In this section of The Fellowship of the Ring, Tolkien uses paradox, grammatical parallelism, and juxtaposition as the basis for a rhetorical question. He concludes with an apothegm or proverb, based on the point he has made.

The second and third sentences of the extract parallel one another to make Gandalf's point about life and death. He begins by conceding the idea that Gollum deserves death. However, this juxtaposition of life and death shows that neither is a matter of desert, since people seldom get what they deserve.

This paradox is tersely phrased, but the question Gandalf derives from it is even more succinct: "Can you give it to them?" This is a rhetorical question, assuming the answer to be "no." The skill of the rhetoric lies partly in the fact that the question comes immediately after the assertion that some who die deserve life, since it is generally impossible to give life to the dying, though it is possible to inflict death on the living (which is what Frodo was suggesting).

Gandalf's final comment is an apothegm or proverb, which supplements the idea that one should not hasten to act or to judge. It is directly relevant to Gollum, who has yet to perform a vital role in the narrative, but is also generally applicable and a suitable concluding flourish for the wizard's wisdom.