Summary — Chapter 5: The White Rider
“The Dark Lord has Nine. But we have
One, mightier than they: the White Rider. He has passed through
the fire and the abyss, and they shall fear him.”
See Important Quotations Explained
Meanwhile, Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas suffer from freezing weather
on the trail of Merry and Pippin. They fear that the hobbits may
have perished in the fierce battle between the Riders of Rohan and
the Orcs. Gimli and Aragorn find the knife and the cut ropes that
bound the hands of Pippin, giving them hope that the two hobbits
are still alive somewhere in the forest. They find Hobbit tracks and
follow them up to the river where the hobbits bathed.
Debating what to do next, Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas
are suddenly surprised by an old man in a cloak and wide-brimmed
hat in the forest. Taking him for the evil Saruman, they are about
to shoot him when Aragorn advises them to address him first, to
be sure who he is. The stranger speaks to them familiarly, as though
he knows them all. Gimli implores the old man to tell them where
their friends are. Rather than answer, the old man jumps on a tall
rock and throws off his gray clothes, revealing white garments beneath.
Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas are stunned to recognize their former
companion Gandalf the Grey, reborn as Gandalf the White. Gandalf mysteriously
says that he has “passed through fire and deep water” since his
plunge into the chasm with the Balrog in the Mines of Moria (as
recounted in The Fellowship of the Ring).
Gandalf explains Saruman’s evil intention to seize the
Ring for his own use. Sauron, the great Enemy, had asked for Saruman’s
help, but Saruman betrayed Sauron by dividing the Isengarders against Rohan,
thereby aiding Gandalf’s forces. Gandalf notes that Sauron’s mistake
is in concentrating his forces abroad in search of the Ring-bearing
Frodo, rather than guarding the entrance to Mordor so that Frodo’s
entry might be blocked. It has apparently not occurred to Sauron
that Frodo might be trying to return the Ring to Mordor to destroy
it. Gandalf also predicts that the Ents, now fully roused to action,
will be powerful in a way no one can foresee. Aragorn is confident
that Gandalf will be a superb leader of their forces, and he hails
Gandalf as the White Rider. Gandalf mounts his horse, Shadowfax,
and they all make their way toward Isengard.
Summary — Chapter 6:
The King of the Golden Hall
The Company, led once again by Gandalf, marches toward
Isengard, camping at night. The next morning, Legolas glimpses a golden
building far in the distance, which Gandalf identifies as Edoras,
the court of Théoden, King of Rohan. Gandalf cautions them to ride
carefully, as war is afoot and the Riders of Rohan are always on the
watch.
As Gandalf and the group arrive at the court of Edoras,
guards ask them to identify themselves, addressing them in the local
language of Rohan rather than in the Common Tongue. The guards declare
that no one is welcome in Edoras in times of war, explaining that
someone named Wormtongue has issued these orders. Hearing the name
Wormtongue, Gandalf becomes angry and demands to speak to Théoden
himself. Gandalf and his companions are allowed entry, although
they are forced to leave their weapons with the doorman, Háma, despite
Aragorn’s protests. When Gandalf refuses to leave his staff at the
door, Háma is suspicious, but allows the wizard to keep the staff
with him.
Entering the royal hall, Gandalf’s group meets the aged
King Théoden, his wily counselor Gríma Wormtongue, and Theoden’s niece,
Éowyn. Wormtongue immediately issues a verbal attack on Gandalf,
accusing the wizard of always seeking favors and never offering
aid. Gandalf erupts in a rage, using his staff to bring down a powerful
thunder that sends Wormtongue to the floor. Gandalf denounces Wormtongue,
explaining to Théoden that his counselor had given advice that allowed
the Isengarders to become stronger. Gandalf calls upon Théoden to
recover his rightful strength as king and to fight off Saruman.
Gandalf asks Théoden whether the king is holding Éomer prisoner.
Théoden admits that it is so, and that he did so on the advice of
the deceitful Wormtongue. Gandalf asks Théoden to release Éomer
and to array forces against Isengard.
Théoden confronts Wormtongue, accusing him of treachery. Wormtongue
tries to defend himself, but Théoden remains firm, and gives his
advisor the ultimatum of either fighting alongside him against Isengard
or leaving the country immediately. Wormtongue flees. Gandalf asks
for Shadowfax as a gift (the horse was merely borrowed from Théoden
before). Théoden offers weapons and coats of mail to everyone in
Gandalf’s group, though the wizard himself rides unprotected. From
the hall, Éowyn watches the group ride off.
Analysis — Chapters 5–6
In the description of King Théoden and the court of Edoras,
Tolkien draws upon the mythical tales of King Arthur and his court
of Ca-melot. Edoras is more than a royal residence. It is described
as a “Golden Hall,” giving it a fantastical feel. Théoden’s Riders
evoke Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table. In nodding to ancient
British myth in this manner, Tolkien signals his intention for The
Lord of the Rings to be not a mere fantasy novel, but a
tale with the feel of ancient myth. Like the old stories about King
Arthur, Tolkien’s novel aims not just to tell a thrilling story,
but to reveal something deeply symbolic about human nature and fate.
The preternatural power and wisdom of Gandalf are in the
foreground in these chapters, and we begin to see the reasons why
his character is the most revered in Tolkien’s novel. The wizard
is highly insightful about the psychology of both good and evil
characters, as we see in his subtle understanding of the wicked
Sauron’s psychology. Gandalf knows that Sauron would never imagine
that the present possessor of the Ring might want to destroy it
rather than use it for his own benefit. The wizard contends that
Sauron, in failing to consider this possibility, has made the error
of searching for the Ring abroad rather than guarding the border
of Mordor so that the Ring may not reach Mount Doom. Here, Gandalf
shows his ability to think like the Enemy and to use this knowledge
strategically. The wizard’s acute understanding of human personality
and motivation is also evidenced in his delicate dealings with Théoden. Gandalf
has the difficult task of convincing the king, whom he barely knows,
that the king’s long-trusted advisor, Wormtongue, is in fact a traitor.
Gandalf pulls off this sensitive task with poise and diplomacy.
He foresees that Wormtongue, if provoked, will lose his cool and
reveal his dark side, enabling the wizard to achieve the desired
end without criticizing Théoden’s judgment.
Gandalf’s wisdom appears somehow related to his experience
of death, as he has come back to life after his death in Moria.
Like many figures in myth who gain superhuman understanding by passing
through the underworld, Gandalf’s demise at the end of the preceding
volume of the novel is not a mark of failure, but is paradoxically
a mark of power, as the wizard reappears stronger than ever. Like
the ancient Roman hero Aeneas in Virgil’s Aeneid, who
gains wisdom from a trip through the realm of the dead, Gandalf
too possesses an enhanced power now that he is reborn. Furthermore,
as in the Christian tradition of rebirth, Gandalf returns as a purified
being, no longer Gandalf the Grey but Gandalf the White. He has
been cleansed, as if earlier weaknesses have been completely eradicated.
The idea of trust is central to the episode at Edoras.
The major crisis of the chapter is Théoden’s inability to realize
that his long-trusted counselor is a spy and traitor who has undermined
the welfare of the kingdom he purports to serve. Wormtongue’s smooth-talking
attempt to discredit Gandalf and to reaffirm his own trustworthiness
to the suspicious Théoden demonstrates the power of language to
deceive and misguide. Trust is also an issue for Gandalf’s party,
as the members are all strangers in Edoras who must prove that they
can be trusted. The guards’ reluctance to allow Gandalf passage
emphasizes that Sauron’s evil has cast a pall of suspicion and mistrust
on all of Middle-earth. Every stranger is automatically suspect.
The value of trust is underscored by Gandalf’s borrowing of the
horse Shadowfax from Théoden. Tolkien could have easily structured
the novel so that the horse was Gandalf’s own property, but he instead
chose to make the horse a loan from Théoden. In making this narrative
choice, the author emphasizes that even the powerful wizard must
rely on others, which both humanizes Gandalf and underscores the
importance of trust in the Fellowship’s quest.
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