"it was not only nightmare memories of past horrors that afflicted him, but also unreasoning self-reproach: he saw himself and all he had done as a broken failure."

This about made me cry. Every time I think I'm done crying over Mr. Baggins, something new comes along and rips my heart out.

The whole essay is sublime and very interesting. I had never considered Arwen being the first to notice Frodo's fading due to her experience with her mother, but it makes perfect sense. Thank you so much for this!