The destruction of the Ring and Sauron's accompanying downfall strike many readers as the obvious endpoint for The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien's text, however, continues for some one hundred pages and a half dozen chapters, following Frodo and his companions as they say goodbye to their friends and journey back to the Shire. The chapters culminate in the discovery that their beloved homeland has been ravaged in their absence, becoming a refuge for brigands and an ecological disaster. Far from an unnecessary sequel to the primary story, the Scouring of the Shire concludes the story of the hobbits themselves, demonstrating how they have grown spiritually, emotionally, and physically on their quest. Without the help of outsiders, they confront and overcome evil at home, banishing the last specter of Mordor from Middle-earth.
From the novel's outset, the Shire stands as an ideal country, characterized by green hills, sparkling rivers, and pleasant woodlands. The inhabitants of that community are farmers, tradesmen, and country gentry, all of whom indulge in the innocent pleasures of rustic life: good food, strong beer, and idle gossip, all amply represented at Bilbo's birthday party. This ideal image stays with the hobbits as they travel through strange and frightening distant lands. Treebeard wonders if the Entwives might have made their home in the Shire, and Longbottom Leaf proves a welcome comfort to Merry and Pippin after the sack of Isengard. Sam daydreams in Mordor of "the cool mud about his toes as he paddled in the Pool at Bywater." Even when the Mirror of Galadriel shows "some devilry at work in the Shire," the threat to his homeland hardens rather than weakens Sam's resolve. In Mordor it is the same: The memory of the Shire urges Sam onward, and he sees that "the way back, if there is one, goes past the Mountain."
