qualities of Tolkien's work: his characters grow and change, almost right before our eyes. Galadriel's wisdom and the respect she inspires among the elves are hard-earned and hard-won. Frodo seems to evolve in the course of his journey from a hobbit into a statesman; Sam, from a gardener's grandson into a worthy steward of Frodo's and Bilbo's wealth; Merry and Pippen from care-free hobbits in their 'tweens into warriors. Aragorn goes from being a hidden, misunderstood guardian to a true king. Even Gollum changes from a gangrel creature of mindless darkness into one who at least remembers what it meant to be human? or hobbity? And Gandalf becomes what I would call a true Master, who proves himself as gold is proved in the fire... For the villains of the piece, like Saruman and Grima, the change is a downward one, the true product of genuine evil. I find it perfectly understandable that LOTR is so endlessly fascinating, based on this one ability of Tolkien's alone.