Middle Earth Masculinity
In The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien depicts the triumvirate of Frodo, Aragorn, and Gandalf as distinct faces of manly virtue while contrasting the specific quest given to each. In doing so, he provides a model for men in all phases of their life. These men, bound by fellowship, must together defeat a great evil and ensure peace in their time. However, where a hobbit, king, and wizard could not be more different in form, it is how they harness their unique virtue in pursuit of the good that makes them reflections of manliness. The hobbit shows resolve in his smallness, the king shows mastery in his quest, and the wizard shows wisdom in serving the truth. As these archetypes embody distinct manly virtues, they reveal how any man can live out the ideals of masculinity in the three phases of life: youth, adulthood, and maturity.
The Hobbit: bearer of a unique mystery. “I will take the Ring, though I do not know the way.” – Frodo
Frodo embodies the way of living out manly virtue in youth. He is small of stature and incapable of seeing the whole picture. His best asset is his pureness of heart and willingness to say yes. When a wizard came to his humble home in the Shire and told him he had to embark on a quest, he was excited. Though there was hesitation in the scale of his task and his feeling of inadequacy in being selected, it did not daunt him. He started off on a path that he could not comprehend where it would end. In the moment that he started his long walk to Mordor from the Shire, he did not even know he was going to brave monsters, deprivations, and torment. He knew that he could take one step towards something important that he had somehow found himself thrust into, and he had the appetite to bite off one step at a time. In the youth of man, he does not know where the road will go. Though he can have ideas and good intentions, these will most likely begin to unravel as the road begins and the plan changes. His youth and his vigor can sustain him as he sees his uniqueness and his calling as abstract things still worth pursuing, even in the suffering and even without knowing where they are leading him. Belief in taking small steps while he has the energy to. Belief in the goodness of his mission and the faith that made him take his first step. Not being the expert but being there because this is where you are and for some reason you do serve a purpose, so take your small steps towards greatness you can only begin to fathom.
The King: power and capability wielded for the good. “A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship. But it is not this day!” – Aragorn.
Aragorn embodies the way of living out manly virtue in adulthood. He is weathered and wizened through many adventures and the lessons that came along with them. Not only is it his destiny to unite the forces of good to defeat a terrible enemy on the battlefield, but he must do this because he is the one who will lead these armies of goodness into the time of peace to come. He must know courage and daring while wielding these hot passions with an eye towards temperance and fairness. Almost unfailingly he shows his martial bravery in his defense of his brothers in arms and those in his keep, he strikes down the dark armies and leads the fellowship onward through turmoil. He does not rest or complain, he is always pressing forward by his example: leading the armies into battle or taking the night watch. As man enters into the fullness of his mission, typically in his middle-age, he is now more equipped to vanquish the foe he has been walking towards since his youth. The idealism of the young man, the hobbit, has been tempered by time and trial and forged into a weapon designed for a specific purpose. The unique mystery of youth has revealed itself to a greater degree and the adult carries this into the next step of his mission. He must marshal his armies, muster his resources, and inspire his world to march with him into battle. Take the lessons of youth and the fervor in your mission, crystallize it into a creed and march onto the battlefield not just to defeat the enemy, but be ready to bring order to the chaos when the din of battle has cleared.
The Wizard: wisdom and guidance for a weary world. “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” – Gandalf
Gandalf embodies the way of living out manly virtue in maturity. Your faith has led you through the trials of youth and this fervor has delivered trial and victory in your adulthood. Now in the twilight of your years, the currency you may share with the world lies in your wisdom. There are other men who are going through the same adventure that you braved, with purpose great and danger looming, and they need assistance and a mentor. Gandalf speaks in riddles and in power. He works in ways that are not always immediately clear, but the power of his presence inspires courage and faith. He inspires the faith of the young man, the hobbit, that realizes the path of his life will lead him down a path and to an enemy he is not equipped to fight. He inspires the courage of the warrior king, Aragorn, who is willing to put his life on the line to bring order to the chaos. With a few tricks up his sleeve from countless years and journeys of his own, the wizard isn’t only bringing wisdom but also some tactics unseen by his companions. Not daunted by the forces of evil he has seen under a different name or mask, the wizard tirelessly works for the forces of good and does it with a jovial attitude. At the end of the day, the biggest victory that the wizard has is in the hearty laugh his comrades hear when the smoke clears. The fact he already knows the next move. Man in his maturity moves with less speed and violence than the desperate measures of the warrior king and the hobbit, but the deliberate movements he makes the world watch. Coming into old age, your vigor may be sapped but your mind often remains. Accepting reality and learning to transition from the man in the arena to the man behind the curtain is key to the transition from adulthood into a greater maturity. Gandalf shows us how when man begins to grow old he can move into that new role as mentor, leader, or grandfather with wisdom. Wielding that knowledge like an edged weapon to delicately slice away where he knows to strike and no where else, the wizard shows man in maturity as his best.
Lord of the Rings has shown us these three models of masculinity that roughly align with the stages of a man’s life through youth, adulthood, and maturity. One thing that remains to be said is how this is not a rigid model, in the same way that one does not always play the same role in every situation. The lessons of Frodo, Aragorn, and Gandalf are not locked to specific seasons of a man’s life but rather are best or most often reflected in different situations a man finds himself in. It is just as plausible that a man in middle age, his Aragorn era, comes into a situation where he is the least experienced and does not understand his calling – he would be leaning into the hobbit archetype at this time to live out his manly virtue in a new uncertainty. In the same way, an experienced young man thrust into leadership over a group of even more inexperienced folks could find himself having to act as Gandalf or Aragorn when he figured himself a Frodo. The lessons of these heroes are timeless, and life often doesn’t follow the script we imagine. These lessons and archetypes may align with stages of life, but they also align with the roles we must play by choice or otherwise. The well of knowledge between these characters is deep and there is something to pull from for all who come to it, whatever stage of life you may be in. Revisit the timeless wisdom found in the Lord of the Rings series often for a refresher of masculinity and seeing it played out over a tremendous adventure. Carry forward a spirit of adventure, hope, courage, and wisdom into your life and be ready to fill the role you find yourself in.