The second phase is divided into six different stages. ‘The Road of Trials’, the first stage and also the most popular, is a series of tests and tasks that the person must undergo to begin the transformation. The second stage 'The Meeting with the Goddess' represents the point in the adventure when the person experiences a love that has the power and significance of the all-powerful unconditional love "after all the barriers (...)have been overcome” (Campbell 1966: 109).
The so called "mystical marriage” represents the hero’s total mastery of life as he begins to see himself in a dualistic way making place for the beloved person. Campbell makes it clear that the aforementioned love does not have to be strictly represented by a woman (also considering the fact that the hero does not have to be male). Apart from being an object of love, women also appear in other contexts which is shown in the next stage ‘Woman as the Temptress’. At this level the hero is tempted to abandon or stay from his quest by a woman. However Campbell claims that the woman in this case, can also be a metaphor for the physical or material temptations of life. The fourth stage is called 'Atonement with the Father', meaning “coming together of forces and events anticipated throughout the journey of the quest” (Petty 1979: 55). In this stage the hero must confront and be initiated by whatever holds the ultimate power in his life. This can be either the father, a father figure or an entity who has power over life and death. Either the hero has to defeat his father(figure) and takes his position or he is to earn his trust. In the ‘Apotheosis’ (to deify, to become divine), the fifth stage, the human hero attains a divine like state of knowledge, compassion and bliss, beyond all strife (Kesti, 2007: 50). It signifies a period of rest and peace before the hero's return . The last stage in the second phase is called ‘The Ultimate Boon’. The hero achieves the goal of his quest.
All previous steps serve to prepare and purify the hero for this ultimate goal. (Campbell, 1966)
The third and last phase "Return" contains six sub-stages as well. In the first one, ‘Refusal of the Return’, the hero, who has now achieved his goal, is to return, but when having achieved the divine like status, many heroes may refuse to accept to go back to their normal lives with its everyday cares and woes. Sometimes the hero has to escape with the boon from its angry previous owners: This stage is called ‘The Magic Flight’. It may also appeal to an adventurous or dangerous returning from the journey. The hero may, just like when he was setting out for his quest, also need powerful guides or rescuers to bring them back to his starting point, especially when the hero himself is too weak or wounded to return by himself. ‘The Crossing of the Return Threshold’ marks the point in which the hero has to integrate the wisdom he has achieved during the quest into his human life. This frequently causes problems for the hero, who has to figure out how to share his wisdom with the rest of the world and to remain what he has become when everybody else are still the same (Kesti, 2007: 50). In the fifth stage, ‘Master of the Two Worlds’, the hero overcomes these problems by achieving ways to cross the border between the two worlds: the “real” one and the mystical one, as he now belongs to both of them. The 'Hero’s Journey' ends with the last stage ‘Freedom to Live’, in which the hero masters to "live in the moment", neither anticipating the future nor regretting the past (Campbell: 1966).
4. FRODO'S HERO’S JOURNEY
In this paper, I will be dealing with The Hero's Journey of Frodo Baggins, one of the main characters in J.R.R. Tolkien's epic work 'The Lord Of The Rings'. Although Frodo is just one among many other heroes in Tolkien's book, it is primarily considered a “story of a journey undertaken by Frodo Baggins, a hobbit, chosen mysteriously to return a Ring which has great evil power to the place where it was forged” (Barber 1986: 1)
The aim of this paper's comparison of Frodo's quest and Campbell's theory is to determine, whether the journey undertaken by Frodo can be seen as a representative for a typical Monomyth.
4.1 Departure
4.1.1 The Call to Adventure
It is arguable when Frodo is actually "called to adventure", which is defined as the moment the hero is first given notice of his upcoming quest. Frodo received the One Ring and thus some kind of a "call" from his uncle and foster father Bilbo, decades before he realises what the Ring really is and means. Petty (1979: 32) argues that ”the call works subtly in Frodo” and he already grows kind of restless before he learns more about his quest.
However Campbell (1966: 52-53) further mentions that the call to Adventure is often brought to the hero by a an announcer, which he calls 'herald'. Campbell (1966: 53) defines this herald as typically “dark, loathly and (…) judged evil by the world”[4], an unknown, mysterious figure, who in any case would show fabulous things to the one who followed him. This makes it clear that the herald in "The Lord of the Rings" is obviously Gandalf the Grey. (Kesti, 2007: 25)
Gandalf is described as an old man with a long white beard and bushy eyebrows in a long grey wizards cloak. He is seen as a trouble-maker and is frequently called ‘that dratted wizard’ by the Shire people or ‘Láthspell’ (which means 'Illnews' in the Elvish language Sindarin) by people who think he is a danger to the beloved peace. It is Gandalf who asks Frodo to take the Ring to Rivendell and later as a consequence, Frodo volunteers to take the quest to destroy the Ring and save the world. (Kesti, 2007: 26ff) These aspects show, that Gandalf can be seen as a herald, and the meeting with the wizard marks Frodo's "Call to Adventure". Another feature of this stage is, that it is linked with destiny. The fact that “destiny has summoned the hero” (Campbell 1966: 58) is also emphasized by Tolkien in the novel.
'I can put it no plainer than by saying that Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, and not by its maker. In which case you were also meant to have it. And that may be an encouraging thought.' (Tolkien, 2007: 73)
4.1.2 Refusal of the Call
"Not all who hesitate are lost" (Campbell 1966: 44)
Frodo, fond of a peaceful and quiet life just like every Hobbit, first refuses to take the task appointed to him by destiny claiming that he is not "...made for perilous quests." (Tolkien, 2007: 80) He begs Gandalf to take the ring but the wizard refuses knowing that the desire to use it would be too great for him to resist and it would set free “a power too great and terrible’” (Tolkien, 2007: 81). Frodo feels that he is not yet ready to go on on an adventure and that the journey will be too much for him in any case. Tolkien (2007: 183) however also mentions that "There is a seed of courage hidden (often deeply, it is true) in the heart of the fattest and most timid hobbit, waiting for some final and desperate danger to make it grow.". So it is also due to the upcoming danger that threatens Frodo and all of Middle Earth as well as to his encouraging friends, that Frodo eventually finds the valour to leave his untroubled home, the Shire, behind and go on his quest.
4.1.4 Supernatural Aid
Campbell (1966: 72) defines the supernatural helper as being "a protective figure who provides the adventurer with amulets (...)" and/or advice. He frequently appears in a masculine form, i.e. as a wizard, hermit, teacher or smith. The helper may also function as a guide, who leads the hero through a part of his quest.
Another form of helper appears in a feminine form: the “fairy godmother (...) a familiar feature of European fairy lore” (Campbell 1966: 71) she represent the Cosmic Mother that protects the hero.
On his adventure Frodo meets up with different helpers and requires their help on numerous occasions, not only on his departure .
Frodo has not even left the Shire, when he has to face danger for the first time being pursued by Black Riders. Frodo and his fellow Hobbit friends meet an Elven tribe lead by Gildor Inglorion. The company of Elves brings them safety as they stay together for the night. Frodo is given useful advice for his journey by Gildor.
Elves seldom give unguarded advice, for advice is a dangerous gift even from the wise to the wise, and all courses may run ill. [...] In this meeting, there may be more than chance; but the purpose is not clear to me, and I fear to say too much. (Tolkien, 2007: 110)
The second time that Frodo meets a helper, Merry and Pippin are trapped in a hole in the Old Forest. The person who rescues them, Tom Bombadil, is described as "too large and heavy for a hobbit, if not quite tall enough for one of the Big People…his eyes were blue and bright, and his face was red as a ripe apple but creased into a hundred wrinkles of laughter” (Tolkien, 2007: 157) and seems to be a mixture of hermit and wizard. After having rescued the two Hobbits, he brings them back to his house where they spend two days with him and his wife Goldberry. Tom tells Frodo which road to follow and which ones to avoid. He also equips the Hobbits with daggers and horses and escorts them back to the road, giving them a last advice to go to the village of Bree to continue their journey.
Bilbo Baggins, Frodo's uncle and foster-father, whom they meet in Rivendell, also aids Frodo. As a parting gift, Bilbo gives Frodo a beautifully crafted coat of mail and the short sword 'Sting', a sword that begins to glow when orcs are nearby, and which Bilbo used on his own adventures. However, Bilbo also needs Frodo as a helper and asks him to finish a book recounting the elder Hobbits' adventures, and start another book, which will describe Frodo’s.
The Lady of Lothlórien, Galadriel, who presents the Fellowship with additional gifts, fits Campbell's definition of the 'fairy godmother' . Galadriel gives Frodo a phial of water in which is caught the light of Eärendil’s star symbolising the “dark times” that currently prevail in Middle-earth. She also provides Frodo with some sort of advice, letting him look into her mirror. However, she also claims that
I am not a counsellor. You may learn something, and whether what you see be fair or evil, that may be profitable, and yet it may not. (Tolkien, 2007: 473)
In Tolkien’s universe, women and girls are mainly associated with times of peace and a happy home life. As such, Galadriel’s gifts are more than just a fairy-tale addition to the adventure. They remind of a civilized and peaceful life which also corresponds with Campbell's definition of the 'cosmic mother'.
Another interesting aspect in "The Lord of the Rings" is also, that many members of the fellowship and also other characters, also act as a guide and thus as a helper: Gandalf, Aragorn (who can both also be seen as 'heroes' in Campbell's definition), the dwarf Gimli and even the creature Gollum.
4.1.3 Crossing the First Threshold
In Campbell's definition the hero crosses the first threshold, which can be either his country, dimension or universe (symbolizing the hero's present life horizon) and steps into the unknown dark and danger. (1966: 77-78)
'Crossing the First Threshold' in Frodo’s Hero’s Journey can be interpreted either literally or symbolically. It may appeal to a figurative crossing in the sense of stepping from his peaceful quiet life in the Shire into the exciting and adventurous world of legends and myths by being told by Gandalf what the One Ring really signifies and what myths are bound to it, or it may be understood literally as he crosses the borders of Shire, entering the Old Forest, the point that marks the furthest he has ever been away from home. "As they listened, they began to understand the lives of the Forest, apart from themselves, indeed to feel themselves as the strangers where all other things were at home(...)". (Tolkien, 2007: 170)
The description of the Old Forest fits Campbell's idea of something dark, dangerous and unknown perfectly:
"It seemed that (...) the trees became taller, darker, and thicker(...) they all got an uncomfortable feeling that they were being watched with disapproval, deepening to dislike and even enmity. The feeling steadily grew, until they found themselves looking up quickly, or glancing back over their shoulders, as if they expected a sudden blow."
(Tolkien, 2007: 146)
With the idea of something dark, dangerous and unknown in mind, Frodo has got to cross another "First Threshold" when he has to enter Mordor: "The Land Of the Shadow" or "The Black Land".
This also signifies a moment, when he steps from a more or less guarded and safe environment into a world, in which nothing is light and safe any more.
The passage seemed to go on for miles, and always the chill air flowed over them, rising as they went on to a bitter wind. The mountains seemed to be trying with their deadly breath to daunt them, to turn them back from the secrets of the high places, or to blow them away into the darkness behind." (Tolkien, 2007: 928)
In a figurative sense, Mordor, contrary to the rest of Middle-Earth in which Humans, Elves and other peoples unify in order to ward off the evil forces, is another dimension, the one of pure evil. And with entering Mordor, Frodo has to face an evil core within himself as well.
4.1.5 The Belly of the Whale
Frodo finds himself in the “Belly of the Whale”, the last stage of Initiation, in which the hero "is swallowed into the unknown and would appear to have died",[5] three times. The first time when Frodo and his company are trapped in the Barrow-downs, and nearly slain by a Barrow-Wight, however Frodo manages to call upon Tom Bombadil, who is able to expel the Wight from the barrow; the second time Frodo that Frodo literally transits into a sphere of rebirth is when he is stabbed by the Witch King of Angmar and is closer to death as ever before; the last time that Frodo is swallowed into the symbolical "womb" is when he is stung by the spider-creature Shelob. It is noticeable that all of this instances combine a part of Campbell's description. He nearly dies (by the sword of Angmar), appears to have died (by the poison of Shelob) and finds himself in some sort of a womb (an actual grave in Frodo's case).
Campbell also emphasizes the transformational character of the Belly Of The Whale, we may also notice this on Frodo. Gandalf describes this faint change the following "He is not half through yet, and to what he will come in the end not even Elrond can foretell. Not to evil, I think. He may become like a glass filled with a clear light for eyes to see that can " (Tolkien, 2007: 291) and his behaviour towards the end of The Return Of The King shows also that the events that occurred to him during this stage have changed Frodo completely.
4.2 Initiation
“Aided by the advice, amulets, and secret agents of the supernatural helper”[6] the hero now moves into a dream landscape where he must survive the "Road of Trials" in order to achieve his goal. The hero further has to discover and face his opposites and must put aside his pride, virtue and life in order to submit the absolutely intolerable. “Dragons have now to be slain and surprising barriers passed – again, again, and again. Meanwhile there will be a multitude of preliminary victories, unobtainable ecstasies, and momentary glimpses of the wonderful land” (Campbell, 1966: 109).
Frodo’s road of trials begins after the section of having crossed the first threshold, which we earlier defined as the depart from Tom Bombadil, and does not end until he completes his final and hardest trial at the cracks of Mount Doom. The “wonderful lands” Campbell is talking about are for Frodo the realms of the Elves: Rivendell and Lothlórien. There are many instances where Frodo is helped in different ways in order to make his way to Mount Doom. As we already dealt with Artefacts in 'Supernatural Help', I will now focus on how some important helpers lead him in their own special way to his ultimate goal: Sam, Gandalf and Gollum.
Samwise Gamgee, the embodiment of faithfulness, simplicity and decisiveness, saves Frodo’s life and helps him on his quest to Orodruin in far more occasions than anyone else, as he always stays loyal to his side. If Sam hadn’t been nearby, Old Man Willow from the Old Forest would have killed Frodo, as well as Merry and Pippin. Even after the Breaking of the Fellowship Sam doesn't leave the Ring Bearer alone and bravely makes his way to Orodruin with him. He helps Frodo to escape from the orcs in Mordor only armed with a dagger which he found in the Barrow-Downs. In Mordor, thinking that his Master Frodo is dead, he takes the Ring and decides to bring it to the Cracks of Doom himself. When saving Frodo from the Tower of Cirith Ungol, he continues to pursue the orcs frightening them with the light of 'Sting'. When Frodo already surrenders Sam does something next to impossible for a Hobbit "“Come, Mr. Frodo!” he cried. “I can’t carry it for you, but I can carry you and it as well. So up you get! Come on, Mr. Frodo dear! Sam will give you a ride. Just tell him where to go, and he’ll go.” (Tolkien, 2007: 1230)
We already dealt with Gandalf's help in the section "The Call to Adventure", so we will continue with Gandalf's role as a helper after Frodo has left the Shire to go on his adventure and finally arrives in Rivendell. In the realm of the Elves, Gandalf helps Elrond to drive off the Nazgûl pursuing Frodo and also plays a significant role in the Council of Elrond, forming the Fellowship and taking charge of its members. With the help of Aragorn, he leads the Hobbits south to the Mines of Moria. At the Bridge of Khazad-dûm, Gandalf has to face a Balrog, an ancient demon that was attacking Frodo and his companions, and enables the others to escape by sacrificing himself being dragged into the abyss. In the final campaign against Sauron's forces at the Black Gate of Mordor, Gandalf makes an effort to distract the Dark Lord's attention from Frodo and Sam who are about to destroy the One Ring. He also sends his Eagles to rescue Frodo and Sam from the erupting Orodruin and accompanies the Hobbits back to the borders of the Shire.
The creature Gollum is one of the most ambiguous characters in "The Lord Of The Rings". When he is confronted by Frodo in Emyn Muil; he agrees (in order to save his own life and pursue his own goals) to lead the Hobbits to the Black Gate, Mordor's main entrance, and later, when they find out that the gate is heavily guarded, to Cirith Ungol, a secret entrance into Mordor.
Although Gollum later betrays the Hobbits, he still plays a major role in the accomplishment of Frodo's quest. When standing on the edge of the Cracks of Doom, Frodo becomes reluctant to destroy the Ring, claiming it for himself and putting it on. Gollum bites off Frodo's finger and seizes the Ring. He steps over the edge and stumbles into the lava, taking the Ring with him. Thus, the Ring can be destroyed and Sauron defeated.
4.2.2 The Meeting with the Goddess
When we stick to the mere definition that in 'The Meeting with the goddess' a "mystical marriage"[7] takes place, we find that for Frodo in "The Lord of the Rings" this stage is completely absent, as Frodo remains a bachelor in the entire novel and never develops romantic feelings for any female. But Campbell further speaks of the goddess as “the paragon of all paragons of beauty, the reply to all desire, the bliss-bestowing goal of every hero’s earthly and unearthly quest” (Campbell, 1966: 110-111), "the incarnation of the promise of perfection : a comforting, nourishing mother, sister, mistress or bride" (Campbell, 1966: 111).
This may appeal to the elven Lady Galadriel, who is described as being both, very beautiful and very wise.
Very tall they were, and the lady no less tall than the Lord; and they were grave and beautiful. (...) but no sign of age was upon them, unless it were in the depths of their eyes; for these were keen as lances in the starlight, and yet profound, the wells of deep memory.
(Tolkien, 2007: 461)
She allows Frodo to look into her Mirror, helping him to understand the true nature of the Ring. She also provides the fellowship with artefacts. Especially for Frodo the crystal phial 'Eärendil’s Star' is useful and eventually saves his life.
4.2.3 Woman as the Temptress
This stage of the hero's passage serves as a general pattern for men and women equally, so we find, that, although referred to in the title, the temptation must not specifically appear in form of a woman (although in many other myths this is the case). The function of this stage is more to show that the hero has to reflect his own unsolved enigmas, discover his ideals and boundaries. The testing of the hero is necessary to overcome the dark needs in his inner self (Campbell, 1966: 121).
Frodo is tempted away from the true path on his quest by a woman: Overwhelmed by Galadriel's wisdom, beauty, and power, he offers her the Ring to keep.
“And now at last it comes. You will give me the Ring freely! In place of the Dark Lord you will set up a Queen. And I shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the Morning and the Night! Fair as the Sea and the Sun and the Snow upon the Mountain! Dreadful as the Storm and the Lightning! Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love me and despair!” (Tolkien, 2007: 476)
Nevertheless, in the end Galadriel refuses to take the Ring, knowing that it would corrupt her as well and leading her simply to replace Sauron herself.
When we see the temptation of the Ring as a metaphor for the physical or material temptations of life, the greatest temptation for Frodo departs from the Ring itself, because its power is simply to heavy a burden to bear for Frodo. ‘"Frodo sighed. '[...] I'm so tired. And the Ring is so heavy, Sam. And I begin to see it in my mind all the time, like a great wheel of fire'." (Tolkien, 2007: 1203)
4.2.4 Atonement with the Father
When dealing with the 'Atonement with the Father', we first have to identify the father. As there is only little known about Frodo's biological father (he died when Frodo was only a child), we will have a closer look at other characters that may function as a possible father-figure.
The character Bilbo first comes to mind, as he is Frodo's uncle and foster father. But throughout the novel, there are no instances of an atonement. Bilbo remains a solid helper and advisor, after all they are both Ring Bearers and share the same destiny.
Some researchers (Petty (1987), Kesti (2007)) see the Dark Lord Sauron as Frodo’s symbolic father figure. The stage is defined as the son is now set “against the father for the mastery of the universe” (Campbell 1966: 130) and it is indeed the Ring of power that guarantees the power over the universe (Middle Earth). But when the Ring is destroyed, "the father" is destroyed as well and with it, the power to "bind them all". This is a very psychoanalytical approach, as the father represents not only evil but may stand for the powerful superego (god) or the repressed it (sin) (Campbell, 1966: 130) and might explain the question why Frodo’s quest is not to seek anything, but to destroy.
4.2.5 Apotheosis
By becoming divine (the literal meaning of the term 'Apotheosis'), Campbell does not explicitly mean a transformation into a god-like status, but a discovery of the hero's true identity. He claims that becoming divine is to be understood in the sense of ”we no longer desire and fear; we are what was desired and feared” (Campbell, 1966: 162) The hero learns that he already is what he was looking for in the first place. As mentioned before Frodo is constantly tempted by the Ring and in the end claims it for his own .
'I have come,' he said. 'But I do not choose now to do what I came to do. I will not do this deed. The Ring is mine!' And suddenly, as he set it on his finger, he vanished from Sam's sight. (Tolkien, 2007: 1237)
We can see in the entire novel instances in which he, although warned about this by Gandalf, puts the Ring on his finger (in Tom Bombardil’s House, at the inn in Bree, at Weathertop and once at Amon Hen). "As much as he desires it, he also fears it, or what he would become if he gave in to the Ring" (Kesti, 2007: 80). Although he knows what effects the ring has already caused on his uncle Bilbo and Gollum, he is still unable to resist his desire to use it. His obsession grows stronger and stronger the closer they get to Cirith Ungol, we may therefore conclude that, when Frodo chooses to put on the Ring and keep him for himself, he chooses evil and in the end he does not succeed in his quest to destroy the Ring.
It is because of the power of the Ring, that the timid Hobbit discovers the dark core within himself and has to face his true evil desires. The failure on the quest and the discovery of himself is something that Frodo can never really get over with.
4.2.6 The Ultimate Boon
This stage differs in "The Lord of the Rings" from other myths mentioned by Campbell, who characterizes this stage as the acquirement of the boon "either by stealing it or by receiving it from the powers that hold it" (Campbell 1966: 172). Instead of having to acquire an artefact, win the favour of a woman or find a treasure, the aim of Frodo's quest is to destroy something: the One Ring, which he already possesses. This inversion of the myth structure might seem very atypical at first sight, but in order to properly analyse the meaning of this stage, we have to take a closer look on what the destruction of the Ring signifies for both Middle Earth and Frodo himself.
For Middle Earth, the boon, that has to be acquired, is peace and the destruction of evil in form of Sauron and it does make no great difference whether this goal is reached by acquiring an artefact or destroying one. For Frodo, the boon consists in a reward for the pains he had to suffer when bearing the Ring; his personal boon is thus the Elve's permission to sail away with them to the Undying Lands where he is not only immortal but also given the opportunity to recover from all stresses and strains he had to go through.
Still round the corner there may wait; A new road or a secret gate; And though I oft have passed them by; The day will come at last when I; Shall take the hidden paths that run; West of the Moon and East of the Sun. (Tolkien, 2007: 1345)
Campbell further mentions another significant definition of the stage: "though all explodes, all is nevertheless thereby renewed, revivified” (Campbell 1966: 192) And we see that after Sauron’s decay and Saruman's defeat, Middle Earth is indeed renewed and revivified, also thanks to the Hobbits, who work very hard to rebuild their Shire.
Hobbits can work like bees when the mood and the need comes on them. Now there were thousands of willing hands of all age (...) Spring surpassed his [Sam's]wildest hopes. His trees began to sprout and grow, as if time was in a hurry and wished to make one year do for twenty (Tolkien, 2007: 1337-1339)
4.3. Return
4.3.1 Refusal of the Return
So why, when all has been achieved, the ambrosia has been drunk, and we have conversed with the gods, why come back to normal life with all its cares and woes?W[8]
We see, that there are many reasons why heroes may often refuse to return from “the blessed isle of the unseeing Goddess of Immortal Being” (Campbell 1966: 193). In 'Apotheosis', we discussed that for Frodo his adventures changed him drastically- but not only in a good way. On his adventure, he found himself in perilous situations, conflicts within himself and others and, in the end, even failed to fulfill his appointed task. He has every reason to be glad to finally return home. But yet, it it isn't until he eventually returns home, that he realises that he is not able to find happiness neither in his beloved Shire, that he was always so eager to return to nor in the places he visited on his quest, as they caused him so much pain. He is longing for a place where he can finally live in peace and still discover a new adventurous world, so he finally accepts Arwen's offer to sail to the Undying Lands with the Elves and some of the other members of the fellowship. Although Frodo doesn't refuse to return to his normal everyday life in the first place, he does come to the decision that his return doesn't make him happy and sets out for his (probably) last adventure and final boon.
There is no real going back. Though I may come to the Shire, it will not seem the same; for I shall not be the same. I am wounded with knife, sting, and tooth, and a long burden. Where shall I find rest? (Tolkien, 2007: 1295)
4.3.2 The Magic Flight/ Rescue from Without
As there are many similarities in these two stages, as well as the fact that in "Lord of the Rings" both cases coincide, I will subsume them in one section.
"If the gods have been jealously guarding the boon, it can be just as adventurous and dangerous returning from the journey as it was to go on it."[9] In Frodo’s case, he already possesses the trophy, but has to destroy it against its true owner’s will. Nevertheless, the result is still the same: The hero (Frodo) has to flee. Campbell further claims that in certain instances “the hero may have to be brought back from his supernatural adventure by assistance from without” (Campbell, 1966: 207). It is obvious that in this case Gandalf is the supernatural helper, as he rescues Frodo and Sam from Mount Doom by rushing to help on his Giant Eagles. They are carried away into safety and are able to return, because the Ring had finally been destroyed.
And Frodo (...) said to Gandalf: "At last I understand why we have waited! This is the ending. Now not day only shall be beloved, but night too shall be beautiful and blessed and all its fear pass away!" (Tolkien, 2007: 1271)
4.3.3 The Crossing of the Return Threshold
At the beginning of his travels the hero sets "out of the land we know into darkness" (Campbell 1966: 217) and when having accomplished his appointed task, he is to leave this "yonder zone". Campbell points out that, although the two worlds seem to be "different as life and death", (Campbell, 1966:217) the key to understanding the myth is that both kingdoms are actually one. The exploration of this yet unknown dimension is the whole sense of the deed of the hero.
When the Ring is finally destroyed, Frodo hopes that all his tortures are now gone and he can finally go back to his normal life. But when Frodo and his hobbit companions return to the Shire, they don't find it being the cosy, homely, lush and happy place they left, but occupied by Saruman's army. Their nostalgia for home is shattered and Frodo has to face the fact, that the gruesome land he was so excited to leave may even haunt him to his beloved Shire. This might also be the reason why Frodo, having lost his innocence and ignorance, is not able to stay in the Shire. He becomes aware, that the happiness he once found in the Shire is only an illusion.
When returning to where he started his quest, the hero also has to face the "banalities and noisy obscenities of life",(Campbell 1966: 218) which is often a very difficult matter.
Frodo, still suffering from his emotional and physical wounds, does not succeed in accomplishing this last task. In the end he has to sacrifice having a peaceful home in order to become happy again and leaves the Shire behind.
"‘I have been too deeply hurt, Sam. I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them’ ” (Tolkien, 2007: 1346-1347)
4.3.4 Master of the Two Worlds
After having returned and discovered a whole new world with all its material and spiritual characteristics, the hero now has to find a balance between his old life and what he has become as a result of his quest (Campbell, 1966: 230ff). Usually the hero succeeds to be comfortable and competent in both worlds.
However, Frodo, as mentioned before, stays very unbalanced and has grown far beyond the simple world of the Shire. He cannot return to a child-like state. Every year, he is reminded of what happened to him.
" 'I am wounded,' he [Frodo] answered, 'wounded; it will never really heal.'(...) It was not until the day afterwards that Sam recalled that the date was October the sixth. Two years before that day it was dark in the dell under Weathertop. (Tolkien, 2007: 1342)
He recapitulates his adventures by finishing Bilbo's book and his own memoirs, but he is reluctant to venture outside the Shire again. Knowing that he failed his task, Frodo feels unworthy of being in a position of power. He is not at peace; his memories trouble him. Just as Boromir renounced his sin and then atoned for it by sacrificing himself, Frodo chooses to sacrifice his home. But because he was and remains willing to sacrifice everything he loved for the good of others, he is permitted to stay with the elves and leaves for Valinor for good.
"(...) and the sails were drawn up, and the wind blew, and slowly the ship sailed away down the long green firth (...) And then it seemed to him as in his dream in the house of Tom Bombadil (...) and he beheld white shores and beyond them a far green country under a swift sunrise" (Tolkien, 2007: 1348)
4.3.1 Freedom to Live
In the end, "the battlefield is symbolic of the field of life, where every creature lives on the death of another” (Campbell, 1966: 238) and the mastery of the two worlds, as mentioned above, leads from freedom from the fear to a freedom to live, not only for the hero, but also for everyone else. Galadriel describes this freedom as "The world is changing: I feel it in the water, I feel it in the earth, and I smell it in the air." (Tolkien, 2007: 1267)
It is noticeable that in Middle-Earth we distinguish between free people (Ents, Elves, Dwarves etc.) and those, who are bound to the Dark Lord (Orcs, Balrogs, Barrow-Wights etc.). When the One Ring is destroyed, the consequences are different for the different peoples. Most of those bound to the Dark Lord immediately flee or surrender, but this does not mean that they are now free to live. The life they know has ended and Tolkien gives no further information on how their "new lives" go on. The free peoples that opposed the rule of Sauron on the other hand, finally get back the freedom they almost lost. The Hobbits are now able to help themselves when they find the Shire occupied by Saruman's army. " 'And as for you, my dear friends, you will need no help. You are grown up now. Grown indeed very high; among the great you are, and I have no longer any fear at all for any of you.' " (Tolkien, 2007: 1293)
4 CONCLUSION
The analysis on Frodo seems to validate Campbell’s theory. The results of this study show that in Frodo’s 'Hero’s Journey' all the essential phases of Campbell's Monomyth theory with the most important elements can be found. In "The Lord of the Rings", Frodo follows the stages very much in the same order that Campbell has organised the stages in "The Hero with a Thousand Faces". This is significant, because Campbell’s theory did not exist by the time "The Lord of the Rings" had been published, and thus cannot have served as a blueprint for Tolkien's novel. However, it has to be mentioned that in some cases, Campbell's description has to be interpreted in a rather symbolic than a literal way. Although Frodo’s quest is different from most quests, as he is to destroy something instead of acquiring something, it does not have an effect on his journey as a hero. These findings are important, because they show that not only in mythology, but also in modern literature, the classic elements of a hero's quest do not change. What changes is the presentation of the hero. Frodo is a very atypical hero: Although, the final boon can be acquired (or rather destroyed), Frodo fails his quest, because it was not because of him, but rather by coincidence that Middle-Earth could have been saved. Tolkien describes very detailed how Frodo is psychologically effected by this failure. In Tolkien's book, we see, that even heroes may fail if the power they are set against is too strong, and that in the end it is destiny that we all depend on.
As mentioned in the paper, Frodo is not the only hero, that "The Lord of the Rings" is concerned with. Male characters like Aragorn, Samwise, Gandalf or female characters like Eowyn also undergo their own quests and may also be considered as "heroes". It could be of interest to analyse their quests as well, in order to determine whether for them Campbell's theory fits as well, or if this is only true for the main character Frodo.
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5. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Primary Literature
Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel (2007): The Lord of the Rings- The Fellowship of the Ring, London: Harper Collins.
Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel (2007): The Lord of the Rings- The Two Towers, London: Harper Collins.
Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel (2007): The Lord of the Rings- The Return of the King, London: Harper Collins.
Secondary Literature
Barber, Dorothy (1986): The Structure of ‘the Lord of the Rings’, Michigan: University Microfilms International.
Campbell, Joseph (1966): The Hero with a Thousand Faces, New York: The Publishing Company.
Carter, Lin (1969): Tolkien: A look behind 'The Lord of the Rings', New York: Ballantine Books
Fiest Jess, Friest Gregory (2009): Theories of Personality, New York: McGraw-Hill.
Kesti, Tutta (2010): Heroes of Middle-Earth: J. Campbell’s Monomyth in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955), Saarbrücken: Lambert Academic Publishing.
Petty, Anne C. (1979): One ring to bind them all: Tolkien’s mythology, Alabama: The University of Alabama Press.
Rorabeck, Robert (2008): Tolkien's Heroic Quest, Maidstone: Crescent Moon.
Segal, Robert Alan. (1987): Joseph Campbell: An Introduction, New York & London: Garland Publishing Inc.
Warren, Liz (1999): the hero's journey : summary of the steps", on
http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html retrieved 20.03.2012.
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[1]Carter (1969, 16)
[2]Carter (1969, 14ff)
[3]
1. Fiest J, Friest G (2009)
[4] Campbell (1966: 53)
[5]Campbell (1966: 90)
[6] Campbell (1966: 97)
[7]Campbell, 1966: 109
[8]Warren (1999): http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html retrieved 20.03.2012
[9]http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html retrieved 20.03.2012.
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