, demanding the Elven rings be delivered to him as they could not have achieved them without his lore. They took off their rings and fled from him.
Further: why would the Elves craft the three mightiest rings the world had ever seen if they knew the One would rule them??? Even it was said it would be better if the Three had never been made.
I'll agree the timeline is somewhat vague, however. But the Three MUST have been completed before Sauron put the One on his finger.
But they were probably made after Sauron departed for Mordor, after the sixteen.
10:56 I love this description of the Ring’s effect on him by Bilbo… this quote was the only way I could describe how I felt when I started feeling the symptoms of chronic illnesses I didn’t yet know I had. I didn’t know what it was exactly that I felt, only that I felt like “butter that has been scraped over too much bread.” Ever since Tolkien (through Bilbo) gave me the words I needed to express how terrible I felt, I’ve felt like I can imagine better than I used to the effects of the Ring. I’m pretty sure Sauron enjoyed the idea that the Ring (and the lesser rings controlled by it) drained mortals of vitality even as they still lived, until they were mere shadows of themselves.
I was at my only cousin's wedding on Tuesday. For the Pre-Ceremony, she had a few tracks from 'The Hobbit' soundtrack, and for the 'Exit' it was played out with 'Concerning Hobbits' by Howard Shore. Due to me and my siblings Tolkien upbringing, it only seemed to be further confirmation that we were definitely related😄
Those are the perfect choices. "In Dreams" always seemed like the perfect wedding track to me
The One Ring (WIP) D&D 5e stats
1. Advantage on all
a. Skill
b. Ability checks
c. All attack rolls
d. saves
2. Proficient
a. All skills
b. All saves
3. Expertise in
a. Perception
b. investigation
c. insight
4. Other stuff
a. Hit points raised to maximize
b. see invisible objects
c. Slowed aging
d. Improved invisibility
i. For Sauron at will
ii. For everyone BUT Sauron only when worn
1. Ring MUST be removed to become visibile
e. Raises armor class base to 18
f. +4 to proficiency bonus
5. Bad stuff
a. Slowly corrupts the wearer to see himself as the most important figure alive (when they have the ring).
b. Hinders sleeping and resting; eventually several levels of fatigue set in if the ring is worn, or is on the person.
I have always believed that the one ring was self aware, which explains how it becomes larger slipping off a finger when least expected to change bearers in its effort to return to Sauron.
@@gretchenmiller3639 Me too.
Gollum wanted to stay underground.
The Ring wanted to leave.
Bilbo wanted to see mountains.
The Ring had a particular mountain 'in mind'.
Frodo wanted to go to Mordor.
The Ring wanted to go to Mordor.
Frodo wanted to cast the Ring into the cracks of Doom.
The Ring 'says' "Whoa! Hold your horses there"
Smeagol wanted the Ring back.
...well, we saw what happened then.
And, maybe the Ring was plain sick and tired of sashimi? 😉
The one ring has always been "self aware " that's cannon to the books. Not a new concept.
Always has been. In the books the Ring could not be given up or destroyed on purpose. The Ring has always been accidentally or forcefully taken. Bilbo would have snatched back the ring if not for Gandalf picking it up before he could. The only people the Ring did not corrupt were Isildur who was about to give the ring to Elrond and Ciardin when he was slain. The other was Tom Bombadil who was not just immune to the ring , but able to give it up once holding it.
@@DaleCoreySanford Gandalf never touched the one ring. Isildur was corrupted by the ring and refused to destroy it.
It's fun to go back through the books after you realize that Frodo actually gains some awareness of the other ring-bearers as he goes along. The voice on Amon Hen telling him "Fool, take it off!" is clearly Gandalf's, and is the first hint in the story that he isn't permanently dead.
I wonder how many ppl know that Annatar sounds VERY finnish (Tolkien read Finnish folklore in native language). Anna - (obv a common name too) is like derivation from the verb "antaa" = to give. -Tar is the feminine ending to status titles, (Queen = KuningaTAR, whereas king is kuningas). Sauron using name Annatar (= Lord of gifts) sounds like a Generous Lady in finnish
I had never considered the point of view that the Ring was already influencing Frodo and making him feel threatened by Bilbo asking - very interesting to think of it that way!
It happens again when Sam says he has the Ring-- and Sam was not a corrupted ugly creature even when he bore the Ring.
It's not that the One Ring had no power over the three greatest Elven-rings, which weren't really that special. It's that their wise bearers perceived the connection with Sauron when he donned the One Ring and thus took them off so that he couldn't read their minds or corrupt them like the Nine.
Later on, Gandalf, Elrond and Galadriel are able to wear their rings all the time because the One is not being regularly worn and never by a powerful being.
Those rings they "took off" aren't the Three elven rings, but likely another set of three made with the aid of Sauron.
One thing that I noticed that I think everyone subconsciously understands but nobody really says outright: Gollum is the one who defeated Sauron. Not intentionally, not knowingly, and not heroically, but just incidentally; Sauron couldn't be defeated by anyone who was good. It took a corrupted, destroyed, greedy, malevolent creature in a surge of his violent madness to defeat Sauron. No good, or even human, person would be able to. Only an evil being acting in an evil way could destroy the evil of Sauron and the ring.
Mm, I'd rather say that the Ring was hoist by its own petard, as a few others have said. It's pretty much the same, content-wise, but the phrasing of your last sentence could be interpreted as saying that evil had to exist. Which I'm sure Tolkien would never want to imply in his writing.
@@NemisCassander I am not sure, evil is the result of free will and makes stories more interesting, so I think evil HAD to exist or at least evil made the world less boring than it would had been as a perfect utopia.
@@ManuelAngelMartin-om4xy I can understand how someone can believe that, but Tolkien certainly didn't.
I will grant you that the possibility of evil is inherent in free will, of course. But to say that evil necessarily exists goes far beyond that.
@@NemisCassanderI don't know, I believe "evil" (being that which would go against the will of God/Eru) does not HAVE to exist in Tolkien's work, but it existing is ultimately part of Eru's plan, and thus, its existence makes the creation of Eru more colorful and beautiful. That was what I read from Eru incorporating Melkor's discord into the song of the Ainur. Evil doesn't have to exist, but even it, the direct rebellion against Eru, is merely another tool to enact his perfect plan.
Gollum is evil but for some reason he's *not* drawn to power. I always figured that Gollum's somewhat unusual response to the Ring was the Ring's doing, as part of its plan--but maybe it wasn't. Maybe Gollum was the kind of being who was only corruptible in this really small-time, inept way, and that ultimately kept the Ring hidden away for a long time against its will and maybe even destroyed it in the end.
We're told that Gollum was originally some close variant of a hobbit, after all. Maybe the hobbityness of this villain is as important as it existing in some of the heroes.
Years ago I was reading Icelandic sagas, when I realized the ring in the story was an arm ring. Wheather it was for the wrist or upper arm I don’t remember. But now many magic rings for DnD are arm rings not finger rings
A torc or bangle? Hm, did it just get poorly translated into English?
1 - A minor point: Sauron's plan was foiled when he put on the Ruling Ring and the three elven ringbearers sensed its power and took theirs off. He wasn't counting on being detected.
2 - As to using a magical ring which confers invisibility in order to evade accountability: today all you'd need is a Supreme Court ruling.
3 - Tolkien seems to be restating a teaching of Christ: What shall it profit a man if he should gain the world and lose his soul?
4 - I'd like a ring which shuts out all noise and distraction. The trouble is, a lot of it's coming from my own mind. Better learn to meditate...
5 - Love how you keep coming up with new, inventive ways to segue into your sponsor.
Another interesting interpretation of 1 is that Sauron was surprised that the Elves would give up the power of their rings. That decision foreshadows the decision of the Council of Elrond to attempt to destroy the One Ring, which also surprises Sauron.
RUclips needs more high-value commenters like you. Thank you :)
@@EriktheRed2023 Very good observation. That's surely more likely.
Heh, heh, you just need noise cancelling headphones. Much less perilous ...
@@cally77777 I started using noise-canceling earbuds on the bus and I find that they have a strange and uncomfortable side effect: when the noise cancellation is on, my brain keeps telling me that my ears are clogged up and not equalizing pressure (I have this problem for real on airplanes, very frequently). Somehow I've instinctively associated a loss of hearing in an inherently noisy environment with an uncomfortable physical condition, and I can actually *feel* it. It's very odd. Turning off the noise cancellation immediately fixes the problem... but then, of course, I can't hear my music very well.
I suppose it reminds me a little of how Frodo feels while he's using the Ring.
Always impressed with the way you pronounce Tolkien's names - but I just now, hearing you say "Sauron" a number of times, realized I can do it too and has always been able to! Here is my step by step tutorial: Step 1 - Pronounce it in finlandssvenska. That's it.
Of all the various commentaries on the LotR, I find yours the best summary of the underlying themes. Thank you for your work!
Very good video, Jess. Interesting, and quite detailed. Minor corrections are no worry, with the crew of deep fans here to point them out.
Two questions: why was Sauron unable to know that the ring was being used by Gollum, repeatedly and often, and thereby know its location?
And, why were the ring wraiths "afraid" of people and fighting, if they couldn't be killed? Why wouldn't they continue a house-by-house search and destruction of Bree, for example, in their quest for the ring (after being fooled by Aragorn)?
First question: Sauron's ability to sense the presence of the One Ring is limited by geography. He can sense it when it is claimed in the nearby Sammath Naur, but not when it is deep in caves under the Misty Mountains far away. That thing with Sauron seeing Frodo in the Prancing Pony common room in the Jackson film introduces a plot hole that Tolkien's story doesn't have.
Second question: One part of the Nazgûls' fear was an instinctual one, but they also had rational reasons to worry about fighting. If they lost their horses, e.g., they would be slowed down greatly. They were also on a stealth mission and wanted to avoid attracting attention - when news came to Rivendell that the Nine were in the area, Elrond sent people like Glorfindel out, someone they fled from every time they met him. But finally, they certainly could be harmed (as they were on at least two occasions), and forced to return shapeless to Mordor to be given a new shape to wear. The Rangers had the strength of will to resist Nazgûl fear, and in the barrows were blades capable of destroying their forms. Who knows what weapons might have been forged by skilled foes, or come down through the ages? It just takes one lucky blow to ruin their chance of recovering the Ring.
Sauron wasn't alive when Gollum had the ring being resurrected by a Necromancer during Bilbo's Journey according to The Questionably Canon Hobbit Trilogy. Fellowship of the Ring Movie started with Gollum being interrogated by Mordor to reveal "Shire Baggins" so it's clear that Sauron knew about Gollum. The plothole was Bilbo using the ring at the party after that it consistently puts Sauron & Nazgul Gaze upon Frodo when used. I do question why the Ring couldn't be brought to the Pure Lands that Frodo & Bilbo go to after its destruction.
@@WaterKirby1994 Well, it is just a story, after all. I suppose we can excuse some plot holes.
First of all, it's been way too long since I've had the chance to watch a Parttime Hobbit/Jess of the Shire video. Life got in the way the past year, so I have a lot of catching up to do on your channel. Excellent video essay as always! Another critical text of Northern European Ring Lore that you might find interesting which was one of the great influences on Tolkien's thinking is "The Magic Ring" by the Baron de la Motte Fouque, which has been republished and edited by Dr. Amy Sturgis. I would love to see Jess do a deep dive into it with comparisons and contrasts to The Lord of the Rings.
You are such a good story teller. I dont know if you practice what you are going to say, but it sounds like it just flows out of you magically. Its such a cool talent. Thanks for what you do.
I vaguely remember one character saying something like "with the Ring, anything is possible, so long as your desire to wield it is great enough." Although it may have been Boromir who said that, with his source being "I saw it in a dream."
Yeah, the ring deceives people into thinking stuff like that. Just like it deceives people into murdering each other over it. But the One Ring is specifically meant to be in his Master's hand. He is the only one with a will enough to dominate all the others.
I sometimes daydream about having the magical ability to speak and understand every language. It could be a nice fit for a ring, and the ultimate companion for a teleporting ring.
For more information on Wagner's Ring Cycle, please see Bugs Bunny's "What's Opera, Doc?"
Seconded! Gets the essentials across in a few minutes instead of 15 hours :-)
My Hobbit Ring of Power has one ability - To add flavor to otherwise bland food. Now my rice, my beans, and all my sauces are flavored to perfection. I was once a bean pole at 6 feet 160 pounds. The ring has granted me unnaturally tasty food and a big ole pot belly ;-( It is precious to me
I considered myself a bean pole at 6’ 120 lb. Now I weigh 160 and thought that was pretty average, damn
@@laiika511 I'm 180 now 😞
Always a pleasure to listen to Jess, the spokes lady of Middle Earth!
Would be funny if the ring was just a decoy, Sauron put his power into a less obvious artifact, and the "corruption" was just the characters suffering the nocebo effect.
Another fine video from you--I really enjoy your insights into Tolkien and his works. Regarding the power of the Ring, at the Council of Elrond, Boromir advocates using the Ring against Sauron. But Elrond replies, "Alas, no...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...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..."
I loved your observation that by creating the Ring, Sauron also created the means by with another could overthrow him. I had not thought of that before; I think Tolkein would have liked it.
*which
What will donald trump build which can overthrow him?
@@HalasterBlackCloak-u2w A pile of empty KFC buckets
According Cory Olson, Bilbo didn’t transform. Frodo saw him that way, but based on Bilbo’s reaction, Frodo is the person who seemed to change and for the first time, Bilbo sees how it affects people and feels badly that Frodo has to bear it. This was on the Exploring TLOTR podcast.
And typically Peter Jackson amped this up to 11, when he had Bilbo quite physically and suddenly transform, and gave us all a jump scare.
I mean it was fine in the context of that context of that film. But I can see how it could be done differently, with a focus on Frodo, so that we feel that we're seeing the apparent transformation of Bilbo from his point of view, maybe with a fade/blur film effect.
Good video! I've also thought about the Ring of Gyges as a precursor to The One Ring. One of Plato's contemporaries, Aristotle, also suggested a morality where character traits could be in balance (bravery) or out of balance (rashness and cowardice). It seems to me like the rings of power all operate on this principle as well, tempting and offering the quality you want most: riches to the dwarves, an ability to hide even in plain sight to a hobbit, power to the ambitious such as the human kings, and to all mortals an extension of life. But it also takes your character out of balance. The dwarves became rich but also greedy, ruining themselves with dragons. The men rather than powerful immortal dictators became enslaved wraiths. Gollum hid himself from danger to the point of becoming a pitiful monster living in a cave. Similar to a King Midas, or a genie in a lamp who gives you a little too much of what you wanted.
I'm also struck by the similarity between the greed and paranoia of the Ring and the temptation of the Dark Side in Star Wars. If you strive to hold on to what's not yours then getting what you want is only the beginning of your problems. Now you have to keep it, and become paranoid of enemies real or imagined who might take it away from you. That encourages you to hoard as much power as you can to defend the power you've been hoarding, lashing out in fear and anger, until it inevitably twists you into a villain then ends badly.
Very entertaining analysis. I appreciate the thoughtful work you invested in the content of the video.
From a long term fan of the Tolkien books and Middle Earth lore
One of my 2 favorite scenes from LOTR was when Sam had the ring and it tried to seduce him with visions of power. He basically laughed at the absurdity of lordly power, showing why only a hobit could be the Ring Bearer.
The other great scene was when Frodo tested Galadriel, turning the tables on her.
Fantastic presentation. I arrived at a similar conclusion the other day and it’s nice to see that I’m not far off the line of more well informed enthusiasts.
Whenever someone denies something influenced him at all, what they're really saying is "Yes, but I refuse to admit it."
That's a bad take, it implies that only one person can create something and everyone else who creates something similar is only able due to copying.
I have invented things, only to find out that it has already been invented. If i was to manufacture and sell my inventions then your argument would fit logically, but it does not make it true.
Amazing video. I have read the trilogy several times and I don't think I truly grasped the 'control' paradox of the ring. Thank you!
I've always wondered what the ring, this is a great video. Thank you.
I'm so glad it was helpful!
You forgot the "In the darkness bind them". Frodo uses this on Gollum to bind his service (for a time), well I guess Gollum used this on himself technically as he swore upon the ring. I guess you mentioned it with binding the Humans and Dwarfs to his will, but this was one of the few examples in the books where that power was directly used by someone other than Sauron.
Another edit: the Elves were bound to Arda, not only to the continent of Middle-earth.
I think when talking about the inspirations Tolkien had for LOTR it would be nice to mention Finnish folklore and mythology. Not only because the Finnish Kalevala, folklore and language impacted and inspired the stories (heavily), but also because these tales are far lesser-known than most old norse /greek myths that I see mentioned! :)
Oh and also there is a ring of misfortune featured in these Finnish tales!
I believe in the Arabian nights there were some magic rings connected to genies. Well, some genies were connected to magic lamps, there were others connected to rings. But then again, it’s been probably 25 years since I read the Arabian nights, so I may be mistaken.
No mistake, you're quite right.
so a person with rings masturbates it will summon a gennie 😂
In the original (well, earliest-written) story of Aladdin, there is both a ring-genie and a lamp-genie.
(Oddly, "Aladdin" was added to the 1001 Nights in the 1700s by a French translator, who apparently got it from the Syrian storyteller Hanna Diyab--it wasn't in the text before then.)
Great video once again Jess! Your necklace is beautiful.
The One Ring has always interest me too because it effects every person little different.
My ring would give the ability to see a person's inner beauty, like in the movie Shallow Hal. Not only would one be able to know what one was dealing with, it would also mean the really good potential partners would also be incredibly hot.
I love all of your videos, especially when they touch on the subject of an author’s thoughts. I mean, as a writer, I’ve definitely rewrote parts of the stories I’m working on due to thoughts I’ve had or perfect names coming to me. I have no doubt many authors would edit and add new material to published work if given the opportunity.
If I had a ring of power, what power would I wish for? I think I like the idea of understanding and being able to speak in all languages and knowing their nuances. Language is fascinating to me, in every form, even, most especially the curse words, for the flavor.
Only two people ever gave up the One Ring voluntarily, and both were hobbits: Bilbo and Sam.
Actually, Frodo gives the ring up twice. The first time was to Tommy B. and then he offered the ring to Galadriel.
@@stephenwooten8661Bombadil trick him its not really like Frodon give it to him and he offered it to Galadriel but not sure he would have give it to her in the end
@cap8588 I'm not sure what you mean by tricked, he said let me see this ring and Frodo, without hesitation gave it to him. I do think he would have given the ring to Galadriel.
@@stephenwooten8661 well "let me see this ring" is not the same as "give it to me". And for Galadriel ye maybe... I said it tricks him cause he did some "magic tricks" with the ring lol
You're forgetting Tom Bombadil. He was playing around with it and even put it on. But the ring had absolutely no power whatsoever over him. He didn't even turn invisible. He voluntarily gave it back to the Hobbits.
I'd like to point out, that not only did Tolkien revise The Hobbit to make Gollum's behaviour with the Ring more suitable, he also explained revision 1 of The Hobbit WITHIN The Lord of the Rings story. In The LOTR Bilbo confesses to lying about his first encounter with Gollum, having told Gandalf and others that it was given to him; he didn't want them to think him a thief. Tolkien even goes so far as to have Bilbo mention that the lie was also in his first version of his written account of the Journey to the Lonely Mountain (because in the lore, Bilbo wrote The Hobbit, not Tolkien). I've always thought that the dedication Tolkien had to preserving the canon of his world is extraordinary.
You know how instantly crazy Gimli was about Galadriel, basically on sight? That's how I feel about your face and voice and your cozy den
Watch it now lol
I honestly love the idea of an object that simply amplifies what's already in your heart.
How the free peoples use the Rings of Power:
Men: Power
Dwarves: Wealth
Elves: Preservation
Hobbits: Hiding from their annoying neighbors.
To be fair, the Hobbits do this at great risk to themselves. Using the ring casually to avoid annoying neighbors some might argue is an abuse of that power. Unnecessary doxing, direct to Sauron.
When one uses the ring a timer starts which ends after Sauron's ghouls stab you into pillow feathers & dust.
@@tjk3430 that's mostly movie lore. In the book, the nazgul only knew that the hobbits were in Bree, because they had several spies there that informed them. As Merry discovered, they were already in town before Frodo had slipped the Ring on.
@@tjk3430Bilbo didn't know what the Ring was, and Frodo could "safely" use the Ring when not near Sauron's minions, outside Mordor, or not in a seeing-chair gazing upon Sauron from afar.
@@ericstoverink6579 you have a point it has been a while since I read the books. Movie lore is more fresh in my mind.
I swear you’re like my favorite video essay channel another great one. Have you done a deep dive yet on the mouth of Sauron, and exactly what kind of creature he is, or the physical manifestations of him? I always wonder about his ability to linger as a body-less being and how as his power grew there became more and more physical manifestations of that. just a thought for a future video!
no one mentions the other elven ring- Nunya- the ring of commerce
As for saying it more easily, you nearly did it yourself.
"The more you tighten your grip, the more systems will slip through your fingers."
Nunya-business?
What an elegant and well put together presentation ma'am. Great watch!
Hold on, hold on. What are you talking about?
- The Three Rings were the last that were made.
- The One Ring had power over the 3.
- Gandalf took the One Ring in his own hand, before throwing it in the fire.
Also, none of the rings of power actually left Eregion until after Sauron sacked it. He took all the rings, sans the three which were forged without his knowledge, and distributed them to men and dwarves.
RE: The One Ring as Character; I'm mostly on board with this idea but I also see it as being an Organizing Principle. "One Ring to Bind Them" makes this clear and explicit, as well. The original purpose was to bind all the other rings (and those who wore them) into a common purpose as defined by Sauron, but clearly it will work equally well if no-one is wearing the Ring, which is why the Fellowship gets named in reference to it.
I've also often thought that, if LOTR is an extended allegory for the 20th century then "the Ring" is meant to be interpreted purely in a symbolic and metaphorical way, and the role of "Spy Rings" in the middle 20th century was a completely confused thing with spies and counter-spies, double and even triple agents. The Secrecy aspect of the Ring as experienced by both Bilbo and Frodo (and presumably by Smeagol, early on) is another nod to the nature of human intelligence gathering; "Spy rings" use a "ring" and "cell" structure in order to evade detection.
^^ The concept of Binding is a little too easy to ignore post-1945. Take, for example, the lyric from the hymn "Bind us together / with cords that cannot be broken". Fascination, a word passed down from Latin into English, provides its ideological basis etymologically: something which binds your attention.
Also, the idea of "binding to common purpose" plays a key role in any type of conspiracy, and moreover, the most successful conspiracies tend to have common features, such as ( a ) there are no more than 2 or 3 co-conspirators, with odds against success increasing exponentially with additional members, and ( b ) preventing outsiders from gaining knowledge of or insight into the conspiracy won't protect the conspiracy from internal disagreements and betrayals. It might seem a bit superstitious to focus on the symbolic role of numbers in LOTR as compared with reality, but it is a fact that 2-3 (as many as there are Elf Rings) is the most successful or stable number in this type of evaluation, and that 5 is a natural limit when it comes to human brains and our abilities to recognize patterns where there actually are patterns. That is to say, if there are 6 people (including yourself) in a conspiracy of some kind or another there are simply too many possible combinations of the other 5 people to be able to completely identify who has done what and with whom against You, should they desire to remove you from the Ring.
The ring contained Sauron's soul inside it, so he could regenerate his body should he die. It's Sauron's voice that was talking to Bilbo and Frodo and golem.
I thought the ring was always meant to dominate the recipient. And also make them invisible. Like a wedding ring.
A dark comment.
I saw what you did there... It doesn't HAVE to be true, but sadly, often is.
I did learn something from this video! Now for your question, I think I'd agree with you on that. Teleportation would be REALLY cool. But just keep in mind that every cool ability has its drawbacks. The one to teleporting anywhere is probably teleporting somewhere you don't want to be, or maybe even accidentally breaking the law with it. Anyways, I think this was a really cool video, and yeah!
In Tolkien's conception, the Rings of Power were a manifestation of how Tolkien viewed technology.
Technology is a "force multiplier". It takes a power or an ability that is natural to us, and makes it many times more potent. We tend to think of this as an unmitigated good, and particularly in the past, people didn't think that there was much of a cost for this increase of power. Tolkien recognized dangers inherent in technology that most people still don't recognize even today, though more have come to recognize.
The first danger is that in order to create this kind of force multiplier technology, what we are really doing is externalizing something of ourselves. We are taking something that is natural to us, a natural power, even a part of ourselves, and we are putting it into an external object, a machine. Tolkien recognized that this has an effect of diminishing us. We gain power through the magnification provided by the machine / technology, but we also lose something of ourselves. We gain external power, but lose something internal.
This point does reflect Tolkien's view on technology, but it also generally reflects philosophically and spiritually the effect upon a person of evil generally, but especially of seeking power over others and seeking to control. It inherently diminishes you. You become less fully you. You begin to lose yourself.
The second danger is that technology is addictive. The power that it provides us becomes so essential to us that we cannot live without it both at an individual level and at a societal level. It possesses us. It changes us and our entire culture. I would hazard to say that there are few things that have impacted the development of modern culture more than technology. It has determined who we have become as a people.
It is literally impossible for us to give up technology. Almost no one would even think of it, and the only people who actually do it, are regarded mostly as cooks and they literally have to turn their back on our entire society.
The third danger is that technology is almost inherently exploitative. The technological revolution is built, of course, on the scientific revolution. The most important axiom of the scientific revolution was / is Francis Bacon's statement "Knowledge is power". This has (re)defined the entire modern world's relationship with knowledge and the natural world.
In the past, the philosophers, the wise, sought knowledge for the sake of love. Knowledge was its own reward. They wanted to know, because they loved the thing known. In the modern world, through the scientific and technological revolutions, this was transformed to knowledge being a means to power and control.
No longer do our wise men seek to know things because they love the world, because they love knowing... they seek to know things so that they can control things.
It is inherently exploitative.
This gives birth to one of the biggest problems of the modern world, the combination of the two axioms "Knowledge is power" and "Power tends to corrupt".
Just as in the Lord of the Rings where the Ring is the greatest danger to the wise, in our world, technology and its corrosive effects have perverted our intellectuals more than anyone else. Because their very intellectual pursuit itself has been perverted into something that corrupts.
There is probably more that could be said and more that could be drawn out on the dangers and negative influences of technology, but I want to move on to looking more at the Rings directly in the world of Middle Earth.
Understanding the concept of externalization of power (in Tolkien's view of technology) is, I think, central to understanding what the Rings of Power are and how they work.
What Sauron taught the smiths of Eregion, seems to have been the ability to externalize aspects of their own Elvish nature, which is to say the powers of their immortal Elvish nature, into the rings (a magical version of what we do with technology). This provided the Elves with the ability to magnify the powers that were natural to them, what Sam would have called their "Elvish magic".
This magical ability seems to have been directly tied to Sauron's own nature, his own unique powers (perhaps those natural to a Maia, or perhaps even specific to him). Because when Sauron created the One Ring, it enabled him to see the minds and influence the minds of the wearers of all the other Rings of Power. Even the power of the Three Elven rings, though they had never been touched by Sauron, or tainted by him, still was tied to the One Ring, and their power lasted only so long as the One Ring lasted.
The idea that the Elvish ring makers put something of their own nature into the rings, explains some of the effects of those rings on the mortal bearers that Sauron later gave them to. The Dwarves and the Men.
A mortal who wears a great ring does not die, because the nature and power that the Elves put into the rings, was that of their immortal nature. They do not age, and as such, a mortal who wears a great ring, effectively does not age. However, the nature of the mortal is not elevated or changed, it is merely over-shadowed. So they don't receive more life, they just continue on and the life that is appropriate to their nature, which was meant to be lived over 100 years, or 200 years, can be stretched over thousands of years. Thus becoming an unending weariness.
It should be noted that when creatures that are, by nature, immortal wear a great ring, they do not become invisible. Rather the ring that they wear becomes invisible, as per Galadriel. I think this is because the ring does not overshadow their nature.
Mortal creatures who wear a great ring become invisible because the power and nature that is in the ring is overshadowing them, they are becoming lost in it.
In Tolkien's world, this is also explainable because the immortal beings, like the Elves, live at once in both the spiritual world and the physical world. Remember Glorfindel when Frodo had begun to fade, or Legolas and his attitude towards the Dead Men of the Dwimmorberg. Mortal creatures do not live at once in both realms, the spiritual realm is invisible to them. What happens to them when the put on a great ring, is that they appear to become a shade in the physical world, but become visible and able to see in the spiritual world. This also suggests that their mortal nature is being overridden by the immortal nature of the ring maker(s).
All of this also explains why no one can use the One Ring, except by becoming Sauron. Sauron literally put his own nature into the Ring. His nature overshadows and consumes who ever wears it. Further, to use its powers, is literally to wield a part of Sauron's nature. This turns you into Sauron, and to do it effectively, you would have to become Sauron.
The addictive nature of the rings, I think, comes down to the desire for control and power, as you said. The characters in the story who have the least desire for power and control, have the least temptation for the rings, and can use the Three Elvish rings without danger, even though those would be dangerous to mortals.
The only character in the story who is completely and utterly unaffected by the One Ring, is Tom Bombadil, who is also the only character in the story who has completely and utterly given up the desire to control anything. He lives in a strange state of being master, without trying to control anything. Everything in "his land" owns itself and completely is itself.
This shows that the true path to being complete master of yourself, and being completely yourself, is to give up control of everything else. In letting everything else be itself, he is able to completely be himself.
Where as, the Ring, which is Sauron's nature, which is the desire and the ability to control and "be a master of other wills", robs people of their own self, and leaves them empty and hollow. They become nearly nothing.
Well put!
You are right that it is literally impossible to give up technology, as that is literally how humans survive. (As an aside, the word you were looking for was 'kooks', not 'cooks'.) Technology is simply applied knowledge. The wheel is technology. All means of making fire are technology. Anyone that attempted to truly shun technology would not be able to cook food or wear clothes or build shelter. The reason people are considered odd for taking a strong stance against technology is because they aren't shunning technology entirely (since they literally cannot do so and live), but instead are picking some arbitrary point in time where they think technology should have stopped advancing.
In addition to the other mistakes that have already been pointed out, Sauron did have control over the three elven rings - but only when he had the one. After the initial use, the three were not worn again until Sauron lost the one.
Always love these dives, your content is great!
Great video! With all of your mention of epic operas, ancient texts and folklore, my favourite moment turned out to be your nod to "This is Spinal Tap". 🤣
thanks. a very enjoyable examination of the ring lore and real world philosophies behind such stories.
Fabulous job of explaining the history of the concept and the powers of the One Ring. Love your question. My Hobbit Ring power of choice? I want the ability to love all, unconditionally. Because if there is one thing I've learned through my increasingly long life, it is that at the heart of all yearnings is the desire to experience unending love, and since love comes from within us, it has to start there.
Being able to heal injury or disease, or at least recover from them, would be very helpful.
Being able to withstand sensory bombardment, too. So many things are loud, or bright, or flashing, and these hurt and cause all sorts of neuro symptoms.
In the formative decades of Tolkien's life, Hegelian philosophy was very strong in Britain. A lot of bad things can be said about that philosophy, but one thing nobocy can deny that Hegel added a lot to the understanding of power. He describes some of the ideas in Tolkien's letter quoted in the video: To Hegel, power lies in relationships. A master cannot be a master without a servant, and vice versa. This is not just logically true, it is psychologically true: The master-and-servant context the two live in will shape them, do things to them, and once established, the master is bound by the relationship potentially as much as the servant. Since they are shaped by the relationship, this will manifest in the things they make (in the broadest sense), and that is where the loss of control Tolkien mentions comes about.
Very intriguing, fabulously presented and told. Great narrative.
I too would like a teansportation ring to get me "there and back again".❤
It is interesting that once putting on the ring the bearer did not receive the power of Sauron though so much of his life force was bound within it and to receive it again, Sauron would have become whole again and able to take physical form. His power was, we can conclude, some how locked away within it. Sauron being the only one who had the key to unlock it!
Great video, Jess. There are some interviews on RUclips with his children and in those videos Tolkien describes "The Ring" represents coercion (the use of force to persuade someone to do something that they are unwilling to do), i.e. the machine (today this would be A.I.)
HI Jess just stumbled on your channel after watching the first 3 episodes, you're great at explaining all this lore stuff 😊
Really enjoyed this interpretation.
There's this archetype that I don't think gets used too often now wherein the villain transforms or in some way mutilates himself in the pursuit of power, ultimately destroying himself in the process. It resonates on a very primal level and there's likely some deeper truth to it - which I think you've hit on here.
Instead of being what they are, these characters obsess over "taking power that isn't theirs" and destroy themselves in the doing.
Taken as a whole with the supporting literature, it does seem like that was what Tolkien was getting at here. Interestingly, it makes the Ring a sort of transferrable doom.
Hmm... Sounds like the name of a metal band that writes songs about contract law.
good work on this especially mentioning other stories with the ring i never knew those existed. looks like you could write lyrics like joanna newsom you seem to have so much knowledge about these old stories myths legends ..
4:33 Squarespace steals the fabric off her shoulders and leashes her hair... Truly the work of mighty sorcerers. I must hire them immediately.
I have not seen a better put together video of this type on RUclips in quite some time. Well done
The argument about hiw the desire of (an external) power devour the wielder just inspired me a story about a theme i care abta lot: enforcing willpower (and control) versus trusting inspiration (feeligs and spirit)
I very much appreciate your exploration of power in the Ring and in the hearts of the rational creatures of Middle Earth. Unlike some comments, none of this is an analogy for something in our present or past, but it is a reflection of the reality of the world we live in and the corruptibility of our hearts. I especially appreciate what you said about how Sauron had to put his power into the ring in order to use it to dominate others and so it actually became his destruction.
Another angle on this that I think Tolkien would have thought about is that all power ultimately comes from Iluvatar. The Ring would not have had any control over Iluvatar and, in Tolkien's mind, that which is directing all that happens while not forcing anyone to do that which they do not choose to do, ensures that all will work out according to the way it must be. This does not mean that every story will end well from someone's perspective, but ultimately all will end for the good. That most certainly would mean that something created for such an evil end as the One Ring would ultimately mean the defeat of one who poured his power into it.
Well, it is much more complicated than that, but worth considering.
A principle glimpsed by characters in LotR, and expressed in sayings like 'Oft evil will shall evil mar'.
Excellent... excellent exposition and presentation... thank you for your videos, I do enjoy them. Peace...
Best explanation I've came across. Immediate subscription. Thank you
ooooooh that quote at 15:30 and your analysis on it is so sharp
My Ring would free me of all weariness and tiredness.
Never needing to rest, having a whole third of my life bestowed upon me.
Also, I appreciate the effort you put into pronouncing the German Titles, you really nailed it.
I rarely ever actually bother liking and subscribing, but that pun "power slips through your fingers" compelled me too come back to my watched list, find this again and like and subscribe XD Keep rocking!
Ring of teleportation for sure, I too love traveling and would love to jump around like Jumper (the movie)!
I love your set, it reminds me of my best friends old reading room from when we grew up!!
Sauron had no hand in the making of the Three. They were made solely by Celebrimbor after Sauron had left Eregion to begin work on the One.
The Three were completed and given to Elrond, Galadriel and Cirdan before Sauron finished the One. When Sauron completed the One and donned it for the first time, the wearers of the Three became aware of both his true identity and his intent (Ash nazg durbatuluk; Ash nazg gimbatul; Ash nazg thrakatuluk, ag burzum-ishi krimpatul). The wearers of the Three immediately took off their Rings, but not before Sauron became aware of them.
Although Sauron did not get the time to bend the wearers of the Three to his will, he at least knew that his plan to use the sixteen subordinate Rings, that he and Celebrimbor together had crafted, to control the elves was well and truly scuppered.
*Edit:* I apologize for the following bit. Someone commenting pointed out that there is more than one edition of The Hobbit. I didn't know that, and I'd only ever encountered the revised editions. I do wish you had been more explicit that The Hobbit itself was revised, and that LOTR wasn't a sort of "retcon" of the ring from The Hobbit.
12:12 this is not exactly accurate, from my recollection. It's true that Bilbo does not fight Golem for the ring. He finds it before meeting Golem, because it has slipped off Golem's finger. Golem does go looking for it at the end of the riddle contest, but he's looking for it because he half suspects that it's what Bilbo has in his pocket, and also because if Bilbo doesn't have it, Golem wants to use it to sneak up on Bilbo and kill him.
Also, while it is in a certain like, divine providence that Golem falls into the cracks of Doom, it's also the Ring being used against itself. At one point, earlier, as they're climbing the mountain, Golem attacks, and Frodo grasps the ring and tells Golem something like "If you touch me again, you yourself shall be cast into the cracks of Doom!". And it's clear that at that moment, the power of the Ring is in him. So, the Ring defeats itself.
You haven't read the first edition.
@@AmyThePuddytat - Interesting! Thanks for telling me. I've revised my original comment. I did not know that there was any other edition.
To put it in D&D terms, its primary funvtion was effectively a phylactery (allowing the owner to come vacknfrom desth as long as it remains intact, circa Koschei)..
There's its (what I consider) secondary effect which is based on the user (for example, making hobbits go invisible, or vanishing on Tom Bombadil's hand), or controlling other rings of power when on Sauron's hand.
However, it could be the other eay around, with the phylactery role being secondary to the "variable by user" role.
As a german person i have to say, you did really well with pronouncing the german names. The mythology nerd in me has to say that Wagners Opera is not really that accurate to the original myth of the Niebelungen. A lot of mythology nerds and the people that actually work in the academic field of norse mythology actually strongly dislike the Opera. I got snubbed for saying I like the story of the opera as well as the version from norse and germanic mythology. Also there are multiple versions of this Saga out there since the story streches across a lot of countries and times. It's also the best known legend in Germany.
I could imagine Tolkin not liking the idea of a componist adapting an old germanic and nordic mythos and just ignoring that as much as possible while using the more "original" legend as inspiration. Anyways, there even is a new movie comming out about the Niebelungen focusing on and named after the character Hagen. He is the one that betrays Siegfried/Sigurd. Also, its historically very interesting because we still don't really know how much of the legend is true but we do know some of the people actually lived and similar battles happend. But timeslines are wonky and all that. Also there have been searches for the Rheingold, the treasure Hagen has allegedly thrown in to the Rhein but it hasn't been found. Its really a fascinating topic of you like legends like the Arthurien stories or mythology and or even history.
Understanding the true power of the Ring makes the moment where Sam laughs at the Great Gardener vision so much better
My opinion? The ring is designed to have multiple functions:
1. Sauron as Annatar - it enhances the already-present natural abilities of the wearer to their fullest possible potential. Warriors become demons on the battlefield, hobbits become invisible, and wizards (same species as Sauron) become as powerful as Morgoth.
2. Sauron as the Dark Lord - allows the wearer to control all those who fall to or feel the temptation of the ring (which is why Dwarves are never used in Sauron's army, they weren't tempted by the ring, they were tempted with the gold that the ring's power would allow them to unearth)
3. Sauron as Sauron - his own life force (an a majority of it) was used to make the ring in the first place, so the ring is more Sauron than Sauron is by the time Celimbrimbor completed the other rings. As a result, the ring has a will of its own. Sauron's will... And Sauron did not care about his body as much as his body cared about the ring. If a wizard or elf used the ring, the ring would overpower their will and de facto, the wearer would be nothing more than a ring wraith in the end, piloted and sustained by the will of Sauron, even if Sauron's body was permanently destroyed (which was impossible without destroying the ring in the first place)