Providence. Chance. Fate. Whatever name it’s given, it’s always the same: the characters make a mistake, or some misfortune falls upon them, only to be later subverted as a good thing. When used incorrectly, it can feel like a cop-out. When used, correctly, however, it can give the text a hint of deeper meaning for the audience to make inferences on. The Lord of the Rings has many of these instances, which become a major mechanic in moving the plot forward—maybe too many.
There are examples upon examples of acts of providence in The Lord of the Rings. Merry and Pippin are saved by it during their encounter with Grishnákh: “An arrow came whistling out of the gloom: it was aimed with skill, or guided by fate, and it pierced his right hand.” (446) If Grishnákh’s sword had not glinted and (allegedly) given away his position, Merry and Pippin would have been killed, Aragorn’s party would have found their bodies, and they may not have provided their assistance to the Rohirrim. The hobbits would not have met Treebeard and the Ents, and the Ents would not have decided to involve themselves in the fighting.
Many characters throughout The Lord of the Rings make reference to chance, notably Gandalf, Elrond, Tom Bombadil, and Galadriel. Some “less wise” characters also make comments about chance and fate: Mablung, one of Faramir’s men, makes the comment, “[Faramir’s] life is charmed, or fate spares him for some other end.” (645)
When Gandalf falls in Moria, not one character—nor any reader—can consider it fortuitous. The fellowship has lost their leader and most powerful member—there seems to be little hope. In retrospect, however, Gandalf’s fall seems to have made the Fellowship (albeit broken) stronger. If Gandalf had es...
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... a specific purpose for these acts of chance. Often when they occur, Tolkien gives them a nod of acknowledgement, so it seems that he is knowingly including these instances. Many attribute them to Ilúvatar, the god figure of the mythology. When taken from that perspective, it becomes clear that Ilúvatar is one of the primary factors in driving the plot of The Lord of the Rings. In fact, one might almost go so far as to say he is the primary driving force. This also adds a religious element to the story. Without these little nudges of impossible luck, the story of The Lord of the Rings would be completely different. It shows how much the Fellowship owes to Ilúvatar, which can be perceived as a message to his readers about his religious beliefs and what he wants them to believe.
Works Cited
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Lord of the Rings. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003.
Some people may not believe that fate truthfully exist in the world. Part of the population doubts that there are things that is meant or supposed to happen thinking that they will always have a way to get around troubling predication, knowing that thing won’t just turn out that one certain way. They are certain of whatever happens in their life is due to the decision they made from their free will. Others, though, believe their life is an inevitable and all events that happen is predestined and planed out for them like a map of life. Or what Shakespeare calls fate. In Shakespeare’s play, fate plays a role like an exceptional crucial force in Romeo and Juliet. Fate leads the two young lovers to come across each other. The moment Juliet and
In Oedipus The King, Sophocles presents a view of life fixed by fate. This fate, predetermined by the gods, is the sole factor in deciding human destiny. Tiresias expresses his understanding of the unchangeable fate of Oedipus, laid out by the gods, as he argues with the King about revealing the truth of all the Theban troubles. When Oedipus, frustrated by the lack of cooperation, insults Tiresias, he responds "I pity you, flinging at me the very insults / each man here will fling at you so soon."(322) Even more telling of the fated existence of Sophocles' characters is Jocasta's revelation of prophecies given before Oedipus' birth which foretold all that the gods had in store, which had indeed come to pass (332).
...that fate. Events that lead to other events will eventually lead one to their fate. “Oedipus the King” is a great play that sets an example of what fate is. Oedipus chooses to flee from home, in attempt to avoid the god’s statement of his fate from coming true. However, Oedipus’s decision for fleeing is what was necessary to make his fate come true. Undoubtedly, this is what was meant to happen because Oedipus allowed it to. Perhaps if Oedipus ignored the god and never did a thing then perhaps the outcome could have been different for Oedipus. However it did not turn out that way and the choices that Oedipus made is what led him to his doom.
In Greek mythology as a whole, fate does have a sizeable role in most tales. However, the definition of fate for the ancient Greeks extends from the common definition. The definition of fate that is familiar to us is anything that happens for an unknown reason and is out of our control. But in Greek mythology fate also involves divine intervention from the gods of Olympus. They are able to change outcomes and alter situations to the point where what occurs might not have happened without them. In The Odyssey, gods have a very prominent role. But you cannot just discuss fate by itself. Free will is also a factor. Free will is mankind’s ability to make decisions control the aspects of one’s life. In The Odyssey life is the individual’s responsibility.
The Greek tragedy Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, was written to show the common people of Greece how powerful the gods are and that your fate is pre-determined and nothing you do can change that. He does this by showing how people in this story try to escape their fate and how it is no use because in the end, what the oracles predict comes true. In the story there are many occasions in which people try to escape their fate.
Many times people may feel overwhelmed by a higher force unalterable to them. This force may control something such as their fate. In the Anglo-Saxon culture, a popular belief was that of fate. The writers of Beowulf may have known that not all people believe in the power of fate.
Shakespeare utilizes his characters beliefs and superstitions in fate to add a cautioning and foreboding tone to the story. Throughout the entire play, fate dictates the actions of others and ultimately leads Romeo and Juliet to their tragic downfall.
The term Fate has a place in the world of ancient Greece but it is very different from other parts of the world. I have learned it is important to understand the context before discussing the situation. Most people think fate happens for reasons unknown and no one has any control over what happens. However, the ancient Greeks did not believe that fate is a random occurrence. They believed that the gods created fate and would constantly intervene to force things to happen that would not have happened. Since the characters tend to not know of the gods’ interfering, occurrences seem to be fate but are really planned by the gods.
Fate, the idea that your life is planned before you are born. Whether it be by a higher being or just the universe itself, many people believe in fate. This makes people believe that, whatever they do, it will work out in the end. Associating this with love is common, as well, and influences many relationships. Even in novels, couples thoughts are swayed by destiny.
Fate is the development of events beyond a person’s control. Essentially it means that there are certain events in everyone’s life that are predetermined and completely unavoidable. In The Iliad, fate is even unchangeable by the gods. The belief is that there is a fixed natural order to the universe and that
A key ingredient in such a genre is the tragic flaw, an idea that goes back to an influential work of literary criticism called Poetics, by Aristotle. Aristotle said that the tragic hero should be someone of rank or importance with a tragic flaw, who suffers a "reversal of intention" that eventually leads to his or her death. Aristotle also said that in the process, the tragic hero should experience recognition of this failure and that by the end of the work our moral sense should be satisfied that right or justice has prevailed. The tragic flaw is some weakness in character that is responsible for action or inaction on the part of the tragic hero and leads to the reversal of the hero's original intention. Therefore, the reversal of intention is the turning point in the tragic hero's life when he or she experiences something that causes the tide to turn and previous success to turn to failure. [The fourth soliloquy prepares us for the reversal, and the climactic...
In Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex", fate truly is a huge factor in many scenes and events. According to ancient Greek belief, the word of God was fate, and fate was the word of God. Therefore, every event that ever happened was predetermined and unchangeable. Oedipus himself has been completely victimized by fate. In the beginning of the play, he was "fated" to kill his father and marry his own mother and conceive children with her. Since it was the word of Apollo, the god, to the Greeks it meant that it was unchangeable. Oedipus escaped Corinth, the supposed city of his birth, and ran far away. He happened upon an old man in the crossroads-a fated event. Though he did not know it at the time, when he killed the man, it turned out to be his own father-a prophecy he was destined by fate to fulfill (Elsom, 85).
Divine Intervention is a “direct and obvious intervention by a god or goddess in the affairs of humans”. In various myths such as the Iliad, the Epic of Gilgamesh, and Herakles, divine intervention was called upon in order to restrain a hero’s destructive or too powerful forces. Although the divine intervention was used to impair different heroes, the purpose to constrain was the same in all the narratives.
One view of the gods’ intervention in the mortal conflict was that they were just setting events back onto the course of fate. For example, when Patroclus was killed outside of Troy, Apollo felt no guilt for his actions. It had already been decided by fate that Patroclus would not defeat the Trojans. As a god, Apollo was just setting fate on a straight line again. After this event, Achilles blames Hector and the Trojans, not even considering Apollo, who was the one who was mostly responsible for the death. Apollo’s part in the matter was merely accepted as a natural disaster would be accepted today in our
In Aristotle's Poetics, it is stated that a tragedy must be complete - having a beginning, middle and end. Of equal importance "...the sequence of events, according to the law of probability or necessity, will admit of a change from bad fortune to good or from good fortune to bad."(Aristotle, 15).