~By Amanda Pizzolatto
In our movies, books, and TV shows, the good guys always bring the criminals to justice. We cheer for them, congratulate them, and hail them as heroes. All criminals must be brought to justice, to pay for their crimes. And our stories adequately show this. But while justice is important, mercy is also. In fact, many of us would prefer mercy to justice should we ever get caught doing something wrong. After all, being let off with a warning and/or easy is far better to us than serving our time, if you will. But, if we like it so much, why is it so absent from so many of our stories? If you don’t think it is, name five stories, whether on the screen or in print, where the guilty party, after being confirmed that they are guilty, is let off with a warning, let off easy, or with a chance to repent. If you think of mystery shows or superheroes, the majority of the time they’re fighting the villains and their goons to stop them from committing some crime, or stopping them from escaping justice. That’s not to say there aren’t stories where mercy is shown; there are actually plenty if one looks hard enough. But it’s not commonly found in most mainstream movies and shows. However, there is one author in particular who has put mercy almost forefront in his books, and that is J. R. R. Tolkien.
True, the mercy shown was born out of pity, but most merciful acts usually are born that way. Bilbo, and then Frodo, felt pity for Gollum, sparing his life, despite the very obvious fact that he technically should lose it for the crimes he has committed. But, as we all know now, that ended up being good for everyone in the end as Gollum was the final piece of the puzzle in bringing Sauron down. Though it could be said that Gollum still got what he deserved, it was not by Bilbo’s or Frodo’s hand. Who knows what would have happened if either had not shown mercy. But that’s not all.
Frodo had another reason for sparing Gollum. By sparing him, Frodo was hoping that he would not only provide a way for Gollum to come back into the light, but a way for himself as well. He was searching for a little mercy for himself, a hope that he could return to himself after the influence of the Ring bearing down on his shoulders for so long, and so heavily. But what he didn’t understand was that he would receive mercy; it just wasn’t the way he thought it would be. Mercy came in the form of an invitation to the Undying Lands with a chance at fully healing. So while it would mean leaving his home and friends, he would ultimately receive the healing he longed for.
One other person in the Lord of the Rings is also shown to have received mercy, Boromir of Gondor. His sin was pride, and to a degree, arrogance, for he thought he knew what was best to be done with the Ring, and that Gondor did not need its King. Aragorn showed him mercy by forgiving him and promising to take care of Gondor. Frodo gave it to him as he refused to speak ill of him to Faramir. Of course, he understood all too well the effects of the Ring. But he was still forgiven for his heart was in the right place. He only wanted what he understood to be right for Gondor with the information he had.
Of the three, Gollum, Frodo, and Boromir, Gollum was the only one who misused the mercy given to him. One could argue that it was because he was still far too near the Ring in order for the change to be effective, as both Boromir and Frodo were no longer near it when their healing process began. But then comes the fact that Gollum was without the Ring for a good number of years, but he still sought it. Perhaps because Frodo and Boromir weren’t exposed to it for the same length of time that Gollum had, that could have helped in the healing process. But the point is, Gollum still desired it, up till the very end. And while Frodo’s mercy and kindness to him sparked the beginning of a change, it wasn’t enough to keep the momentum going.
All in all, it’s safe to say that mercy was a key factor in destroying the evils of Sauron. Forgiveness, kindness, mercy, all things Sauron had no idea how to use, much less wanted to use. He had a vision for his world, a vision that meant enslaving all peoples and bending them to his will. Mercy and small acts of kindness were his major undoing.
In this day and age when justice for everything, from the smallest mistake to the biggest cover-up, is executed swiftly, mistakes in justice are made. And sometimes the punishment doesn’t fit the crime. It is in those moments that mercy needs to be taken into consideration. As Christ said, “he that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone” (John 8:7). As is evident in several characters from Lord of the Rings, mercy was the beginning of the end of evil. A small act of kindness, a forgiving heart, these sparked changes for the better in many and led good to triumph.