But who really is THE “Lord of the Rings”, named after Peter Jackson’s trilogy in the early 2000s? J.R.R. Tolkien’s books have been broken down by fans who have a startling theory…
The Lord of the Rings is a literary and cinematographic trilogy that has seduced generations of fans, from the publication of J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels in 1954 and 1955 to the films directed by Peter Jackson and released from 2001 to 2003. This titanic work that has become a cult has been the subject of many expertise and theories even today. And some wonder, sometimes, who really is THE Lord of the Rings, which gives its title to novels and feature films alike.
The most obvious (and commonly accepted) answer is that it is Sauron, the antagonist of Tolkien’s work. This evil character is indeed the one who created the One Ring, with the aim of governing the other rings of power possessed by Men, Dwarves and Elves.
According to the calculations of fans who have dissected Tolkien’s works, Sauron is also the character who has been in possession of it the longest (more than 1800 years), far ahead of Gollum (more than 400 years) and Bilbo (about 60 years). But other followers have another more original approach: for the latter, it is in the Anduin River that the ring has remained the longest, 2461 years to be precise. Which would make him amusingly the real “Lord of the Rings” according to them!
If we stick strictly to the characters of The Lord of the Rings, Sauron does win the title of master of the One hands down, since he created and carried it the longest. Incidentally, in the novels, Gandalf twice corrects Pippin when he seeks to call Frodo “Lord of the Rings”. But the question is still debated. Because for some, the Lord of the Rings would be the Ring himself, since he rules them all and none of the ring bearers could escape completely unscathed… Anyway, Frodo, who is the hero and embarks on a long quest to destroy the ring, is definitely no match for it.
