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| Dreamflower's Musings by Dreamflower | 21 Review(s) |
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| FantasyFan | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 11/11/2005 |
| This issue of Frodo's guardianship is one I have also thought about, and my thoughts go somewhat against the fanon. My guess as to who would have been Frodo’s guardians at the time of adoption would be Rorimac Brandybuck and Dudo Baggins. First Rory: He was Primula’s oldest brother, and probably Master of Buckland when Primula and Drogo died, and head of the family where Frodo would live. (There is some controversy over the date of death of Rory’s father Gorbadoc: the family trees say 1363, well before the date Prim and Drogo died in 1380, but the story the Gaffer tells in the Ivy Bush in 1401 puts Gorbadoc still alive in 1380 at the age of 120; however, the Gaffer may have gotten it wrong, or Gorbadoc certainly might have died in the nine years since then, passing the guardianship on to his son Rorimac who was already 78 in 1380.) Despite being a Baggins in name, Frodo’s parents lived in Buckland, Frodo was identified as a Bucklander, and I feel that there would have been Brandybuck representation in Frodo’s guardianship. I think Rory and Menegilda as the leaders of the family are naturals for guardianship on the Brandybuck side of things. Rory is truly Frodo’s Uncle, unlike Bilbo whom he called Uncle.(Frodo was Bilbo’s second cousin once removed on the Baggins side, and first cousin once removed on the Took side.) Many people think Saradoc and Esmeralda (Merry’s parents, though he wasn’t born yet) took Frodo in, but at the time they were childless and only 40 and 36 years old. I can’t imagine Hobbit society giving them formal guardianship at that time - 40 and 36 are too young for that responsibility in a society that doesn't come of age until 33. The fact that they were childless I think counts against them - they are inexperienced youngsters. However, I don’t think that the fact that Frodo is a Baggins would have been ignored, in a Shire that wants to do legal niceties in Red Ink with Seven Signatures. It also makes sense to me that they would want to hold some control over Frodo's upbringing, as one of the few male Bagginses of the generation. Dudo was Drogo’s only brother, and closest living male relative. Dudo’s wife is unrecorded, but he did have at least one child at that point, and Dudo was a respectable 69 when his brother died. There is an older sister, Dora, but she seems to have been a spinster, and I get the feeling that there would be some patriarchal notion of putting the guardianship in male hands. Dudo (or Dora, for that matter, if you think she’s a matriarch) would have been Bilbo’s second cousin and Frodo's true Uncle. Author Reply: An excellent analysis, and I would love to see a story incorporating your notion. I, too, feel there would have been some Baggins representation in Frodo's upbringing. While Dudo would have seemed the logical one, as Drogo's only brother. In my version of the Shire, Drogo left a will, and in it he made Bilbo--to whom he was very close, Frodo's primary guardian, and Saradoc, to whom Primula was close (actually she was closer to Esmeralda), as the secondary guardian. My Dudo was in poor physical health, which was the reason for not making him a guardian. Frodo remained in Buckland until his tweens because Menegilda and Esmeralda convinced Bilbo that the child was too young for him to handle, and that he still needed a "mother" figure. I felt that this arrangement explained a number of things: why Frodo *did* remain in Brandy Hall in spite of being a Baggins, why Merry was so close to him, and why Bilbo did finally adopt him. I agree with your feeling that Saradoc and Esmeralda would have been considered young parents by Shire standards. However, to me that seemed an advantage rather than a disadvantage. Older hobbits might have children of their own to occupy their energies. And living in Brandy Hall, Saradoc and Esmeralda would have the help and advice of all the older hobbits. Moreover Saradoc was Rory's heir. However your reasoning is very sound as well. Have you written any stories using this scenario? | |