Three Shire-poets: Shakespeare, Milton, and ‘Anonymous’:
Shippey does an interesting comparison of The Lord of the Rings to Macbeth. This is because it is not easy to make the connection between the Ents and the marching of Great Birnam Wood to high Dunshine hill. Shippey makes this connection and tries to explain to the ready why some critics believe that Tolkien knew much about Shakespeare’s work. Shippey also tries to explain the symbolism of the trees. In Macbeth movement of the trees mark the end of his reign but in The Lord of the Rings, it is actually the Ents who end the reign of Saruman. The Ents are not used as a symbolism but are actually the individuals who perform the action of ending the rule of tyranny and suppression Insengald.
The second comparison which Shippey makes is the deception of apparitions or prophecies of the future. This is very true is very true in our modern world. People nowadays look to mediums and fortune teller to predict their future or to reach out to their past relations. What is interesting is what Galadriel tells Frodo when she shoes him her mirror. Galadriel tells Frodo that even though the mirror shows many things, not all of them come to pass. Some of the things mirror shows never come to pass unless the individuals who see the visions go out of their way to make them be. Shippey believes that Galadriel’s speech should have been delivered to Macbeth in order to prevent him form killing Duncan.
In all what both Shakespeare and Tolkien are trying to tell their readers is that people must be content with the natural cause of event. That they must all learn to the take the approach of Frodo. They try to help the readers understand that no one is above the uncertainties in life. Macbeth tries to use the witches as a medium to know all he can about his future so he secure the crown in his lineage but fails at this mission because his own ambitious desires. He misinterprets the apparitions and tries to control all of the events in his life. Furthermore, Macbeth makes not room for the uncertainties of life in his plans which finally lead to his downfall. On the order hand is Frodo who does not believe what he sees in mirror but spend most of his time to ensure that they do not come true. In the end the vision in the mirror about the Shire comes true regardless of what Frodo does.
Trudy antwi November 5th, 2008, at 08:36 PM
