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Nice case you make there. I almost believe it. But not quite. Obviously, nobody completely trusted Boromir. But that isn't the question at hand. Did he INTEND to take the ring all along? is what's before us. I refer you to "The Breaking of the Fellowship.": "What have I said?" he cried. "What have I done? Frodo! Frodo!" he called. "Come back! A madness took me, but it has passed. Come back!" Now I've read this thing 15 times over the years, and it has never ocurred to me that he was lying when he said this. From my point of view a madness DID take him: the same madness Frodo fears will overcome all of his companions (granted, this is more explicit in the movie than in the book). To me Boromir, throughout FOTR, is a decent man struggling with a simmering internal debate, not a devious, consciously scheming plotter. In any case, thanks for getting back to me. I always prefer a conversation to a hit-and-run argument. And you're welcome to disagree. As long as we're both buying tickets, P.J. will be happy. :)

You have a lot of good points on the Boromir issue, but why must it be an either/or issue? You can be 'of two minds' about an issue, can't you? I see Boromir as both planning to take the Ring and struggling against it. Haven't you ever faced a situation where you know what you should do, and what you want to do, but you have a very hard time doing it? Imagine Boromir who is torn, not entirely between right and wrong, but between two different wrongs. Should he take the Ring, though he knows what Elrond and Gandalf say? Or should he pass it up, even though it is, as he sees, the only way to save Minas Tirith?

My belief is that Boromir is, well, blind. He understands things in terms of force and power. Perhaps he believes that there is no such thing as evil power, that all power could be used for good or evil. Perhaps he thinks that the Ring may well destroy him, but that he can save Minas Tirith first. I am certain that if that was the case he would see himself as virtuous in trying to take it.

That does excuse what he did, or make it right; he was wrong to try to take the Ring. But I think it came as the culmination of a long hard struggle with himself. He waged a personal spiritual battle, and at a moment of weakness, he lost. Once the Ring was taken away, he could become his old self again, and we see what he does - sacrifices himself for Merry and Pippin.

Well... I would answer you in one word... Denethor. Denethor fully expected Boromir to bring him the ring, and he was angry at Faramir for not doing so when he had the chance.

Boromir spent the whole trip (from Rivendell to the Palen ??) trying to convince the Fellowship to go to Minas Tirith. And when he realized that Frodo would take the ring to Mordor, he had no choice but to physically take the ring from Frodo.

A madness might have come over Boromir at that time. For Boromir knew what he had done was wrong. But it doesn't change the fact that at Lorien Sam knew the Boromir would take the ring. Now, they were 30 days in Lorien, then down the river... (never minding that Boromir watched Frodo the whole time)

So, the madness manifested itself... but Boromir's intent from the time he left Gondor (110 day journey) to the time he tried to take the ring from Frodo was to get the ring to Minas Tirith and use it to protect the city against the forces of Mordor.

What say you?