History TheLordOfTheRings / TropesVToZ

* WhiteIsPure: the main group trying to defeat [[BigBad Sauron]] is called "The White Council". Its leader is called Saruman the White, although once he decides to gain ownership of the ring instead of destroying it, he calls himself "Saruman of Many Colours".

** At the end of ''The Two Towers'', "[[spoiler:[[NotQuiteDead This fellow isn't dead]]!]]

** The whole Tom Bombadil episode almost certainly counts. Its perceived status as {{Padding}}[[invoked]], as well as its mixed reception among readers meant that it got skipped by [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings the movies]].Tolkien managed to do this better than most because Bombadil returned to help Frodo a few chapters later with the Barrow Wrights, he was referred to and had his existence acknowledged at the Council which spends some time discussing why they can't trust him with the Ring, and his gift of Barrow-blades proved fruitful against the Witch-king in the third book.

* WellDoneSonGuy: Denethor, for Faramir.

* WhipItGood:
** The Balrog - of the nonsexual kind, [[NoYay of course.]]
** Also, the orcs whipping the hobbits to keep running (Merry and Pippin in ''The Two Towers'' on their run that ends in Fangorn Forest, and Frodo and Sam in ''The Return of the King'', when they're mistaken for orcs in Mordor).

** The whole Tom Bombadil episode almost certainly counts. Its perceived status as {{Padding}}[[invoked]], as well as its mixed reception among readers meant that it got skipped by [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings the movies]].
** A more literal example would be the Woses, led by Ghan-buri-Ghan. Also skipped by the movies.

%%* TheWisePrince: Faramir.

::'''Tropes from ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' (the book)'''

::TheLordOfTheRings/TropesAToC -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesDToF -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesGToI -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesJToL -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesMToO -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesPToR -- TheLordOfTheRings/TropesSToU

** The whole Tom Bombadil episode almost certainly counts. Its perceived status as {{Padding}}, as well as its mixed reception among readers meant that it got skipped by [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings The Movies]].
** A more literal example would be the Woses, led by Ghan-buri-Ghan. Also skipped by [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings The Movies]].

** The whole Tom Bombadil episode almost certainly counts. Its arguable status as {{Padding}}, as well as its mixed reception among readers meant that it got skipped by [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings The Movies]].

** Peace and healing are [[WarIsHell harder, greater, better tasks than war and fighting]]. When Faramir (who is, granted, a Gondorian, but also the closest thing to an AuthorAvatar) directly compares Gondor and Rohan, he characterizes Rohan as less wise and advanced because they happily embrace the ProudWarriorRaceGuy ethos and enjoy battle for its own sake. Gondor only slid into it out of necessity after being {{Proud Scholar Race Guy}}s. Beregond later laments that Faramir is less admired than Boromir because he's scholarly and only kills at need, rather than a GlorySeeker, as though being well-educated and being brave are mutually exclusive.

* WeakenedByTheLight: A lot of Evil creatures, including orcs/goblins, trolls (turned to stone), the Nazgûl, Shelob and Gollum. Sauron manages to block out the sun before the assault on Minas Tirith, enabling his armies to fight at their full strength during the day.

* AYearAndADay: In ''The Two Towers'' Faramir gives Frodo the right to go anywhere in the realm of Gondor (except for the Ranger hideout in Ithilien) for a year and a day. He also grants this right to anyone Frodo formally takes under his protection, such as Gollum. Faramir considers this to be the limit of his discretionary power under the law (having caught Frodo and his companions "trespassing"), and urges Frodo to visit Minas Tirith before the year is over to petition his father the Steward to make his status permanent. Oddly enough Samwise is not mentioned at all in this--apparently Faramir decided that as Frodo's companion, Sam was already under his protection.

* WellIntentionedExtremist: Boromir wants the One Ring to protect Gondor, and by extension the rest of the free world, but his eventual attempt to take it from Frodo [[KickTheDog doesn't go]] [[RedemptionEqualsDeath well at all]]. This trope is also mentioned as how all good people who deliberately set out to wield the Ring will begin their unavoidable StartOfDarkness: Both Gandalf and Galadriel say that if they wielded the Ring they would begin with doing good, but [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope that's not how things would end]] as its evil power corrupts them.

--> '''Gandalf:''' For nothing is truly evil in the beginning. Even Sauron was not so.

--> '''Frodo''':I have come. [[spoiler:But I do not choose now to do what I came to do. I will not do this deed. The Ring is mine!]]

--> '''Frodo:''' But do you remember Gandalf's words: ''Even Gollum may have something yet to do?'' But for him, Sam, I could not have destroyed the Ring. The Quest would have been in vain, even at the bitter end. So let us forgive him! For the Quest is achieved and now all is over. I am glad you are here with me. Here at the end of all things, Sam.

* AYearAndADay: In ''The Two Towers'' Faramir gives Frodo the right to go anywhere in Gondor for a year and a day.

--> '''Gollum:''' "They didn't ask, did they, precious?"

-->"You cannot enter here," said Gandalf, and the huge shadow halted. "Go back to the abyss prepared for you! Go back! Fall into the nothingness that awaits you and your Master. Go!"