Reading “The Lord of the Rings”: Chapter 6 — “The Forbidden Pool” (Book Four)

Having been promised the aid of Captain Faramir and his men, Frodo and Sam try to get some rest. Unfortunately, that is disrupted in the middle of the night, when it is brought to light that Gollum, in his never-ending quest for fish, has started diving in the Forbidden Pool, thus rendering his life forfeit by the laws of Gondor. Fortunately for him, Frodo intercedes and his life is spared, though it’s made clear that the creature now believes that his master has betrayed him.

What struck me upon reading the chapter this time is just how close Frodo comes to letting Faramir’s men do away with Gollum altogether. As Gollum feasts on his ill-gotten fish, “Frodo shivered, listening with pity and disgust. He wished it would stop, and that he never need hear that voice again. Anborn was not far behind. He could creep back and ask him to get the hunstmen to shoot. They would probably get close enough, while Gollum was gorging and off his guard. Only one true shot, and Frodo would be rid of the miserable voice for ever. But no, Gollum had a claim on him now. The servant has a claim on the master for service, even service in fear.” It’s such a profound moment, really, and it reveals just how far Frodo has come since the day, way back at the beginning, when he exclaimed to Gandalf that Bilbo should have slain Gollum when…