That Frodo Baggins is a great hero shouldn’t be a hot take, but it is.

Samwise is a hero too. I’m not claiming otherwise. But too many people give Sam ALL the credit, all the glory.

Why don’t enough people recognize Frodo’s contribution? That’s what I want to explore in today’s post, because as writer, reader, and simply as a human, it can help us to give others (and ourselves, perhaps) some grace.

Mainly, I think it comes down to three things:

• Frodo’s weaknesses are clearly portrayed.
• Frodo’s burden is impossible to relate to.
• Frodo’s heroism doesn’t look glorious

Frodo certainly has weaknesses–he gives in to the Ring at the end, as anyone would. (Tolkien has made this clear in his letters). And the movie trilogy, most certainly, makes Frodo weaker, more annoying, and more frustrating than he comes across in the books.

The thing is, we all have weaknesses. If perfection is required to make a hero, then none of us could ever qualify as heroic, in any sense.

What matters is that Frodo perseveres in spite of his weaknesses. He presses on. He attempts the seemingly impossible, because he is bound to by his word, and he honors that word.

When Frodo falls, he gets back up. He basically relies upon providence to do what he can’t, to finish the job for him when he reaches that point where the Ring will certainly overpower him. And providence does.

I think that some overlook Frodo’s heroism because it’s impossible to relate to the burden of being the Ring-Bearer. We can’t understand what that was like, what the burden actually was, both physically (as the Ring grew in weight) and, especially, spiritually and emotionally.

Yes, Frodo needed Sam. There’s no doubt about that. Frodo himself recognizes this fact. (“Frodo wouldn’t have gotten far without Sam.”)

But it is only Frodo who could have borne the long-suffering of bearing that Ring. Tolkien makes this very clear through Elrond at the Council. This task of tasks is appointed for Frodo. If he cannot find a way, no one can.

The big block to recognizing Frodo’s heroism, though, is Frodo shows what true heroism looks like, and that isn’t glorious.

Frodo shows the heroism of little souls. He is not a great warrior. He accomplishes no great feat of battle. Thanks to providence, he sometimes comes across as more lucky than anything else.

Yet Frodo fights the inner demons that the Ring evokes. He fights them for as long and as hard as he can. His deepest heroism is internal and personal.

Honest, is is the glory, the heroism of the Cross. It’s the kind of heroism we are all called to.