One of the heaviest misconceptions we grow up with and one that becomes a deep well of frustration in adulthood, is the idea that 'in the end, Good defeats Evil'. As you age and learn the inner workings of the world, you notice the impossibility of that statement. Evil is far more resourceful, for it is not limited by moral codes or 'red lines'. To Evil, everything is permissible; it holds nothing sacred and knows no conscience.
Good, however, is defined by the lines it cannot cross. There are deeds that cannot be committed without sacrificing the very qualities that make Good 'good'. Once those lines are blurred, little remains to differentiate the two. Thus, the arsenal of Evil is inherently richer.
'In the end, Good does not defeat Evil'. Yet, this does not mean Evil stands victorious. In the end, it is Evil that defeats Evil. This is a lesson I am learning through Professor's writings: it was foolish to think the Fellowship (and all that was good in Middle Earth) could have defeated Sauron through strength alone. As we saw, it wasn't Frodo or Sam who destroyed the Ring; it was the greed and malice the Ring breathed into its 'slaves' that brought its own demise. But this was only possible because of the very goodness of many. The mercy shown by Bilbo and Frodo toward Gollum stayed the hand of fate just long enough for Evil to trip over its own feet. Had Good acted 'resourcefully' and killed Gollum when they had the chance, they would have removed the very instrument of Evil’s self-destruction. This does not mean we wait idly; the Fellowship did everything 'humanly' (hah) possible to reach the Cracks of Doom, but it was the inherent rot within Evil that finally finished the task.
It is terribly painful to admit that, in this world, Good is not as 'powerful' as Evil in the way we typically measure strength. A significant part of me shall never accept this and will continue to fight against it with every fiber of my being. It seems a cruel joke that Good must win by the self-destruction of its enemy, while Evil wins by design. But if the only way to gain that 'power' is to become as ruthless as the Shadow, then the price is too high. I will continue to rage against this imbalance, even as I try to hold onto the mercy that infuriatingly is our only real hope.
