Ultimate Defining Quote

[Valandil]

I can't put my finger on this - maybe some of the rest of you could...

Many literary works have a defining, recognizable quote. Someone says it and 'everyone' with any familiarity to the story knows EXACTLY where it comes from. Examples: Shakespeare's "To be or not to be..." from 'Hamlet' and "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo..." from 'Romeo and Juliet' - and I'm sure there are SO many others.

What would be the single, most defining quote from 'The Lord of the Rings' - such that, if someone says it, 'everyone' knows where it's from and what they're talking about? Or - the quote that comes most readily to mind when someone mentions the story?

It'd be a shame if it came down to an 'evil' quote, but maybe: "One Ring to Rule them all..." is a strong candidate.

[Rosie Gamgee]

Oh definately. That's what popped into my head when I started reading your post. Maybe "Fool of a Took!" would come in somewhere in the top 10.

[Jonathan]

"I am no man" and definitely
"My precious..."

[Last Child of Ungoliant]

Originally Posted by Jonathan

"I am no man" and definitely
"My precious..."

ahem, "but no living man am i! you look upon a woman. eowym i am, eomunds daughter." mixing up movie and book there, jonathon

my ultimate defining quote has to be One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them
one ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them, In the land of mordor where the shadows lie

[Valandil]

Originally Posted by Last Child of Ungoliant

ahem, "but no living man am i! you look upon a woman. eowym i am, eomunds daughter." mixing up movie and book there, jonathon ...

No... he MUST have been taking that verbatim from the Swedish translation... Tolkien had SO much trouble getting translators to not take liberties with the text.

*cough-cough*

[Twista]

"Great Scott!" and "This is Heavy"




Erm... wait a minute.. thats not from Tolkien.. wierd?

[CrazySquirrel]

The ring-verse!

[brownjenkins]

a couple that stick out for me:

"It's a dangerous business going out your front door."

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."

"Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger."

"He who breaks a thing to find out what it is, has left the path of wisdom."

and probably my favorite:

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment."

[Radagast The Brown]

What about - "Even the mightiest man may be slain by one arrow."

"Fly, you fools" - is great.

[Valandil]

There are a LOT of great quotes... but what one quote really defines the story?

[Beruthiel's cat]

I think the "One ring to rule them all..." quote is probably the defining one. It sums up the whole story very nicely.

Another one that has always stayed with me "It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand."

And one of my bosses said this quote (from "The Scouring of the Shire) always stayed with him:

"I am a messenger of the King!" he [Pippin] said. "You are speaking to the King' s friend, and one of the most reknowned in all the lands of the West. You are a ruffian and a fool. Down on your knees in the road and ask pardon, or I will set this troll's bane in you!"

He says it shows how much life has truly changed in the Shire and how much the Hobbits have changed as well. Good point, I think.

[brownjenkins]

how about frodo:

"It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: someone has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."

[The Gaffer]

I'd agree with

"It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: someone has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment."

Also the "ours is not to choose the times we are born into, it is to choose what to do with the time that is given us." one (can't remember it exactly)

[cassiopeia]

How about "Well, I'm back?" Maybe a bit too simple, but I find myself saying it a lot. Then, I am a Tolkien geek.

[Bombadillo]

"You can not pass," he said... "I am a Servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass"

This paragraph defines the story! It shows how desperate the Felowship's adventure was (notice how Gandalf "said" to the Balrog... He was Weary and didn't want to lift his staff.), and shows their dedication, and the power and wisdom of Gandalf in particular, and the importance of protecting Frodo with the Ring, as well as being one of the main plot points, and nothing leaves a more lasting impression on the reader (at least me), and it's just so awesome.

[Linaewen]

Originally posted by cassiopeia
How about "Well, I'm back?" Maybe a bit too simple, but I find myself saying it a lot. Then, I am a Tolkien geek.

I know a few people who are big fans of that line, myself included.

The thing is, if you heard it but didn't remember the story well, you wouldn't be able to pinpoint its source. That's why I go with 'One Ring to rule them all'. There's no denying it comes from LotR. I like these too: "Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger."

and

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them?"

[Dwarven Sen]

"Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger." is my personal favourite along with Frodo's corresponding line about the elves.

Oh and "I'm Back"

You know if I carry on the way my mind is going I'd end up just typing out the book. It's a defining book.

[Lady Ravyn]

the best quotes are "Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are stubborn and quick to anger." and "I'm hungry; what is the time?". my favorites are "Fool of a Took" and "I am no man!" but i thik the two most definning quotes are "One Ring to rule them all..." and "My precious"

[Beor]

I'd have to go with "One ring to rule them all...". That is so ubiquitious (Sp?) that whenever anyone hears it, they think of Lord of the Rings, and hobbits and stuff.

My favorite, however, is the poem, "The road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began..." I love that poem, and it pretty much hits the underlying theme from the book. For example, the road started at Bilbo's door when he left for the Lonely Mountain in the Hobbit, and look where it ended up. Right back in the Shire, with many people dead, and almost everyone changed (except for Sam, he somehow managed to keep the same, because he is a stalwart rock in a field of clay)

[Nurvingiel]

Dwarven Sen was referring to
"Do not go to the Elves for council, for they will say both no and yes."

I think "Do not meddle..." is a defining line. LotR is too complex to have only one though, in my opinion. But this is a good one because it's even paraphrased by Babylon 5! (In the episode with the Technomages, seasion three I think.)