To quote Lt.-Commander Worf, whose Klingon weltanschauung is not unlike the warrior code of Homer and the Beowulf poet, "These are our stories; they tell us who we are!"

Some preliminaries as noted by Albert Lord, ("The Return Song") and Austin Hatch, ("The Epic Hero") with interlaces to Tolkien by Raymond Nighan...These comments will prove useful in determining the "epic hero" of the quest in Volume VI.

1. The epic hero's adventures is lauded orally, and then written down as with Beowulf and The Red Book. Recall Sam wondering more than once whether anyone would recount their deeds, especially on the slopes of Mount Doom.

2. His homecoming is long awaited by those left behind, and by the participation. Frodo and Sam frequently think of the Shire in moments of greatest despair.

3. He is lost at sea, reaches land, is discovered, enters a foreign assembly disguised, learns culture (games/dance/stories), and is taunted until he reveals his identity and tells his story.--We know that the company is split: Merry and Pippin are taken by Orcs, Gandalf seems to be dead, and Boromir is, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli does not know where Frodo and Sam are. They bring their culture and frequently rely on its sustaining power, Sam being inside a song, and seeing one lonely star in the midst of doom.

4. After combat he sails for home, is immature, continues to thwart injustice, angers the gods ), displays heroic powers, escapes death, avoids complacency, earns a rest but shuns it, journeys to the underworld, receives prophecy and instruction , prepares, is set apart, and attempts to control nature. Much of this dominates the Trilogy. The Shire must be scoured (cleansed), how many times do Frodo and Sam escape death--and how do they?, controlling nature in Tolkien cannot really be done. His romanticism demands it be restored and cleansed of the evil that results when man attempts control, usually by "infernal combustion engines." Gandalf and the elves serve as mentors.

5. Additionally, the epic hero: learns humility, suffers alone, (splendid isolation), and brings the story back to beginning. At the beginning of the quest, Frodo feels that he wants to save the Shire, but feels very small and uprooted. Upon the return, he of course cannot stay in the Shire--his wound has to a degree faded him,

6.The gods reveal their favor, the hero enters unrecognized, is welcomed in disguise, gains retribution in battle, and achieves reconciliation and reunion. The ring is destroyed and Middle Earth saved.

8. Some themes and motifs to note in LOTR:

BOOK ONE:

(NOTE THAT MAJOR CHARACTERS--ESPECIALLY FRODO AND SAM-- IF NOT
LISTED--ARE INVOLVED IN MOST CATEGORIES; CHRISTIAN THEMES ARE LIKEWISE IMPLIED)

BOOK TWO:

BOOK THREE: