Gollum

Kathy Del Beccaro
 * GOLLUM**

Gollum is the name of a repulsive and reprehensible character created by J.R.R. Tolkien in the enchanting novel, __The Hobbit__. Gollum also appears in Tolkien’s trilogy, __The Lord of the Rings__. Everything about Gollum – his appearance, his words, and his actions – screams “villain.” Tolkien calls him a “small slimy creature” that is as “dark as darkness, except for two big round eyes in his thin face.” He lives on a “slimy island of rock” in the middle of an underground lake. Gollum has lived in the darkness and slime of evil for centuries, hoarding a magical ring that he cherishes, but the reader first encounters Gollum when Tolkien’s protagonist, Bilbo Baggins, stumbles into Gollum’s lair. In the trilogy, the protagonist becomes Frodo Baggins. Frodo considers Bilbo his uncle, although he is actually his first //and// second cousin once removed. When Bilbo discovers Gollum’s lair he is a dull and mild Hobbit and a reluctant adventurer, so is naturally terrified by Gollum and soon realizes that the slimy creature intends to eat him. Bilbo, who has found Gollum’s precious ring, accidentally outwits Gollum in a riddle game and buys a little time for himself. Gollum becomes enraged when he discovers that he has lost the ring, and that Bilbo probably has it: “He was angry now and hungry. And he was a miserable wicked creature, and already he had a plan.” Luckily, Bilbo slips the ring on his finger and magically becomes invisible just in time to avoid Gollum’s murderous wrath. Gollum’s villainy is apparent from his intention to kill and devour Bilbo, and from his ruthless practice of using the magic ring to become invisible in order to hunt and kill goblins. His heart is full of hatred as he cries: “Thief, thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it, we hates it, we hates it for ever!” Gollum’s ruthless villainy arises from several characteristics. He is selfish and self-centered. He constantly speaks to himself and calls himself (as well as the ring) “precious.”

With his precious robbed from him, Gollum lets out his true evil. It is important in understanding the evil of Gollum to distinguish the distinct persons of Smeagol and Gollum. Smeagol is the creature that originally lived near the river, and Gollum emerges as his counter-personality when the ring takes control. The evil which lies in the ring was so strong that it created Gollum, a source of evil that would take over Smeagol. The juxtaposition between Gollum and Smeagol, evil and good, destruction and kindness, could not be more effective than it is through the portrayal of a single physical being. The almost overbearing and rapid conflicts and arguments that Gollum and Smeagol take part it endlessly shift this physical person between the two personalities. The villain of Gollum is very apparent when juxtaposed with the original intentions of the creature. The struggle between good and evil takes off when Gollum is captured by the dark lord Sauron and taken to Mordor, the land of doom. There he suffers greatly - tormented into telling where the ring had been taken. Eventually, Gollum mutters “Baggins” and “Shire”. The good of smeagal did not want to tell the dark lord where the ring had been taken, but the evils of Mordor and the ring and of Gollum, now strongly emerging, took control. Even then, he is held as a prisoner in Mordor for many years before he escapes. Throughout the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Gollum's evil gains power. The two personalities of Gollum and Smeagol struggle to have control of their shared physical body. The goodness in Smeagol is strong, and it yearns to break out from Gollum’s suppression. This goodness relentlessly makes efforts to follow his leader, Frodo Baggins, and save him from the evils of the ring. Gollum, however, is consumed with his quest to regain his rightful ownership of the ring.

In the end of the third novel, The Return of the King, Gollum finally seizes the ring from Frodo in the last moment of Frodo’s journey. Frodo’s purpose is to bring the ring to the Crack of Doom on Mount Doom – the only place where the evil may be destroyed. As Frodo stands at it’s edge, Gollum viscously bites off his finger and cavorts madly. In doing so, he falls off the edge of Crack of Doom, crying “Precious!”. This destroys the ring and defeats the evil of Sauron. Frodo realizes that not only Smeagol, but even the evil of Gollum deserves forgiveness, for without them the journey would not have succeeded, and the war would have been lost. Upon the creature’s death, any trace of Smeagol’s goodness was buried deep within. The evil of Gollum had grown so immense that it totally annihilated the decency and righteousness in it's path.

Gollum is greedy and hungry for power. He chooses to live alone in darkness and slime so that he alone can enjoy the magical golden ring. Perhaps worst of all, Gollum tries to kill and subdue goodness and kindness. This trait is most clearly revealed when Gollum struggles to the death with Smeagol. Gollum’s ruthlessness, selfishness, thirst for power, and hatred of goodness combine to render him a perfectly terrible villain.



__Description:__

1. He is “covered with green slime” and he stinks. 2. Gollum is small, emaciated and gaunt, has only six teeth, wears bone-white pale skin and scarce dark clothing, and is described as spider-like. The weak figure represents Smeagol’s vulnerability and hopelessness, while the heinous attributes portray the evil of Gollum. 3. Gollum has large, webbed feet that he hangs outside of a little boat and uses for paddles. He silently paddles his little boat around on a wide, deep, and deadly cold lake, never leaving a ripple in the water. 4. Blind fish are victims of Gollum’s long thin fingers, which grab “as quick as thinking.” 5. Gollum’s manner of speaking is a critical characteristic that depicts him as a villain. He usually speaks in the third person. Furthermore, in his aggressive and frightening conversations with Smeagol he shares his ugly, bitter, and downright evil thoughts. When he speaks, Gollum hisses and whines. He cringes when he is spoken too, and pure evil can be heard in his atrocious cackle laugh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLvIFRNbqOs&feature=related