Tolkien published TWO last lines of Lord of the Rings...which one is better

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]If you go over to your library and pick up your copy of The Lord of the Rings and go to the very last paragraph of this book, the last thing that this book will say is he drew a deep breath.

[00:00:11]Well, I'm back, he said.

[00:00:14]Now, that is the last line of the book and that is the line that Samwise says when he finally comes back from the Grey Havens after bidding Frodo farewell and he gets back to his family and he realizes that he's back.

[00:00:26]This line is great and it's a very satisfying ending to this novel because the entire story of Bilbo is there and back again and finally Sam goes there and back again and he's whole and he's able to be with his family and he's happy.

[00:00:41]But J.R.R. Tolkien had a different ending for his story than he really he really wrote in this little section because he wrote an epilogue that he wanted included in the story but by the advice of maybe his publisher and the Inklings, he didn't include it and he severely regretted not including it later on. But the last line of this really the whole story is kind of about Sam and his relationship with his daughter. The epilogue is about 14 years later and I think the epilogue is a really really interesting way to end the novel because Sam after bidding his daughter farewell or goodnight really, not farewell. Bidding his daughter goodnight, he goes to his wife and they talk about you know them seeing each other for the first time and how much hope they had that they would be united. And it's a really beautiful section but in the very end the last line of this says this.

[00:01:30]They went in and Sam shut the door but even as he did so he heard suddenly deep and unstilled the sigh and murmur of the sea upon the shores of Middle-earth.

[00:01:41]Now, this is the last line of the epilogue and I think this is how Tolkien potentially wanted to end his actual novel. Now, I think this is really interesting because it's a debate and I want to know in the comments what you think and which one you prefer. Whether you prefer the actual I guess the theatrical cut of this, the actual published version of this or whether you prefer the unpublished version of J.R.R.

[00:02:01]Tolkien's epilogue. Because I have to say I do love the ending of well, I'm back because it ties in so much of Bilbo's journey and Frodo's journey and now Sam's journey. It just kind of fits to some extent. But the epilogue to me feels like it's tying up loose ends that I really really need to be tied up. The idea that Sam, he closes the door and right before he closes the door he hears the shores upon Middle-earth is essentially the idea that the shore is calling for Sam. That Sam is not going to be fully whole while he is here on Middle-earth and that he's going again out someday when Rosie dies to go see Frodo, >> [music] >> his beloved. And I think the ending of this story just kind of fits because in the epilogue there's all sorts of themes about knowing when your time has come. And as Sam's closing the door he knows his time isn't come but he still hears the echo.

[00:02:52]He still hears the shore and this the sea crashing upon the shore. And I think this is just this call that he's supposed to you know go across the sea one day. That the ending comes for all people. And in a story for me that has been so hard to finish because I don't want it want it to end. When I hear the word well, I'm back at the end of the actual version, the published version, it's a great ending but it just doesn't satisfy me in the way that the ending of the epilogue does. Where I sit and I go I really don't want this story to end but the ending is kind of telling me all good things have to come to an end. It's okay that they're coming to an end. All people's lives will eventually come to an end. The sea is calling and it's sometimes good to just let those things happen and it's sometimes good to say goodbye. And I feel like I like the epilogue ending a little bit more than I like the actual published version but I want to know what you think in the comments. If you like the actual published version more than the epilogue, let me know. If you like the epilogue more than the published version, let me know and of course tell me your reasons for why because I would love to know what your reasons are and if there's any deeper literary significance that you see behind one ending versus the other.

[00:04:06]But maybe literally I like the ending of the of the published version more but in my person and in my like thematic understanding of the story, I really like the epilogue a little bit more than I like the published version.

[00:04:21]So, that's all I got. Let me know what you think in the comments because I would be really curious to see how many people would vote for the published version versus how many people would vote for the epilogue epilogue. Let me know in the comments below. You can like the video too. You can become a member for some members content, some early access videos. Make sure you subscribe if you made it this far in the video and as always remember to look toward Numenor that was and beyond to Elvenhome that is and to that which is beyond Elvenhome and will ever be.

[00:04:45]I'll see you in the next one.