28th Annual Student Research Conference
Humanity's Struggle Against Annihilation: Archetypes of Good and Evil in Tolkien's Return of the King
Quinn M. Mars
Dr. Hena Ahmad, Faculty Mentor
In Tolkien's Return of the King, humanity is on the brink of destruction, Sauron is about to reach his physical form. At this point in the series, the fellowship has long been scattered, and Frodo is close to obtaining his goal, but his mind could not be more fractured by the corruption from the ring. As circumstances quickly change from negligible to dire, Aragorn gives his iconic speech at the black gate to encourage the sacrifice of himself and his army to buy Frodo time to destroy Sauron and the ring once and for all, earning himself the Christ-like archetype. However, the situation inside of Mt. Doom is catastrophic, and Frodo's mind has become entirely consumed by the ring, his deception of his close friend for his own personal gain calls into. By humanity's side stands Gandalf, determined to see their decisions through to the end, despite all of his advice and guidance, humanity's own internal struggle may have caused them their existence.
Keywords: Lord of the Rings, Archetype, Good Vs Evil, Fellowship, Christ-like, Sacrifice, Struggle, Brink of Annihilation
Topic(s):English
Political Science
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 403-4
Location: VH 1224
Time: 3:15