The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings, Part 3)

published	July 12th 1986 by Del Rey
first published	2006
binding	Mass Market Paperback
isbn	0345339738 (isbn13: 9780345339737)
pages	512
description	While the evil might of the Dark Lord Sauron swarmed out to conquer all Middle-earth, Frodo and Sam struggled deep into Mordor, seat of Sauron’s...more [close] While the evil might of the Dark Lord Sauron swarmed out to conquer all Middle-earth, Frodo and Sam struggled deep into Mordor, seat of Sauron’s power. To defeat the Dark Lord, the accursed Ring of Power had to be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom. But the way was impossibly hard, and Frodo was weakening. Weighed down by the compulsion of the Ring he began finally to despair. *The awesome conclusion of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, beloved by millions of readers around the world.* [close]
date added	12-24-06 edit book

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Brandon rated it:

05/18/08

bookshelves: inkling

To develop his theories on Fairy Stories, Tolkien drew heavily upon the foundation laid by the Romantic tradition, and then added to it. In “On Fairy-Stories,” Tolkien states very clearly what he believed was the desired effect of his art. He says, “But fairy-stories offer also, in a peculiar degree of mode, these things: Fantasy, Recovery, Escape, Consolation." Speaking of fantasy, Tolkien sounds very much like Coleridge when he says, “We make in our measure and in our derivativ...more To develop his theories on Fairy Stories, Tolkien drew heavily upon the foundation laid by the Romantic tradition, and then added to it. In “On Fairy-Stories,” Tolkien states very clearly what he believed was the desired effect of his art. He says, “But fairy-stories offer also, in a peculiar degree of mode, these things: Fantasy, Recovery, Escape, Consolation." Speaking of fantasy, Tolkien sounds very much like Coleridge when he says, “We make in our measure and in our derivative mode, because we are made: and not only made, but made in the image and likeness of a Maker." Tolkien’s thoughts on Recovery closely parallel those of Coleridge, but with another addition. He says, “We should look at green again, and be startled anew (but not blinded) by blue…we should meet the centaur and the dragon, and then perhaps suddenly behold, like the ancient shepherds, sheep, and dogs and horses. This recovery, fairy-stories help us to make." This part follows very near to the idea of Coleridge’s that good poetry ought to bring novelty back to life, but Tolkien adds to this concept a “regaining” facet; “Recovery (which includes return and renewal of health) is a regaining—regaining of a clear view. I do not say ‘Seeing things as they are,’ though I might venture to say ‘seeing things as we are …meant to see them.'" So Tolkien not only finds a refreshing of form, but also a source of deeper truth with the regaining concept of Recovery.
There is a fantastic example of what Tolkien means by Recovery in The Lord of the Rings; in the chapter “Houses of the Healing” Aragorn heals Faramir of the Black Breath using Athelas leaves. Athelas is, to all but Aragorn, a weed; and as the herb master says “it has no virtue.” Despite this, Aragorn, the master healer, takes the leaves and, “laid them on his hands and breathed on them, and then he crushed them, and straightway a living freshness filled the room." The scent of the leaves brings to the minds of those present memories of the world when it was alive and young. Of course the remedy brings Faramir back from the brink of death. As soon as Faramir awakes he says, “My lord you called me. I come. What does the king command?" Athelas is an analogue of what Tolkien sees as the value of Recovery in fantasy. When the world around us is seen constantly through a Positivist lens, it loses its magic, and may seem to be of no value. But in the hands of a master of fantasy, that black breath is blown away and a new and fresh world is perceived. As with Faramir, who sees the Stewardship for what it ought to be, the reader of fantasy done right can gain deeper meaning as the world around him is seen as it ought to be seen.
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The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings, Part 3)

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