Having served as a British Army officer in the trenches of World War I, Tolkien understood firsthand the horrors of modern warfare. The One Ring has rightly been interpreted as a metaphor for power; after all, Tolkien himself called it the “Ring of Power.” These words help explain why Tolkien viewed the atomic bomb with such horror. None of this is to say the Ring of Power is an allegory for nuclear weapons. Perhaps, then, the greatest virtue is not seeking out people who can wield great power wisely, but in possessing the humility to recognize that some power should never be wielded at all.