The Lord of the Rings, #2
The Two Towers
by J. R. R. Tolkien
Contents
CHAPTER 2: THE PASSAGE OF THE MARSHES
Overview
Gollum guides Frodo and Sam through the Dead Marshes, where corpse-lights and dead faces lure the unwary. A winged Nazgûl scouts overhead, deepening fear as the Ring and the Eye weigh on Frodo. Reaching Mordor’s desolation, Sam overhears Gollum debating theft of the Ring and hinting at another ally, yet the trio pushes on toward the Gate.
Summary
Gollum leads Frodo and Sam down a gully toward the marshes, delighted by water and muttering of fish. At dawn they rest; Gollum rejects lembas with disgust and slinks off to forage, returning muddy and satiated. Food scarcity worries Sam, while Frodo focuses grimly on their goal.
They enter the Dead Marshes, trusting Gollum’s cautious pathfinding through pools, mires, and choking mists. Night falls and ghostly corpse-lights appear; Sam glimpses dead faces beneath the water. Gollum warns them not to look or follow the lights, recalling an ancient battle whose graves the marshes swallowed.
A cold wind rises and a winged Nazgûl streaks across the moon, sending them grovelling in terror. After it passes, Gollum is shaken and more fawning, while Frodo grows increasingly burdened by the Ring and the Eye’s oppressive gaze. They finally leave the marshes for the ashen, poisoned waste before Mordor.
Exhausted, the three hide in a foul pit. As Frodo sleeps, Sam overhears Gollum’s inner debate: Sméagol clings to promises, but the Gollum-voice urges stealing the Ring and hints that “She” could help. When Sam stirs, Gollum collapses into servility, and Frodo wakes strangely refreshed by a fair dream.
They resume in dread as the winged terror passes twice more. Gollum panics, insisting they cannot go on, until Frodo’s stern command forces him to lead again. Weary and silent, they continue toward the Black Gate through Mordor’s devastated borderlands.
Who Appears
- Gollum (Sméagol)Guides the hobbits through the Dead Marshes; rejects lembas; fears Nazgûl; debates stealing the Ring and hints of “She.”
- Frodo BagginsWeary Ring-bearer; resists the corpse-lights; increasingly oppressed by the Eye; briefly heartened by a dream; presses onward.
- Samwise GamgeeWatches Gollum warily; worries over food and Frodo’s strength; sees dead faces; overhears Gollum’s plotting; supports Frodo.
- Winged NazgûlFlies overhead, thrice spreading terror; symbolizes Sauron’s searching Eye and heightens the party’s fear.