I have some questions for LOTR fans (obviously I have not read the book).
1. If Sauron made the one ring, who made all the others? Why did Gandalf have one of the elven rings when he is not an elf?
Was Gollum ever good during the Two Towers or was he always scheming.
2. When Frodo returns to the shire, he is obviously ill because of the ring, but is he dying?
Bilbo had the ring for a long time, Frodo had it for a year and it made him so ill. Why didn't bilbo get sick?
3. The gray havens, what exactly happens to them i.e. Frodo, Bilbo and Gandalf?
4. Does Legolas go the gray havens?
5. What happens to Gimli?
Thats it for now, I know I will think of some more.
Thanks everybody.
1. The Elves made the other rings. Cirdan gave Gandalf his ring when Gandalf showed up in Middle Earth.
1b. Debatable... I think no.
2. Not precisely dying. More of a soul-sickness than anything. The difference between Frodo and Bilbo is that Frodo was actively working against the Ring, and eventually destroyed it.
3. Not sure what you're asking... they go across the sea to the Undying Lands where the Elves and Valar dwell.
4 and 5. Yes, and he takes Gimli with him.
2. When Frodo returns to the shire, he is obviously ill because of the ring, but is he dying? Bilbo had the ring for a long time, Frodo had it for a year and it made him so ill. Why didn't bilbo get sick?
He's ~changed~ from the experience and the pain of the journey and the destruction of the ring. I think there is some hint at the notion that he was much more affected by the ring than Bilbo was, as Bilbo possessed it before Sauron had regained his strength, and the power of the ring grew a Sauron did.
Most importantly, Frodo always felt the wound of the Nazgul blade... it never really healed.
Jen...correct me if I'm wrong. ;-)
Frodo also claimed the ring - as its master. That wasn't the same level of involvement that Bilbo had. Also, he was still suffering from his injuries, especially the Morgul blade wound he received at Weathertop.
From the Appendices of the LOTR books:
After the fall of Sauron, Gimli brought south a part of the Dwarf-folk of Erebor, and he became Lord of the Glittering Caves. He and his people did great works in Gondor and Rohan. For Minas Tirith they forged gates of mithril and steel to replace those broken by the Witch-king. Legolas his friend also brought south Elves out of Greenwood, and they dwelt in Ithilien, and it became once again the fairest country in all the westlands.But when King Elessar [Aragorn] gave up his life Legolas followed at last the desire of his heart and sailed over Sea...
We have heard tell that Legolas took Gimli Glóin's son with him because of their great friendship, greater than any that has been between Elf and Dwarf. If this is true, then it is strange indeed: that a Dwarf should be willing to leave Middle-earth for any love, or that the Eldar should receive him, or that the Lords of the West should permit it. But it is said that Gimli went also out of desire to see again the beauty of Galadriel; and it may be that she, being mighty among the Eldar, obtained this grace for him. More cannot be said of this matter.
The elves made the others. They taught Sauron the ring-making craft while he was pretending to be a good guy. Gandalf's ring was originally held by Cirdan, main elf of the Gray Havens, who gave it to Gandalf upon his arrival in Middle Earth.
Was Gollum ever good during the Two Towers or was he always scheming.
This is kind of up to interpretation. I personally believe that his good side (Smeagol) did come to the forefront for a time in The Two Towers, and he truly does want to be good and help. But after his percieved betrayal to Faramir, and the scene on the stair outside Shelob's lair (not in the movie), his evil side (Gollum) takes over again, and becomes the driving force.
2. When Frodo returns to the shire, he is obviously ill because of the ring, but is he dying?
I do not think so, but his wounds are such that they will never heal, and he can no longer find rest in Middle Earth.
Bilbo had the ring for a long time, Frodo had it for a year and it made him so ill. Why didn't bilbo get sick?
Primarily because Frodo carried the ring into the heart of Mordor, where its power was greatest, and while Sauron was exerting his strength to 'call' the ring back to himself. Also, it was not just the power of the ring, but the evil effects of the wounds he recieved from the Witch-King on Weathertop and Shelob's sting.
The gray havens, what exactly happens to them i.e. Frodo, Bilbo and Gandalf?
They pass to the 'undying lands' in the West beyond the sea. Basically, this is the Middle-Earth equivalent of an afterlife.
Does Legolas go the gray havens? What happens to Gimli?
Legolas and Gimli travel Middle-Earth together as friends for many years. After King Elessar (Aragorn) dies, "Legolas built a grey ship in Ithilien, and sailed down Anduin and so over Sea; and with him, it is said, went Gimli the Dwarf."