The Lord of the Rings: The Black Gate is Closed (Part One)

The Tale

‘Before the next day dawned their journey to Mordor was over. The marshes and the desert were behind them. Before them, darkling against a pallid sky, the great mountains reared their threatening heads.’

Where the Ephel Duath (Mountains of Shadow) meet the Ered Lithui (the grey Ash Mountains) is Cirith Gorgor (the Haunted Pass), entrance into Mordor. Guarded in the old days by the Numenorean-built Towers of the Teeth to keep the horrors of Mordor pent in, Sauron has taken them over and built a rampart of stone with one iron gate between them. Innumerable Orcs are garrisoned there, ‘and each window was full of sleepless eyes.’

Frodo and Sam look on the towers and gate in despair. Even in the pre-dawn light they can see the guards swarming along the walls and patrols marching before the gate. Day dawns, and brazen trumpets call the changing of the guards, and are answered with mighty horns and a thunder of drums. ‘Another dreadful day of fear and toil had come to Mordor.’

Sam sits back and assesses the situation. He supposes by the looks of things that this is as far as they’ll get. He’ll never see his old Gaffer again, and the Gaffer won’t have a chance to say ‘I told ye so.’  They can’t get in, unless they want to ask the Orcs for a lift.

Gollum agrees. He knew going to the Gate was useless. He told them so. Sam loses his temper and asks then why did he bring them here? Master said to, Gollum says. Master said bring us to the Gate, then good-bye Smeagol.

I did, Frodo answers. He is no longer cowering, but grim and set, haggard but resolute. ‘I purpose to enter Mordor, and I know no other way.’ He says no one else has to go with him.

The prospect distresses Gollum greatly. He wails and paws at Frodo. That’s just taking the Precious straight to Him, to Sauron! ‘He’ll eat us all, if he gets it, eat all the world.’ Either keep it, or go home to nice places and leave the Precious with Smeagol, who will keep it safe.

 ‘I am commanded to go to the land of Mordor, and therefore I shall go.’ Whatever happens after that will happen. Sam can tell that Frodo is serious and that words are useless. Sam never had any real hope, ‘but being a cheerful hobbit he had not needed hope, as long as despair could be postponed.’ He’ll go with Frodo, and at least they’ll be rid of Gollum.

But Gollum has a desperate alternative. He knows another way into Mordor, hard to find and dark, that he discovered long ago.

Frodo asks why he never mentioned it before: Gollum answers ‘because Master never asked’. He just said take him to the Gate, not what he meant to do. Smeagol promised to keep the Precious safe from Him, but Frodo seems to be taking it straight to the Dark Lord. To save it and the Master he remembers this other way. ‘Nice master. Smeagol very good, always helps.’

Bits and Bobs

Not many notes or observations on this little section. It starts with many details about the layout of Mordor, more than the bare-bones summary I’ve given here. The Towers of the Teeth are named Narchost and Carchost, and the Black Gate’s Sindarin name is the Morannon.

The insight into Sam’s character is interesting. Because he is not relying on hope, he cannot be stopped when there seems no hope to be had. He plods along on sheer loyalty and duty; the situation might be doomed, but he will follow Frodo.

Frodo’s phrasing ‘I am commanded to go to the land of Mordor’ is rather odd. You cannot say he was commanded by anybody; he was, from the beginning, a reluctant but determined volunteer. Perhaps he feels that, in some way, circumstances are commanding his path.