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08-11-2014, 05:18 PM | #1 |
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Farmer Maggot's Dogs
Farmer Maggot kept ferocious dogs to help protect his family, and his farm. But was he really entitled to allow these large dogs to savage anyone who was caught trespassing his land without leave? He even used them to try and frighten off a Nazgul, which nearly got him killed. Should he have been more reasonable or cautious in his approach, or was he right to be heavy handed?
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08-11-2014, 07:01 PM | #2 | ||
Gruesome Spectre
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First off, there's no evidence that the dogs ever "savaged" anyone. As Frodo said:
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As for the Ringwraith encounter, it was hardly likely to end in death. They were in the Shire covertly, and I can't see them killing any hobbits just for grins.
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08-11-2014, 07:20 PM | #3 | |
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Quote:
Last edited by Moonraker; 08-11-2014 at 07:25 PM. |
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08-12-2014, 07:03 AM | #4 | |
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Then again, Maggot is credited by both Merry, and more importantly, Bombadil, as being more aware and knowledgeable than the usual hobbit. Think of the way he was quick to connect the Nazgûl with Bilbo's adventure decades before. Maggot almost certainly didn't know the nature of the Ringwraiths, but he knew or intuited that they were evil, and not merely nosy about Baggins gossip.
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08-12-2014, 08:31 AM | #5 | |
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Quote:
I can suggest that the dogs may have unsettled, and even wounded, the steed which the Nazgul rode, but that was the limit of their use. It is still questionable whether Maggot had the right and authority to threaten anyone with his dogs, even if trespassing by mistake. Last edited by Moonraker; 08-12-2014 at 08:36 AM. |
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08-13-2014, 09:20 AM | #6 |
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As master of his lands, Farmer Maggot had complete authority to drive trespassers off his lands, with dogs or with weapons, for matter. Up until very recent times in Britain, poachers were summarily shot or hanged. Property rights trumped personal liberties for centuries, laws supporting landlords were harsh, and considering Maggot lived on the marches of the Shire, there was practically no law save for what he considered proper to protect his interests.
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08-12-2014, 09:02 AM | #7 |
Haunting Spirit
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Oh, I don't know about the Witch-king. There was that ol' prophesy about him, "...and not by the hand of man shall he fall." which potentially could been applied by any of the three dogs or their master.
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08-12-2014, 10:43 AM | #8 | |
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Quote:
I can't see how the dogs could successfully defeat the Witch-king. The prophecy was only a prediction by Glorfindel, not necessarily a reality, but Maggot was not Tom Bombadil. Who knows what he could do? Last edited by Moonraker; 08-12-2014 at 12:14 PM. |
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08-12-2014, 10:52 PM | #9 | ||
Ghost Prince of Cardolan
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Perhaps Aragorn ought to have arrested him for keeping such large and dangerous animals?
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08-14-2014, 04:06 AM | #10 |
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I was going to ask the same question before I saw your post.
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08-14-2014, 04:33 AM | #11 |
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I think the Council, and other great powers like Lorien and Gondor, had better things to do than arrest Maggot for killing a trespasser with his dogs. But he may have been tried by the highest power available in the Shire?
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08-13-2014, 12:28 PM | #12 |
Shade of Carn Dûm
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When you say "savage" what do you mean?
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