Frodo Baggins
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Frodo Baggins is the hero of the Lord of the Rings saga, written by J. R. R. Tolkien.
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Story
After being entrusted with the heavy burden of the One Ring by his uncle Bilbo, he follows the Istar Gandalf's instructions and leaves the Shire, his homeland, on a journey to Imladris (Rivendell), the domain of the powerful Lord Elrond. Three other hobbits help him: Samwise Gamgee (his gardener), Peregrin Took and Meriadoc Brandybuck. They face many perils on the way, including persecution by the Nazgûl (Ringwraiths); in Bree, Aragorn, a majestic and skilled Ranger from the North, joins the group.
For several reasons, representatives from different peoples were gathered at Imladris as well. Together, they form a Council to decide the fate of the Ring. Gandalf and the Half-Elven lord Elrond convince everyone that it must be destroyed, to prevent the Dark Lord Sauron from achieving the full power of which he was once stripped. Frodo is chosen to carry on this task, and eight Companions travel with him: the three hobits, Gandalf the Grey, Aragorn, Legolas Greenleaf, Gimli son of Gloin and Boromir of the White City.
The Fellowship intends to get to Mordor; only in the fires of Mount Doom (Orodruin) can the Ring be unmade. As they pass through the mines of Moria, however, they lose the wisest and perhaps most resourceful Companion: the wizard Gandalf, who falls into a fiery chasm after facing a Balrog. They rest for a brief while at Lothlórien, realm of the Lady Galadriel, wielder of one of the Three Elven Rings, Nenya, and continue south via the Anduin river.
The eight Companions are, however, ambushed by urûk-hai under the command of Saruman, an Istar who betrayed his fellows and joined with Sauron. Boromir falls in battle, and is unable to prevent Meriadoc and Peregrin from being taken hostage. Frodo and Samwise manage to get away; the Ringbearer had recently decided to leave the rest of the Fellowship to stop them from being tempted to take the Ring.
When Frodo and Sam arrive near the range of mountains that surround Mordor, the creature Gollum tries to steal the One Ring. They capture him, and he swears to help them find a way inside. Both are well aware that Gollum was once Sméagol, a fun-loving hobbit-like creature who suddenly killed his best friend in order to steal a trinket the latter had found in the Anduin: a golden ring. Gollum is fascinated with it, and his personality was radically altered by the five hundred years he'd spent cherishing "his precious". He betrays Frodo and Sam, leading them up the most dangerous path to Cirith Ungol: the lair of the great spider Shelob. Gollum abandons them, hoping to see the pair murdered and their belongings disposed of.
Shelob poisons Frodo; Sam, believing he's dead, decides to carry on without him. When he's about to leave, the now Ringbearer discovers that his Master is, in fact, alive, and was captured by Mordor orcs. Samwise rescues Frodo, and together they go up Mount Doom. Gollum meets them at the last minute, but Sam manages to fight him off, while Frodo makes a last effort to the inside of the mountain.
When Frodo is about to destroy the One, he gives up on his Quest, and takes the Ring for himself.
Gollum then gets away from Sam and desperately fights Frodo for "his precious". In the end, the creature bites off one of the hobbit's fingers, but slips and falls into the fires of Orodruin, effectively destroying the Ring. Because of this, Frodo becomes known as "Frodo of the Nine Fingers". He's rescued on borrowed time and returns to the Shire, his homeland.
Unable to be satisfied with the simple humdrum of a hobbit existence after having lived the most dramatic of times, Frodo is granted a gift by the Elves: he leaves with them to the Undying Lands, never to see Middle-Earth again.
Parallels between Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter universes
Like many of the elements in the Lord of the Rings saga, there have been several parallels drawn between Frodo and Harry of the Harry Potter series.
Harry has a old, powerful mentor who introduces him to the wizarding world and abandons him at the crucial and darkest point in his journey. He, too, must fight an enemy with skills far beyond his, and succeeds in thwarting him with the help of his friends. The similarities between Aragog and the Shelob are evident, just like Dementors and the Ringwraiths. Both Harry and Frodo have magical artifacts that help them become invisible. It wouldn't be pushing too hard to notice the shared peculiarities of Galadriel's Mirror and Pensieves, or perhaps even the Mirror of Erised.
Most of these elements can be credited to a broader range of archetypical characters and events found in fantasy novels, religious tales and myths. Joseph Campbell called it the monomyth; the aforementioned similarities are discussed in deeper detail in the linked article.
Other purposes
This is a very long-winded article with the sole intention of clarifying two things:
- Frodo is in the Undying Lands, and therefore unable to communicate with anyone in our world.
- The alleged rendezvous between Archee and Frodo of the Nine Fingers that Kelly so restlessly claims to be the result of never happened. There is no mention of Aussie self-inserts in Lord of the Rings. Tolkien was not a fangirlish Suethor who'd watched the movies far too many times, after all.
