Another theme from the books is that "the great" might not have the greatest roles, and stupendous deeds may have to be done by the least great of the creatures, like soft, complacent Hobbits. In fact, when the greatest of The Great get too big for their britches, it's only "the little" than can take them down.
Yet another theme expounded in the books is that of passing, loss, and diminishment. And even the destruction of Sauron brings about the slow fading of all the creatures except Men themselves. Yet all the free creatures of Middle Earth realize that they have to pay that price, in order to free the universe from Sauron's evil. It takes a special kind of courage to fight a war where the only outcomes are your eternal enslavement to evil, or the slow fading of your kind, while the far less noble Man gradually ascends. There is a strong theme of sadness and loss, even in victory, present in the work.
I've read these books many times, but manage to notice different themes each time I read them. This time around, I'm noticing the feeling of cold, misery, fear, and doubt that dogs the characters when they're not resting in some blessed oasis like Rivendell, or up to their armpits in orcs. It's a common feeling for anyone who's been in the military, and something Tolkien remembers from WW1, while he writes to his son, in WW2.
Outstanding.
Is it the little, or the humble?
BTW: One of my Sunday School teachers was talking about the passage where Jesus said, "You must enter the Kingdom like a little child" (blew the quote but got the sense). He was asking, "What are some of the characteristics of children that Jesus might have been talking about." The answer he was looking for (but never got out of us) is that they're little.
Worth a lot of thinking.
Shalom.