Boromir long supported a different strategy than his allies in the fight against Sauron.
Ever since the Council of Elrond, Boromir hoped a great leader would wield the Ruling Ring as a weapon. Instead, the Council decided to destroy the ring by throwing it into Mount Doom.
During a dramatic conversation, Boromir used a variety of techniques to convince Frodo to let Boromir, or another ally, use the ring and its powers in the war against Sauron. When Boromir failed to persuade Frodo, Boromir tried to take the ring by force.
Their conversation is one of the most interesting passages in The Fellowship of the Ring.
When I was younger, I performed in several musicals at my hometown community theater. As a former actor, Boromir’s dialog is a fascinating piece to analyze and understand.
But first, let’s set the scene.
The Fellowship finally had to decide whether to continue onward to Mordor or travel to Boromir’s home, the Human Kingdom of Gondor, where they could rest before continuing their journey.
Frodo, the ring bearer, had to decide which direction he would go. The other members of the Fellowship would decide their destinations in response to Frodo’s choice.
Frodo was uncertain which way he should go. He requested an hour to make his decision.
Frodo went off into the woods, alone, to gather his thoughts.
All that had happened since Bilbo left the Shire was passing through his mind, and he recalled and pondered everything that he could remember of Gandalf's words. Time went on, and still he was no nearer to a choice. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
After a while, Boromir joined Frodo.
Boromir sought to convince Frodo to journey with Boromir to Gondor and let him carry out his plan to use the Ruling Ring in battle. Boromir approached Frodo, who was fraught with indecision.
Suddenly he awoke from his thoughts: a strange feeling came to him that something was behind him, that unfriendly eyes were upon him. He sprang up and turned; but all that he saw to his surprise was Boromir, and his face was smiling and kind.
'I was afraid for you, Frodo,' he said, coming forward. 'If Aragorn is right and Orcs are near, then none of us should wander alone, and you least of all: so much depends on you.
‘And my heart too is heavy. May I stay now and talk for a while, since I have found you? It would comfort me.
‘Where there are so many, all speech becomes a debate without end. But two together may perhaps find wisdom.'
'You are kind,' answered Frodo. 'But I do not think that any speech will help me. For I know what I should do, but I am afraid of doing it, Boromir, afraid.'
Boromir stood silent. Rauros roared endlessly on. The wind murmured in the branches of the trees. Frodo shivered. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
The description of the sounds of the Rauros River and the wind blowing through the trees provided a vivid background for their conversation.
Boromir at first expressed concern for Frodo’s safety, as Frodo sat alone in a land where he could easily encounter enemies.
Boromir may have been concerned for Frodo’s safety, but he also may have mentioned this in part to establish rapport with Frodo to make it easier to persuade him.
Boromir said it’s sometimes easier for two people to reach a decision than it is for a large group to do so.
While true, Boromir likely also believed that it would be easier to convince Frodo to go along with his plan without other members of the Fellowship listening in.
Frodo told Boromir that he knows what he must do, but that he is afraid to do it. But Frodo hadn’t yet explained what it is he believes he must do.
Suddenly Boromir came and sat beside him. 'Are you sure that you do not suffer needlessly?' he said. 'I wish to help you. You need counsel in your hard choice. Will you not take mine?'
'I think I know already what counsel you would give, Boromir,' said Frodo. 'And it would seem like wisdom but for the warning of my heart.'
'Warning? Warning against what?' said Boromir sharply.
'Against delay. Against the way that seems easier. Against refusal of the burden that is laid on me. Against — well, if it must be said, against trust in the strength and truth of Men.' (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir offered to help Frodo make his decision, before he actually laid out his case.
Frodo said he anticipated what Boromir’s advice would be and that he is likely to decide otherwise.
Frodo listed the potential cost of delay, the potential cost of taking the seemingly easy choice, and failing to carry out his duty as reasons he will likely decide against Boromir’s advice.
Frodo then cited his weariness in trusting in “the strength and truth of Men.”
Frodo’s concern ties in with the history of how the races of Middle Earth were affected by the Rings of Power.
Sauron planed to use the Ruling Ring to gain power over the people of Middle Earth through their use of less powerful magic rings. The Ruling Ring allowed Sauron to know the thoughts of those that wore the other magic rings.
The elves immediately knew of Sauron’s plans once he wore the Ruling Ring, and they stopped using the Elven Rings.
Sauron provided rings to the Dwarves, who were overcome by greed and used them to amass large hordes of gold. But they couldn’t be corrupted into becoming servants of the Dark Lord.
Men who received Sauron’s rings used them to accrue power, wealth, and glory.
Eventually, these men were corrupted and became Ring Wraiths, terrible creatures who served the Dark Lord.
Of the races of Middle Earth, men were most easily corrupted by Sauron’s plans. Frodo may have been cautious of placing too much trust in men in part because of this history.
'Yet that strength has long protected you far away in your little country, though you knew it not.' Boromir said.
'I do not doubt the valour of your people. But the world is changing. The walls of Minas Tirith may be strong, but they are not strong enough. If they fail, what then?' Frodo asked.
'We shall fall in battle valiantly. Yet there is still hope that they will not fail.' (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir said the men of Gondor have protected Frodo and the Shire by holding the armies of Sauron at bay. Boromir made a similar point during the Council of Elrond, when he called Gondor, “the bulwark of the West.”
Frodo replied that Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor, may fall to the Dark Lord’s forces.
Boromir responded that the city’s defenses might not fail.
'No hope while the Ring lasts,' said Frodo.
'Ah! The Ring!' said Boromir, his eyes lighting. 'The Ring! Is it not a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt for so small a thing? So small a thing! And I have seen it only for an instant in the House of Elrond. Could I not have a sight of it again?'
Frodo looked up. His heart went suddenly cold. He caught the strange gleam in Boromir's eyes, yet his face was still kind and friendly. 'It is best that it should lie hidden,' he answered.
'As you wish. I care not,' said Boromir. 'Yet may I not even speak of it? For you seem ever to think only of its power in the hands of the Enemy: of its evil uses not of its good. The world is changing, you say. Minas Tirith will fall, if the Ring lasts. But why? Certainly, if the Ring were with the Enemy. But why, if it were with us?' (Book Two, Chapter 10)
The descriptions of Boromir’s facial expressions add imagery and depth to the conversation.
Boromir argued the ring could be used for good instead of evil. This is similar to one of my favorite observations that any technology can be good or evil depending on how it’s used.
'Were you not at the Council?' answered Frodo. 'Because we cannot use it, and what is done with it turns to evil.'
Boromir got up and walked about impatiently. 'So you go on,' he cried. 'Gandalf, Elrond — all these folk have taught you to say so. For themselves they may be right. These elves and half-elves and wizards, they would come to grief perhaps.
‘Yet often I doubt if they are wise and not merely timid. But each to his own kind.
‘True-hearted Men, they will not be corrupted. We of Minas Tirith have been staunch through long years of trial. We do not desire the power of wizard-lords, only strength to defend ourselves, strength in a just cause.’ (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Gandalf and Elrond advised the ring would corrupt those who attempt to use it. Thus the ring could only be responsible for evil, by either returning to Sauron, or by creating a new Dark Lord to take his place.
Elrond recalled the fate of Isildur, who took the ring for himself following Sauron’s earlier, temporary defeat. Isildur had been killed by orcs after the ring slipped from his finger. Elrond said the ring had betrayed Isildur.
Gandalf researched the history of the ring and was also familiar with its origin and history.
It is their advice that informed the decision of the Council.
Boromir, however, was not convinced they were correct.
He argued that unlike wizards or elves, men guided by a just cause would not be corrupted. This is ironic given that the history of the rings, which I described above, would lead to the opposite conclusion.
Men, compared to the other races of Middle Earth, were the easiest to corrupt.
‘And behold! in our need chance brings to light the Ring of Power. It is a gift, I say; a gift to the foes of Mordor. It is mad not to use it, to use the power of the Enemy against him. The fearless, the ruthless, these alone will achieve victory.
‘What could not a warrior do in this hour, a great leader? What could not Aragorn do? Or if he refuses, why not Boromir? The Ring would give me power of Command. How I would drive the hosts of Mordor, and all men would flock to my banner!'
Boromir strode up and down, speaking ever more loudly; almost he seemed to have forgotten Frodo, while his talk dwelt on walls and weapons, and the mustering of men; and he drew plans for great alliances and glorious victories to be; and he cast down Mordor, and became himself a mighty king, benevolent and wise. Suddenly he stopped and waved his arms. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir slowly eased into actual request by trying to gain Frodo’s trust and warming Frodo up to his proposal.
Then Boromir clearly explained his plan for a great leader to use the ring to command an army to fight against Sauron.
Boromir would first offer this role to Aragorn, but Boromir would gladly accept the opportunity should Aragorn decline. Clearly, Boromir would prefer to marshal the power of the ring himself.
Boromir then described his glorious plan to use the ring to command a great army, defeat Sauron, and rule as a benevolent king.
At this point, Boromir was indulging in his own fantasy rather than focusing on convincing Frodo to agree to let him carry it out. Although in Boromir’s own mind, he no doubt believed his grand plan would be well received.
'And they tell us to throw it away!' he cried. 'I do not say destroy it. That might be well, if reason could show any hope of doing so. It does not. The only plan that is proposed to us is that a halfling should walk blindly into Mordor and offer the Enemy every chance of recapturing it for himself. Folly!
'Surely you see it, my friend?' he said, turning now suddenly to Frodo again. 'You say that you are afraid. If it is so, the boldest should pardon you. But is it not really your good sense that revolts?' (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir then cast doubt on whether Frodo would be able to succeed in his quest to destroy the ring by throwing it into Mount Doom. Boromir said attempting to do so would likely lead to Sauron recapturing the ring.
Boromir’s dialog makes clear that his comment in Lothlorien that it would be, “folly to throw away,” referred to the Ruling Ring.
Boromir, turning his attention back to Frodo, suggested that Frodo’s fear of walking into Mordor came from his own reasoned judgement.
'No, I am afraid,' said Frodo. 'Simply afraid. But I am glad to have heard you speak so fully. My mind is clearer now.'
'Then you will come to Minas Tirith?' cried Boromir. His eyes were shining and his face eager.
'You misunderstand me,' said Frodo.
'But you will come, at least for a while?' Boromir persisted. 'My city is not far now; and it is little further from there to Mordor than from here. We have been long in the wilderness, and you need news of what the Enemy is doing before you make a move. Come with me, Frodo,' he said. 'You need rest before your venture, if go you must.'
He laid his hand on the hobbit's shoulder in friendly fashion; but Frodo felt the hand trembling with suppressed excitement. He stepped quickly away, and eyed with alarm the tall Man, nearly twice his height and many times his match in strength. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir undermined his plan by disclosing it so fully.
Frodo may have been willing to stay temporarily in Gondor, but now that he knew Boromir’s true plans, he was unwilling to do even that.
Boromir then tried to convince Frodo to rest a while in Gondor, without success.
Boromir, having fully described his grand plan, couldn’t contain his excitement. He felt so close to achieving his dream of power and glory.
'Why are you so unfriendly?' said Boromir. 'I am a true man, neither thief nor tracker. I need your Ring: that you know now; but I give you my word that I do not desire to keep it. Will you not at least let me make trial of my plan? Lend me the Ring!'
'No! no!' cried Frodo. 'The Council laid it upon me to bear it.'
'It is by our own folly that the Enemy will defeat us,' cried Boromir. 'How it angers me! Fool! Obstinate fool! Running willfully to death and ruining our cause. If any mortals have claim to the Ring, it is the men of Numenor, and not Halflings. It is not yours save by unhappy chance. It might have been mine. It should be mine. Give it to me!' (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir pleaded with Frodo to let him try his plan. Boromir then demanded that Frodo give him the ring.
Frodo did not answer, but moved away till the great flat stone stood between them. 'Come, come, my friend!' said Boromir in a softer voice. 'Why not get rid of it? Why not be free of your doubt and fear? You can lay the blame on me, if you will. You can say that I was too strong and took it by force. For I am too strong for you, halfling,' he cried; and suddenly he sprang over the stone and leaped at Frodo. His fair and pleasant face was hideously changed; a raging fire was in his eyes. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir, now in a frenzy, tried to convince Frodo that he would be better off if he didn’t have to bear the ring and face the danger of the Dark Lord’s servants who sought to take the ring from him.
Boromir told Frodo that he could tell others that Boromir had taken the ring from him, if Frodo chose to give it to him.
Doing so would prevent Frodo from having to take responsibility for abandoning his burden as the ring bearer to see that the ring was destroyed.
Finally, after all of his other attempts had failed, Boromir tried to take the ring by force.
Frodo dodged aside and again put the stone between them. There was only one thing he could do: trembling he pulled out the Ring upon its chain and quickly slipped it on his finger, even as Boromir sprang at him again. The Man gasped, stared for a moment amazed, and then ran wildly about, seeking here and there among the rocks and trees.
'Miserable trickster!' he shouted. 'Let me get my hands on you! Now I see your mind. You will take the Ring to Sauron and sell us all. You have only waited your chance to leave us in the lurch. Curse you and all halflings to death and darkness!'
Then, catching his foot on a stone, he fell sprawling and lay upon his face. For a while he was as still as if his own curse had struck him down; then suddenly he wept. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
To protect his own safety, Frodo put the ring on his finger and disappeared.
Boromir then accused Frodo of planning to betray the free people of Middle Earth by intentionally taking the ring to Sauron.
Boromir was already angry at Frodo for interfering with his grand plan. Boromir may have accused Frodo of treason because it’s easier to hate someone who is evil than it is to hate someone who merely has a different strategy for achieving the same goal.
Boromir cursed all hobbits to “death and darkness,” tripped on a stone, and fell down.
He rose and passed his hand over his eyes, dashing away the tears. 'What have I said?' he cried. 'What have I done? Frodo, Frodo!' he called. 'Come back! A madness took me, but it has passed. Come back!'
There was no answer. Frodo did not even hear his cries. He was already far away, leaping blindly up the path to the hill-top. Terror and grief shook him, seeing in his thought the mad fierce face of Boromir, and his burning eyes. (Book Two, Chapter 10)
Boromir immediately regretted his verbal attacks against Frodo and hobbits, and his attempt to take the ring by force.
Boromir said that a madness had overtaken him, and he pleaded with Frodo to return.
I take Boromir’s regrets to be genuine, rather than another attempt to steal the ring. Although I believe Frodo was right to flee the scene of the confrontation.
Throughout The Fellowship of the Ring, the book’s wisest characters describe the ring’s power over the hearts of those who desire it. Gandalf and Elrond use history and memory to explain the ring and its dangers.
But the ring’s power and influence are most clearly shown when the characters in the story are themselves tempted by the ring.
None of these characters demonstrate the ring’s powers as effectively as Boromir, who is the least able to withstand its allure, and the potential glory that it could bring.
Boromir’s actions led directly to the separation of the Fellowship, which I will examine in my next analysis.
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