LotR -- Book 3 - Chapter 01 - The Departure of Boromir

[HerenIstarion]

I suppose you hint at The weakness of man thread? What there is reason and heart I term "knowledge" and "wisdom" in the discussion of the next chapter, but reasonings are similar

PS Well, it tickles one's vanity to be called almighty... how many fingers? Seven? We'll cope...

[Boromir88]

I know this is a bit off track, but this is something I actually just recently discovered about Boromir's character. One of the deepest characters becomes even deeper.

Mark12_30 and I briefly discussed Boromir's witiness. I just figured out, it's not just witiness, Boromir is actually a satiric character. Satire is using humor or wit to bring up a problem. Often we see this in politics (Saturday Night Live). I think a key component to Boromir is this satire, for he has many witty remarks in this story. Even more, and this may be a problem of Boromir's is it tends to be Juvenilian satire, tending to be bitter, and not Horatian Satire which tends to be more gentle. Here's an example...

In the chapter The Great River the problem is how far they should travel down the river, and where should they go from there. Boromir not getting his way pokes some satiric lingo:

"But the enemy holds the eastern bank," objected Boromir. "And even if you pass the Gates of Argonath and come unmolested to the Tindrock, what will you do then? Leap down the Falls and land in the marshes?"

Satire is often confused with sarcasm. Sarcasm, even though if the person being sarcastic is laughing, tends to be a personal remark towards another, a personal attack. Satire is adressing a problem with humor or witiness. Which we have here, and already said this seems more of a bitter, or juvenilian satire, then a gentle Horation satire. This could even make Boromir a more complex character .

[davem]

Gimli and Legolas looked at their companion in amazement, for they had not seen him in this mood before. He seemed to have grown in stature while Eomer had shrunk; and in his living face they caught a brief vision of the power and majesty of the kings of stone. For a moment it seemed to the eyes of Legolas that a white flame flickered on the brows of Aragorn like a shining crown.

This is an odd thing - why would Legolas see that? Is he actually seeing something - some kind of 'spiritual' flame-like crown on Aragorn's head, or did is just seem to be there - is Legolas having a 'psychic', precognitive vision of the real crown of Gondor which Aragorn will eventually come to wear, or is he just so impressed with Aragorns newly revealed royalty that he imagines it?

Or is it something else - a kind of 'divine right of kings' thing. Has Aragorn worn this 'spiritual' crown all along, or has it just appeared in this moment? If Aragorn truly wears a 'spiritual' crown, then who placed it on his head? Surely only Illuvatar could place such a crown on Aragorn's head - has Aragorn been divinely appointed ruler of Middle earth by God?

I suppose this is a central question as far as leadership in Middle earth is concerned. Are kings simply appointed by their people, or at the least, must they rule with the consent of their people? Does this shed light on the Kinstrife which nearly brought Gondor to ruin, & on Denethor's dismissal of Aragorn as 'last of a ragged house, long bereft of Lordship & dignity'? Is there some sense in which the Stewards have a role in deciding who has been divinely appointed to rule? So that they must be satisfied not simply that the claimant is a suitable ruler, with the right inheritance, but also that he has been divinely appointed.

Certainly this would make Denethor's reluctance to accept Aragorn more significant - if he believes Aragorn's house has long since been bereft of Lordship & dignity, then he would have some case. And that leads on to a further question - he dosen't say Aragorn's house has lost its 'lordship & dignity' he says it has been bereft of those things - they have been taken away - but by whom, & for what reason? If Illuvatar is the one who bestowed Lordship & dignity (ie the divinely appointed right to rule) then wouldn't that imply that Illuvatar was the one who took it away?

In the end (at the end), we see the people of Gondor accepting Aragorn as their ruler - but is that simply because he has lead them to victory in the war against Sauron, or is there more to it - has he shown, besides that, that he is truly the divinely appointed King?

[Encaitare]

Just a thought in response to davem's final question:

In the end (at the end), we see the people of Gondor accepting Aragorn as their ruler - but is that simply because he has lead them to victory in the war against Sauron, or is there more to it - has he shown, besides that, that he is truly the divinely appointed King?

This made me think of Malbeth's prediction about Aragorn:

The heir of him to whom the oath they swore.
From the North shall he come, need shall drive him:
he shall pass the Door to the Paths of the Dead.

Now, I don't know if the average Gondorian would be familiar with these words, but some record of them must have been kept. Perhaps another reason Aragorn was so readily accepted as king, on top of the fact that he led them to victory, is that his coming and his lineage were foretold in prophecy?

[davem]

Well, idiot me, i posted that in the wrong forum

I shall leave it here due to [b]Encaitare's[b] response, but also copy it across to the right one.

[Nilpaurion Felagund]

[Ilúvatar: ]Through [Melko] has pain and misery been made in the clash of overwhelming musics; and with confusion of sound have cruelty, and ravening, and darkness, loathly mire, and all putrescence of thought or thing, foul mists and violent flame, cold without mercy, been born, and death without hope.

HoME I 2

From here, we see two types of evil:

~Overwhelming musics

This, perhaps, is the obvious kind of evil, one in visible form, and the one that causes the most harm.

~Confusion of sounds

This, then, is the subtle kind of evil: "internal" evil, if you will.

The thing is, from this "confusion of sounds" come "overwhelming musics": Melkor, succumbing to his thoughts in the dark, becomes the Dark Lord of the First Age, as fallen as any being could be. Ar-Pharazôn, listening to Sauron's whisperings, brought about ruin in Númenor and the world. Saruman, who wished to wield the Ring for the order of the world, destroyed all that he touched in the end.

In these cases , the first step towards the dark brought about their fall. And they most of them didn't know that they had, in fact, crossed the line, until it was too late to turn back.

Boromir, recognising that he had already taken that first step, repented. But he had to die, because once having attuned to this confusion of sounds, it will continue to play in him until it caused his fall.

Boromir was bound by his duty to Gondor and the Steward to slay Aragorn by any means necessary, and the others of the company should they present a threat. His duty to protect Gondor was the single greatest purpose and mandate in his life. He was born just so that he could perform this duty. He honestly and truly believed that the Ring had the power to save Minas Tirith and that Gandalfs hope would bring ruin on Minas Tirith. Therefore he was bound to get the ring and use it to the last defense, and, possible, the defeat of Sauron. Much of his thought was that the words of the dream came to him as just such a directive. But their were also the words to reference the return of the king. So Boromir was in a quandry of several aspects.
1). his love and duty to lord and city
2). the desire long entertained of his own glory
Between these his duty was clear, take the Ring.
The quandry:
3). How to perform his duty in an honorable and manful way as befits a captain of Gondor, Man of the West.
It was not for fear of Aragorn that he chose not to directly confront him. Nor for knowledge that Gimli and Legolas would hinder him, and that such a direct confrontation would end in failure.
The reason for his deciding not to perform his duty in that fashion was because the responsibility of his own discretion in the matter was become beholden to that of the will of Aragorn. For the love that Boromir found in his heart for the Ranger of the North. He found to his suprise and delight and pain that he loved and respected Aragorn, and heeded willfully to his counsel, not just because, though at first he doubted, he had come to accept the veracity of Aragorns claim on the Sceptor, but even more so because in any other circumstances, would by some chance of Fate he were not the Son of the Steward of Gondor, still he would have followed Aragorn, and took him willingly and lovingly as his lord. Such was the dignity of the character of Aragorn, even apart from his lineage.
Boromir would still have been right in his attempt to wrest the ring from Frodo, unscrupulous though the need made of it, the reason he knew that he had done evil was because he percieved in the very midst of his folly that by doing so, he had allowed himself to be decieved, and that his duty before the Steward of Gondor was to follow the counsel of Aragorn. In his desire to take the ring he percieved that it was not for his duty to Gondor, but for the evil desire of the Ring.
He collapsed with grief. Aragorn gave him his final command.
In the moment of his death he does not see Strider, or even Aragorn, but the revealed Majesty of the King of the West. Yeah, maybe even a vision in part of Elendil himself. And what he took as a damnning failure, the greatest ignoble defeat he could have ever suffered in life, never even dreamed of, yet horribly real and true, was in that moment turned to his greatest victory. People say here have said 'fogiveness' and 'pardon'. Don't you see it was so much greater than that? His victory as revealed by the King was won; his, justly and deserved. And then he smiled. The departure of Boromir I believe is the greatest scene in all of literture, reigning supreme without a rival.
Thanks.