"One Ring to rule them all,
One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all,
And in the darkness bind them"
Inscription on the One Ring
"There is a seed of courage hidden, waiting for some final and desperate danger to make it grow"
J.R.R. Tolkien, "The Fellowship of Ring", chapter 8
"This is the hour of the Shire-folk, when they arise from their quiet fields, to shake the towers and counsels of the Great. Who of all the Wise could have foreseen it?" Elrond. "The Lord of the Rings" Book 1
"The Lord of the Rings" begins with a child-like hobbit named Frodo Baggins inheriting an ancient golden ring from his uncle Bilbo Baggins. It ends with his quest to destroy it. For this is far more than just a ring with a strange inscription. Frodo is the bearer of the lost One Ring of absolute power created by the evil Lord Sauron to enslave the world. It must be destroyed before Sauron finds it again. And The Ring wants to be found.
Frodo understands that The Ring must be destroyed. It must be thrown into the volcanic fires of Mount Doom where it was forged, deep inside Sauron's realm of Mordor. Although the story contains plenty of powerful elves, warriors, and wizards, this task does not fall to any of them. Strangely, it is given to young Frodo, the gentle hobbit.
To complete the quest, Frodo must survive the wasteland of Mordor, vicious Orcs, giant spiders, and the treachery of Gollum. At every moment he must also resist the temptation to seize the Ring for himself, and to use it's power for his own fame and glory.
Frodo proves to be capable of more than a quiet life in the comfort of the Shire. As unlikely as he appears, Frodo makes the hero's choice of self-sacrifice for the good of others, and completes the quest at great personal cost.
© 2001. 2002 New Line Cinema
"I have been too deeply hurt, Sam. I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me.
It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."
Sam to Frodo, "The Lord of the Rings", Book 3
