[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Mansun

As you wish.

"But let us not darken our hearts by imagining the trial of their gentle loyalty in the Dark Tower."

The phrase in bold (your emphasis) does not imply humor, sarcasm or wit. It reflects a great measure of concern on behalf of the 'gentle', 'innocent', and 'inexperienced' hobbits. Gandalf already knew of the hideous torure inflicted on Gollum by Sauron, and did not want the gentle hobbits loyalty tested to such an extreme. The thought of the Hobbits being broken by Sauron always deeply affected Gandalf (consider how he nearly broke down when Saruman referred to Frodo at Orthanc, or Gandalf's actions when speaking to the Mouth of Sauron). It is a sad realization on Gandalf's part (hence the phrase 'let us not darken our hearts').

Originally Posted by Mansun

But you do not see very far, and the thoughts of all those that have read the qoute are largely hidden from you.

I am not referring to what is hidden, merely what is evident. Let me put it this way: of the posters who have commented directly on the quote in question, none have necessarily agreed with you. This, of course, is subject to change in the unlikely event someone else posts in support of an untenable position.

Originally Posted by Nerwen

Actually, Morthoron has been in telepathic communication with each and every poster apart from you. It's one of those "Dark Elf" things. Didn't you know?

*Laughs out loud*

Ummm...yes, we Dark Elves have the same capacity as Elrond and Galadriel in the movies, having the ability to commune telelpathically over hundreds of miles. This is the reason the elves gave the Palantiri to the Numenoreans ages ago -- we simply didn't need them.

P.S. I suppose if you read sarcastic intent into the sentence, you could apply the emphasis like so: "But let us not darken our hearts by imagining the trial of their gentle loyalty in the Dark Tower," Gandalf said with a sneer and a malicious hiss as he spat the word 'gentle'. But then, one could do the same with any sentence: "Our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name?