Free to follow every thread. No paywall, no dead ends.
One Ring: the story on HearLore | HearLore
— Ch. 1 · The Ring Forged in Fire —
One Ring.
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 7
In the fires of Mount Doom, Sauron forged a band of gold during the Second Age. He intended it to be the most powerful of all Rings. This artifact could rule and control those who wore the other Rings of Power. Sauron placed much of his own power into this single object to achieve his purpose. Creating the Ring simultaneously strengthened and weakened him. With the Ring, he could control the power of all the other Rings. Yet by binding his power within the Ring, Sauron became dependent on it. The Ring seemed to be made simply of gold. It was completely impervious to damage, even dragon fire. Unlike other rings, it bore no gem. It could change size and perhaps its weight. It could suddenly expand to escape from its wearer. When heated, it displayed a fiery inscription in Black Speech. Gandalf recited the inscription at the Council of Elrond. Everyone present trembled as the words echoed: One ring to rule them all.
Isildur's Bane And The River
When Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron's hand, it burned hot. Its inscription remained legible before fading away. He transcribed it before the letters disappeared. Later, Isildur was ambushed by Orcs near the Gladden Fields. He put on the Ring to escape. It betrayed him by slipping from his finger as he swam. Suddenly visible, he was killed by the Orcs. Since the Ring indirectly caused Isildur's death, it was known in Gondorian lore as Isildur's Bane. The artifact remained hidden on the river bed for almost two and a half millennia. A Stoor hobbit named Déagol discovered it during a fishing trip. His friend Sméagol demanded that Déagol give it to him as a birthday present. When Déagol refused, Sméagol strangled him and took the Ring. It corrupted his body and mind, turning him into the monstrous Gollum. Gollum hid in a cave under the Misty Mountains near Mirkwood. There he remained for nearly 500 years.
Sauron forged the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom during the Second Age. He intended this artifact to be the most powerful of all Rings.
How did Isildur lose the One Ring after cutting it from Sauron's hand?
Isildur put on the Ring to escape Orcs near the Gladden Fields but it betrayed him by slipping from his finger as he swam. The Ring made him suddenly visible, leading to his death at the hands of the Orcs.
What happened to Sméagol when he took possession of the One Ring?
Sméagol strangled Déagol to take the Ring and it corrupted his body and mind over 500 years. This corruption turned him into the monstrous Gollum who hid in a cave under the Misty Mountains near Mirkwood.
Why did Gandalf and Galadriel refuse to wield the One Ring?
Gandalf and Galadriel refused to use the Ring because they knew that doing so would make them like Sauron himself. They understood that even powerful beings could not resist its corrupting effects.
Which Norse mythological work influenced Tolkien's creation of the One Ring?
Tolkien read and translated the Völsunga saga while at King Edward's School in Birmingham which provided some basis for his work. That saga included items named Andvaranaut and Gram corresponding broadly to the One Ring and the sword Narsil.
A mortal wearing the Ring became effectively invisible except to those able to perceive the non-physical world. Only a thin, shaky shadow discernible in the brightest sunlight marked their presence. All the same, when Sam wore the ring on the edge of Mordor, he did not feel invisible at all. He felt horribly and uniquely visible. He knew that somewhere an Eye was searching for him. The Ring extended the life of a mortal possessor indefinitely. It prevented natural aging but did not grant new life. The possessor merely continued until life became unbearably wearisome. Hobbits were more resistant to physical corruption than Men. Gollum possessed the ring for 500 years yet did not become wraith-like because he rarely wore it. Except for Tom Bombadil, nobody seemed immune to the corrupting effects. Even powerful beings like Gandalf and Galadriel refused to wield it out of knowledge they would become like Sauron himself. Within Mordor, the Ring's power increased significantly even without being worn. When Frodo grabbed the Ring, he appeared as a figure robed in white holding a wheel of fire.
Tolkien Rewrites A Story
The One Ring began as a plot device rather than a central narrative theme. As told in The Hobbit, Bilbo found the Ring while lost in tunnels near Gollum's lair. In the first edition, Gollum offered to surrender the Ring as a reward for winning the Riddle Game. When Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings, he realized the Ring's grip on Gollum would never permit him to give it up willingly. He revised The Hobbit: in the second edition, after losing the game, Gollum went to get his Precious to kill and eat Bilbo. He found the Ring missing. From Bilbo's last question about what was in his pocket, Gollum guessed correctly that Bilbo had found the Ring. Gollum sought Bilbo through the caves, not realizing Bilbo had discovered the Ring's power of invisibility. Bilbo escaped by remaining invisible but chose not to tell Gandalf and the dwarves the truth. Instead, he told them a story following the first edition. Gandalf was immediately suspicious and later forced the real story from Bilbo.
Norse Myths And Roman Curses
Scholars have identified numerous sources for or parallels with the One Ring. Tolkien's use of the Ring was influenced by Norse mythology. While at King Edward's School in Birmingham, he read and translated from Old Norse in his free time. One of his first Norse purchases was the Völsunga saga. That saga provided some basis for Richard Wagner's opera series Der Ring des Nibelungen. In the Völsunga saga, these items are respectively Andvaranaut and Gram. They correspond broadly to the One Ring and the sword Narsil. In 1928, a 4th-century pagan mystery cult temple was excavated at Lydney Park. The archaeologist Sir Mortimer Wheeler asked Tolkien to investigate a Latin inscription there. It mentioned the theft of a ring with a curse upon its thief. The Anglo-Saxon name for the place was Dwarf's Hill. In 1932 Tolkien traced Nodens to the Irish hero Nuada Airgetlám. Tom Shippey thought this a pivotal influence on Tolkien's Middle-earth. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia notes the Hobbit-like appearance of Dwarf's Hill mine-shaft holes.
The Moral Dilemma Of Gyges
A source that Tolkien might have borrowed from is Plato's Republic. Its second book tells the story of the Ring of Gyges that gave its owner the power of invisibility. In so doing, it created a moral dilemma enabling people to commit injustices without fear of being caught. In contrast, Tolkien's Ring actively exerts an evil force that destroys the morality of the wearer. The scholar Eric Katz writes that Plato argues such corruption will occur but shows us this through thoughts and actions of characters. Plato tries to counter the cynical conclusion that moral life is chosen by the weak. Glaucon thinks that people are only good because they suppose they will be caught if they are not. Plato argues that immoral life is no good as it corrupts one's soul. So according to Plato a moral person has peace and happiness and would not use a Ring of Power. Tolkien's story demonstrates various responses to the question posed by Plato: would a just person be corrupted by the possibility of almost unlimited power? The answer varies across Gollum, Boromir, Galadriel, Sam, and Frodo.
From Page To Screen And Card
In Peter Jackson's film trilogy, the wearer of the Ring moves through a shadowy realm where everything is distorted. The effects on Bilbo and Frodo have been compared with drug addiction. Actor Andy Serkis cited drug addiction as inspiration for his performance. The actual ring used for the films was designed by Jens Hansen Gold & Silversmith in Nelson, New Zealand. It was based on a simple wedding ring. A tabletop Middle-earth roleplaying game called The One Ring was manufactured by Cubicle 7. Cards representing the One Ring were included in a Lord of the Rings-themed Magic: The Gathering set. That unique card was purchased by singer Post Malone for US$2 million. This made it one of the most expensive CCG cards ever sold. In the 1981 BBC Radio serial, the Nazgûl chanted the Ring-inscription. The BBC Radiophonic Workshop sound effects for the Nazgul and Black Speech have been described as nightmarish.