How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from the director's cut of The Fellowship of the Ring.
Quote #1
BOROMIR [holding the Ring]: It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing… such a little thing
Boromir, being a man, is concerned with the size of things and with their physical appearance. And really, it is strange, how such a tiny object can cause so much war and death. But that is the power of Sauron, and of greed.
Quote #2
FRODO: Excuse me. That man in the corner. Who is he?
INNKEEPER: He's one of them rangers. They're dangerous folk they are, wandering the wilds. What his right name is, I've never heard, but round here he's known as Strider.
When we first meet Aragorn, he is a shady man smoking a pipe and staring at some hobbits. He really gives us the creeps. Turns out he's the rightful King of Gondor and one of the noblest men alive.
Quote #3
BOROMIR: The shards of Narsil. [He picks up the broken hilt of the sword.] The blade that cut the Ring from Sauron's hand. [He runs a finger along the edge of the blade, expecting it to be dull, and cuts himself] Ah! It's still sharp… but no more than a broken heirloom.
Just because Narsil was shattered does not mean it's benign. In a way, it's like Gandalf, a seemingly harmless old man with a walking stick. Or maybe like Aragorn, a nobody ranger living in the wilderness. Their appearances may be broken, but their power is still intact.