“Pity? It’s pity that stayed Bilbo’s hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play in it, for good or evil, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.”
Poor Smeagol
During a Lord of the Rings marathon last week, a friend and I got into a debate over whether I should feel sorry for Smeagol. We were halfway through The Two Towers, watching the scene where Smeagol has told Gollum to leave and not return. In this moment of freedom and joy, Smeagol brings Frodo a gift, two rabbits he caught and killed for dinner. The slimy creature is almost cute in his excitement over bringing something for his Master, but then Sam snatches the rabbits from Smeagol’s grasp and scolds him.
And as Sam yelled at the little trickster, I couldn’t help saying aloud, “Poor Smeagol.”
My friend immediately looked at me in shock. “Poor Smeagol? What do you mean poor Smeagol?”
We paused the movie, and she quickly reminded me of how manipulative he was, how he was currently leading the two hobbits to their death, and how he was a selfish thief and murderer.
The Evil of Gollum
She was right. Gollum was a thief. And a murderer. He had made terrible decisions in his past and we both knew he was about to make several more horrible decisions in his future. I don’t disregard that in the least. But the fact is, at this point in the story, Smeagol is at a crossroads. He is beginning to truly trust Frodo and the kindness the hobbit has shown him. He is beginning to care about Frodo in return. For the first time in a very long time, this worn, angry, pitiful creature has found something other than the Ring enter his affections.
Then Faramir comes. Smeagol is caught and hurt and blames Frodo, and suddenly the trust which has begun to form is broken and lost. Smeagol spirals back into his malice and turns back to the path he chose long ago. The glimmer of goodness that had still been sitting inside him is plunged once more into darkness.
I say poor Smeagol because he is a wretched slave, entirely addicted to the Ring. Every part of him, his mind and body, is bound to this evil power that is overcoming him. He has forgotten himself, and now all he knows is his desire for his Precious.
I say poor Smeagol because it hurts my heart to watch Sam abuse him, to see my favorite hobbit give in to hatred and suspicion. It hurts to see him harm a being who is completely consumed and lost.
I say poor Smeagol because in the books, pity for his vile life is one of the most important messages of the story.
Pity for Smeagol
Bilbo, Frodo, and even Sam eventually come to see Smeagol’s sorry state as something deserving of their compassion. In spite of all the horrid acts that Gollum has done throughout his life, the fact remains that he cannot escape the Ring. He cannot escape the wrong choices of his past and the pain it causes him daily. There is no joy to ease the burden on his mind , no friend by his side to help him carry it. He is isolated and despised and decaying more and more each second.
The Ring weighs on Frodo heavily during the story, and on Sam for the brief time he has it. Experiencing the grief it causes, Frodo and Sam get a glimpse of how twisted Gollum’s mind has become, and, in that understanding, they pity him.
By the end, both hobbits recognize that Gollum deserves their compassion, not because he has done anything deserving of their pity, but simply because he is broken. Hurting, even if he doesn’t realize it, and in fact, more deserving of pity because he doesn’t realize how wretched he is.
Why Compassion Matters
Tolkien constantly reminds his readers, through Gandalf, through the hobbits, and through the vital role that Gollum plays at the end, that even in his miserable state, Smeagol has value. He has a role, and his life is worth something. By showing him kindness that he didn’t deserve, Frodo offers Gollum a chance to change. The fact that Smeagol didn’t take the opportunity doesn’t diminish the value of Frodo’s action. Frodo needed to show compassion just as much as Smeagol needed to receive it. The act of pity is a reminder that every life is worth something, no matter how badly it has been misused. It is not the right of any man or hobbit to determine whether a person deserves to live.
Smeagol may have been a villain, but as Frodo says in the Two Towers, he was not so different from a hobbit once. He represents what anyone could become, if they stray too far into the darkness. Our hearts should break for him, because his first misstep, his rejected chance to repent, and now his inability to change, means that he has chosen to destroy himself. He has taken life, the most valuable gift of all, and cast it to the flames. And there is nothing more heartbreaking than the destruction of life.
For Further Reading:
Critchett, David. “One Ring to Fool Them All, One Ring to Blind Them: The Propaganda of The Lord of the Rings.” Extrapolation, vol. 38, no. 1, Kent State UP, 1997, pp. 36-56.
Gracia, Jorge J.E. “The Quests of Sam and Gollum for the Happy Life.” The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy: One Book to Rule Them All, edited by Gregory Bassham and Eric Bronson, Open Court, 2013, pp. 61-71. Proquest: Ebook Central, ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.ngu.edu/lib/ngu/detail.action?docID=753230.
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