2049e319   
   XPost: rec.arts.books.tolkien   
   From: sulsness@yahoo.com   
      
   On Apr 29, 6:56 pm, Igenlode Wordsmith  wrote:   
   > "Andy.Cooke.1...@googlemail.com"  wrote in   
   message <225b9262-bbf8-40da-92c5-9776ae7e8...@h14g2000vbe.googlegroups.com>   
   > > On Mar 2, 3:58 pm, Steuard Jensen  wrote:   
   > > > In message , Stan   
   >   
   > > > Brown  wrote:   
   >   
   > > > > This does feel like a fairly gaping plot hole. I can't really accept   
   > > > > that Gandalf and Aragorn would start a suicidal battle just on the   
   > > > > off chance that it _might_ give Frodo time to reach the Sammath Naur   
   > > > > undetected.   
   >   
   > > > Yeah, that's bugged me for quite some time. You'd think that Aragorn   
   > > > could have presented nearly as tempting of a target by taking his dear   
   > > > sweet time marching toward the Black Gate.   
   >   
   > Yes, I always disliked that feature of the plot -- if Tolkien had   
   > written all the action in straight chronological order I can't help   
   > feeling that the problem would have been overwhelmingly obvious :-)   
   >   
   > It would certainly have been a lot less arbitrary for Aragorn to spin   
   > his 'distraction' out for as long as possible, instead of just   
   > *happening* to launch his one and only attack at the precise moment when   
   > it actually came in useful -- half an hour or so either way and the Ring   
   > would surely have fallen into Sauron's hands after all... in addition to   
   > every one of Aragorn's company getting massacred!   
      
   But the integral part of the ruse was to make it   
   appear that Aragorn has the Ring and is being   
   hasty and unwise in it's use,  exactly what Sauron   
   would hope would happen.   
      
   If the idea is to get Sauron to empty Mordor so   
   as to give Frodo the best chance possible.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)