LotR Essay; the victory of the small over the mighty

One of the many themes of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings is the them of 'the victory of the small over the mighty.' This is a theme that is especially prominent, seeing as our protagonist is one of the smallest creatures in Middle Earth. It's a theme that we see displayed by all four of our smaller characters, Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin.

  For starters, Frodo is, of course, the most prominent displayer of this theme. He's the one who is trying to destroy the ring, ultimately destroying Sauron. It's his quest. He's the one who volunteered to go through with the quest, he's the one who brought the Ring to Mount Doom. While he doesn't end up being the one who destroys the Ring, he is still a very prominent character in its destruction.

  Sam, it could be argued, is one of the mightiest small characters out there. He is fiercely loyal, and he can really fight when it counts. All throughout the story, he refuses to leave Frodo's side, he refuses to give up on Frodo. He is Frodo's protector, and almost a lifeline for Frodo, trying his best to keep Frodo out of darkness and tied to the light. Without Sam, Frodo probably would have succumbed to the Ring, or been killed, a long time ago.

  Merry is a very prominent character when it comes to displaying the theme of 'the victory of the small over the mighty.' From a young hobbit to an esquire of Rohan, it is very impressive to see how much Merry matures, and actually how important he was to fighting against the armies of Mordor. Without Merry, the Witch King would never have been killed, and Éowyn would have died. But I think one of the highest peaks of Merry's maturation was his role in fighting against Saruman and his lackeys back at the Shire. It was Merry who roused the Shire folk into battle, and Merry who prepared all the plans and strategies. He even killed the leader of Saruman's rabble. For a seemingly quieter character, Merry is still a very important one.

  And of course Pippin. Starting the story, Pippin was by far the youngest and least mature character. Elrond was very reluctant to allow Pippin to go on the quest because of this. But, like Merry, Pippin matured and turned out to be an important character. He rescued Faramir from Denethor's madness, and saved Beregond from an enormous troll in the final battle against Mordor. He ended up naming his sword Troll's Bane because of that victory. Even his mistakes, which at first seemed to work to the enemy's favor, ended up working against Sauron.

  Tolkien's theme of 'the value of the small in the struggle against the mighty' is a prominent one, and one that really should be realized in real life. No character is too small to be important, as we can see with four of the smallest characters in Tolkien's most famous works.