Do
Hobbits have Fat Fingers?
by onone with responses
This is such a random thought...
But I was walking through the mall today when I saw a huge poster about
something being "one size for all" . . . and, of course, the connection
popped into my head about "one ring to rule them all" . . . and then I
thought...
How does the Ring fit so many different people? I mean, I wear rings...
and they don't fit ME some days. Must be a colossal One Ring Fits All
thing.... Either that... or hobbits proportionally have really fat
fingers so that they can wear the same size as ... well, Sauron, at
least.
But then... maybe he had really skinny, long fingers....
But I digress. ... No wait... this whole thing was a digression!
Reponses:
Rosie: As I understand
it, the ring shrinks or enlarges to fit the finger of the bearer. How
it does that is a whole other question!
Primula: Yup, that's
what it said - that it would make
itself larger and slip off of the finger if it wanted to, which is why
Bilbo kept it on a chain. Stretchy gold? Golden
elastic? Loose
molecular structure due to being partially in another realm/dimension?
Which also makes me wonder if its mass remained the same - thus it
would have been a very thin ring for its master (fashionably thin to
avoid notice?) to be relatively 'normal' in thickness to the hobbits.
OR- yeah, they just had really, really fat fingers. Greasy ones, that
rings easily slip off of..
Frodosmiss: I think the ring was made of the same material
that my jeans are made of...I could have SWORN these things were a size
12 yesterday, but today, they feel like a 10!?!?!? The only difference
is that unlike the ring, the jeans don't size themselves to fit the
wearer....
(at least the ring doesn't have a zipper that must be pulled up
with the help of some heavy-duty wizardry!
Rosie: Hehe.. I have
several jeans of power, too.
Erech the Undead:
Oh, glorious speculation! The Ring was imbued with a survival mechanism
that compelled it to resize it's way off a finger, but what about heat,
meaning did it contract for density in high heat?, or maybe expand like
most objects undergoing heat transfer? I mean like Elven foundry heat,
not Bilbo's fireplace heat. There are different types of energy
transfer: radiant, convection, and at least one other. I can't
remember. Does it do more than just reveal it's inscription?
Gandalf 921: Nah, the ring shrinks/enlarges to fit the hand
of its owner. So once on the owner's hand, it can make itself very
difficult to remove - in the case of when it was on Sauron's hand, it
required Isildur to slice off his finger. Frodo also had great
difficulty taking it off at Weathertop, and required Gollum to bite off
his finger in Mount Doom.
Primula:
I seem to recall when it was heated (or close to Orodruin - which could
be "heated by association?") one of the descriptives given to it was
that it "seemed heavier and thicker" -
Which leads us to the conclusion that it was made of cotton, of
course, or possibly some kind of plastic. Ever accidently melted the
edge of a bread-bag by a hot toaster? If that wasn't thicker I don't
know what was!
onone: Since we all know that matter can't be created
or destroyed, and since a thicker ring would feel most uncomfortable...
perhaps it gets WIDER for people with smaller fingers. I can see it
now... you put it on a little kid and it goes all the way up to their
second knuckle!
Ok... still random thoughts.
Someone really should look into the physics/chemistry behind the Ring.
I think it would be fascenating... but it's been too long since I've
taken chem.
And maybe the Ring got the "fits all" bit of the magic... and our jeans
(yes, I have a pair, too!) got the other half!
Primula: Maybe it was just 'squishy' - like that goop stuff
they sell in the stores... or like Stretch Armstrong.
Mathom:
Ah...you can't explain it by physics or chemistry or any other science,
because, as you said yourself Onone, IT'S MAGIC!
Erech the Undead:
It may have swelled in size a bit, on its chain, and increased in
density. The primary ''weight'' of it, though, was the debilitating
effect on Frodo's mind, body, and soul. It ''felt'' heavier. The Ring
would be free of it's bearer or corrupt them to its own purpose. Only
Frodo's purity of spirit and stout hobbit heart allowed him to last as
long as he did. I also, always wondered about the integrity of the
chain. Was it Elven; did it need to be?
Also, Frodo didn't need ''fat fingers''. The Ring wanted to be
found. One of it's best options for being found, was being worn by
Frodo, thus exposing him in ''shadow''. The Ring would've been content
to stay on his finger while he stood exposed to the Wraiths and the
Eye.
Primula: So you're saying it was made of sponge?
onone:
Somehow every "logical" explanation can be turned around and made to
fit our warped sense of humor.
Primula: I am reminded of those condensed dry sponges
that they sell for talking along on backpacking trips - if you cut one
into a sort of cheerio, and it were a 'spiritual sponge' that soaked up
vibes instead of water...
Daisy Gold: I'm only glad Sauron decided to wear the ring on his
finger and not through his nose, ear or elsewhere...
He wasn't a punk rocker then.
Erech the Undead:
I don't know about the Ring, but I'm sure Gimli kept one of those
sponges in his beard, you know, for soup and stuff, and, don't get me
started about gollum, ''fishes makes big messes, yes they does,
preciousss...''
Oh, and 'spiritual sponges', I believe they sell those at the
Scientology Center.
Sauron may not have had more than a ''piercing'' Eye, but Jack Black
sure did on SNL...funniest Rings parody I've seen...
onone: I look at it as an exercise in thinking outside the
box ... or just ignoring the box all together. I'm liking Prim's
idea of a sponge ring. ::trying to picture a metalic sponge....
and not succeeding.::
