爱马The Lord of the Rings

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The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings

is an epic high fantasy novel written by the English academic

and philologist J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as merely a sequel to Tolkien's

earlier work,

The Hobbit

, but eventually developed into a much larger story. It was

written in stages between 1937 and 1949, much of it during World War II. Although

intended as a single-volume work, it was originally published in three volumes in

1954 and 1955, and it is in this three-volume form that it is popularly known. It has

since been reprinted numerous times and translated into many different languages,

becoming one of the most popular and influential works in 20th-century literature.

The story of

The Lord of the Rings

takes place in an alternate pre-history, the Third

Age of Middle-earth. The lands of Middle-earth are populated by Men (humans) and

other humanoid races (Hobbits, Elves, Dwarves, and Orcs), as well as many other

creatures, both real and fantastic (Ents, Wargs, Balrogs, Trolls, etc.). The title of the

book refers to the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord Sauron, who created the

Rings of Power and the One Ring that rules them, the ultimate weapon in his

campaign to conquer and rule all of Middle-earth. From quiet beginnings in the Shire

the story ranges across Middle-earth following the course of the War of the Ring

through the eyes of its characters, most notably the hobbits, Frodo Baggins, Samwise

Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took. The main story is followed in the

book by six appendices that provide a wealth of historical and linguistic background

material.

The Lord of the Rings

has been subjected to extensive analysis of its themes and

origins, as have all of Tolkien's works. Although a major work in itself, the story is

only the last movement of a larger work Tolkien had worked on since 1917, that he

described as a

mythopoeia

. Influences on this earlier work, and on the story of

The

Lord of the Rings

, include philology, mythology, industrialization, and religion, as

well as earlier fantasy works and Tolkien's experiences in World War I.

The Lord of

the Rings

in its turn is considered to have had a great effect on modern fantasy, and

the impact of Tolkien's works is such that the use of the words

Oxford English Dictionary

.

The great and enduring popularity of

The Lord of the Rings

has led to numerous

references in popular culture, the founding of many societies by fans of Tolkien's

works, and the publication of many books about Tolkien and his works.

The Lord of

the Rings

has inspired, and continues to inspire, artwork, music, films and television,

video games, and subsequent literature. Adaptations of

The Lord of the Rings

have

been made for radio, theatre, and film. The 2001

–

2003 release of Peter Jackson's

widely acclaimed

Lord of the Rings

film trilogy prompted a new surge of interest in

The Lord of the Rings

and Tolkien's other works.

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Background

The historical background of the story of

The Lord of the Rings

is revealed in stages

through the story and the Appendices. It is also elaborated upon in

The Silmarillion

,

published after Tolkien's death. The beginnings of the story stretch back thousands of

years before the time of the book. The eponymous Lord of the Rings, the Dark Lord

Sauron, secretly forged a great

Ring of Power

called the One Ring, to enslave the

wearers of the other

Rings of Power

. He launched the War of the Elves and Sauron

during which he captured 16 of the 19 Elven Rings and distributed them to seven

Dwarf Lords and nine Kings of Men. The Men who possessed the Nine were

corrupted over time and became most feared servants, the undead Nazg?

l or

Ringwraiths. The Dwarves were more resilient against the Rings; they did not fade,

and the only effect upon them was an undying lust for Gold. Sauron failed to capture

the remaining Three Rings, which remained in the possession of the Elves who had

made them, unlike the other Rings, without Sauron's involvement. Sauron had made

the master ring himself, making a total of 20 Rings of Power.

The Men of the great island-nation of Nú

menor helped the hard-pressed Elves, ending

the war in a victory against Sauron. About 1500 years later they sent a great force to

overthrow Sauron, who surrendered, and was taken to Nú

menor as a prisoner. Over

time, the cunning Sauron poisoned the minds of the Nú

menó

reans against the Valar

and deceived them into invading the Undying Lands. The Valar responded by

destroying Nú

menor and drowning it beneath the sea. Sauron's spirit escaped to

Middle- earth, as did some faithful Nú

menó

reans who had opposed the invasion, led

by Elendil and his sons.

More than 100 years later, Sauron again made war against the Nú

menó

reans who had

survived and established themselves in Middle-earth. Elendil formed the Last

Alliance of Elves and Men with the Elven-king Gil-galad. They marched against

Mordor, defeating Sauron's armies and besieging his stronghold Barad-d?

r. After

seven years of siege, Sauron himself came forth and engaged in single combat with

the leaders of the Last Alliance.

Gil-galad and Elendil wrestled with Sauron and were both killed in the battle. Sauron

fell also and was vanquished; his spirit fled as he abandoned his damaged body.

Elendil's sword Narsil broke beneath him when he fell, and using the hilt-shard his

son Isildur cut the One Ring from Sauron's body. Isildur was advised by Elrond and

Cirdan to destroy the One Ring outright by casting it into the volcanic Mount Doom

where it was forged, but, attracted to its beauty, he refused and kept it as weregild

(compensation) for the deaths of his father and his brother Aná

rion.

So began the Third Age of Middle-earth. Two years later, Isildur and his soldiers were

ambushed by a band of Orcs at the Gladden Fields. Isildur tried to escape by putting

on the Ring, knowing that it made mortal wearers invisible; but the Ring betrayed him

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and slipped from his finger while he was swimming in the Great River Anduin. He

was seen and shot dead by Orcs, and the Ring was lost for two millennia on the river's

bottom.

It was then found by chance by a river hobbit named Dé

agol. His relative and friend

Smé

agol killed him for the Ring and was eventually banished from his home.

Smé

agol fled into the Misty Mountains where, corrupted by the power of the Ring, he

became a loathsome, slimy creature called Gollum. Much later, as told in

The Hobbit,

another hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, found the Ring seemingly by accident in Gollum's

cave, and took it back to his home, Bag End, unaware that it was anything more than

just a magic ring.

The Fellowship of the Ring

Book I in

The Fellowship of the Ring

begins in the Shire with Bilbo's 111th (or

The

Hobbit

, and his subsequent disappearance using his magic ring. Departing to retire in

Rivendell, he left many of his belongings, including the ring, to his nephew and

adoptive heir, Frodo Baggins. After 17 years of investigating, their old friend Gandalf

the Grey confirmed that this ring was in fact the One Ring, the instrument of Sauron's

power, for which the Dark Lord had been searching for most of the Third Age, and

which corrupted others with desire for it and the evil power it held. Unknown to

Gandalf, Gollum had made his way to Mordor, where he was captured and the little

information he had about the Ring and its whereabouts extracted through torture.

Sauron sent the nine Ringwraiths, in the guise of riders in black, to the Shire in search

of the Ring. Frodo escaped, with the help of his loyal gardener Samwise

Gamgee and three close friends, Meriadoc

Took, and Fredegar

Frodo and the others set off to take the Ring to the Elven haven of Rivendell. They

were aided by the enigmatic Tom Bombadil through the Old Forest and

Barrow-Downs, and by a man called

son of Arathorn, the heir to the kingships of Gondor and Arnor, and direct male

descendant of Isildur. Aragorn led the hobbits to Rivendell on Gandalf's request.

During the journey, Frodo was gravely wounded by the Ringwraiths at the hill of

Weathertop. Very ill from his wound, with the help of his companions and the

Elf-lord Glorfindel, Frodo entered Rivendell's borders by crossing the ford of the river

Bruinen. The Ringwraiths, in close pursuit, were swept away by an enchantment of

the river when they entered its waters. Book I ends with Frodo losing consciousness.

Book II reveals that Frodo had recovered under the care of the Half-elven lord Elrond,

master of Rivendell. Frodo met Bilbo, enjoying his retirement, and saw Elrond's

daughter Arwen. Later, much of the story's exposition is given during a high council,

attended by representatives of the major races of Middle- earth (Elves, Dwarves, and

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Men) and presided over by Elrond. Gandalf told them of the emerging threat of

Saruman, the leader of the Order of Wizards, who wanted the Ring for himself. In

order to fulfil an ancient prophecy about the return of the King of Gondo

r and Arnor,

Aragorn was going to war against Sauron armed with Narsil, the broken sword of

Elendil. The shards of the sword had been kept safe through the intervening years, and

were now reforged in Rivendell and renamed Andú

ril.

The Council decided that the only course of action that could save Middle-earth was

to destroy the Ring. But the Ring could not be destroyed by any means other than by

casting it into the fires of Mount Doom in which it was forged, in Sauron's domain

and stronghold, the land of Mordor. At the council there was much debate about who

would take the Ring to Mordor, with each of the representatives of the races of

Middle-Earth vying for the task. Surprising all, even himself, Frodo volunteered for

the task without forethought; with the support of Gandalf and Elrond, this ended the

debate. The council formed the

comprised of his three Hobbit companions, Gandalf, Aragorn, Boromir of Gondor,

Gimli the Dwarf, and Legolas the Elf, and with Frodo himself they were nine

companions to go against the nine Ringwraiths.

The company journeyed along the foothills of the Misty Mountains, and attempted a

mountain-pass crossing, but an overwhelming storm made this impossible. Instead

they were forced to travel underground through the abandoned Mines of Moria, where

they were tracked by Gollum, who, having been released by Sauron, desperately

sought to regain the ring he called his

mines the party was attacked by Orcs and a cave-troll. Gandalf battled a Balrog, an

ancient demon creature, and fell into a deep chasm, apparently to his death. Escaping

from Moria the Fellowship, now led by Aragorn, took refuge in the Elvish wood of

Lothló

rien, the realm of the Lady Galadriel and the Lord Celeborn. The Fellowship

then travelled down the great River Anduin by boat, and Frodo eventually decided to

continue the trek to Mordor on his own, largely due to the Ring's growing influence

on Boromir and the threat it posed to the others. At the end of the book, Frodo

attempted to continue his mission alone, but Sam was able to catch him at the last

minute, and the two of them went off together towards Mordor.

The Two T

owers

The second volume,

The Two Towers

, deals with two parallel storylines, one in each

of its books. Book III details the exploits of the remaining members of the Fellowship

who aid the country of Rohan in its war against Saruman. At the beginning of the

book, the remaining members of the Fellowship are attacked by Saruman's Orcs, and

in the battle Boromir is killed and Merry and Pippin are kidnapped by the Orcs

(Saruman, now turned traitor and seeking the One Ring himself, had sent them to

intercept the Fellowship and bring any Hobbits to him alive). Aragorn, Legolas and

Gimli pursued Merry and Pippin's captors, and met Gandalf, who had returned as

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