The Lord of the Rings books and movies feature many fascinating species. From Hobbits to Dwarves, Elves to Wizards, all of these fantastical species intrigue fans. One particularly interesting creature, though,is an Ent. The Ents are first introduced when Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) literally run into one as they're escaping into Fangorn forest, running from the orcs and Uruk-hai. Treebeard is the name of this Ent, and he agrees to call the other Ents in the forest to a meeting.
In the Lord of the Rings books, they end up agreeing to fight Saruman at this meeting whereas in the movies, Treebeard calls the other Ents after seeing what Saruman has done to the trees around Isengard. This only happens because of Pippin's suggestion that Treebeard bring him and Merry to Isengard, as that's the last place Saruman will look for them. In both versions of the story, the Ents play a key role in defeating Saruman, and therefore in winning the War of the Ring. However, what is their importance outside of that, though? Why do they inspire viewers so much?
To understand the answers to these questions, it's important to know the history of the Ents and what their function is in the story as a whole. The Ents are very old creatures in Middle Earth. They were created because Yavanna, one of the Ainur and Valar, heard about the creation of dwarves and feared they would cut all the trees in Middle Earth down. In order to protect the trees, Ents were created. The early history of the Ents after their creation is a bit of a mystery. They appeared in tales near the end of the First Age. At one point, all of Eriador was a huge forest, and the Ents protected it. Fangorn forest was only the Eastern part of it. Eventually, though, these forests were destroyed, at some point in the Second Age. There were also ent-wives, but they moved away from the Ents as they enjoyed planting and controlling things.
Of course, the area where the ent-wives moved was destroyed by Sauron. Unfortunately, the Ents don't know what happened to the ent-wives, if they survived or not. The Ents believe, however, that one day they will see the ent-wives again, when they have lost everything else. When Merry and Pippin tell Treebeard about the Shire, he says that the ent-wives might have liked that land, and asks Merry and Pippin to look out for them. By the time Merry and Pippin meet Treebeard and the rest of the Ents, their numbers have decreased a lot. According to Treebeard, since there are no Ent-wives left, there are no Entings, or young Ents. And without the Ent-wives, it seems difficult to imagine that there will be any Entings any time soon. When Merry and Pippin convince the Ents to go to war against Saruman (Sir Christopher Lee), they head to Isengard. They flood the place and trap Saruman with his servant Grima Wormtongue (Brad Dourif) in the tower of Orthanc. Treebeard guards them but isn't able to continue to do so forever, as Saruman can be rather persuasive and Treebeard doesn't like the idea of imprisoning any living thing.
The Ents also defeat some orcs that were heading towards Rohan. After the War of the Ring is over, Treebeard and the rest of the Ents are gifted land by the new King, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen). He promises the Ents that they can now thrive as they once did and restart their search for the Ent-wives. Treebeard, however, believes that the forests will come back but the Ents will not. He doesn't give up on finding the ent-wives entirely, though, asking Merry and Pippin to tell him if they see any ent-wives near the Shire. Many Ents move their trees to the land given to them by Aragorn, Nan Curunír, and it becomes known as the Watchwood and the Treegarth of Orthanc. The Ents are mostly known, especially in the Lord of the Rings movies, for playing a critical role in defeating Saruman. Saruman, as fans will know, works with Sauron and is therefore on the side of evil. Since the Ents play a role in defeating him, that would put the Ents on the side of good. Their initial purpose is a good one too, they are made to protect the forests of Middle Earth.
However, the Ents have a purpose beyond defeating Saruman and protecting the forests. There is a reason these characters resonate so much and inspire fans so deeply. The Ents are on the side of good, so fans love to root for them. But the Ents are not just characters, not just a fantasy species, they are also symbols of nature. Their defeat of Saruman is nature winning against industrialization. Of course, industrialization itself isn't always entirely a bad thing. It's all about balance. To destroy and not care about nature as Saruman in Lord of the Rings did is wrong, of course. And that is what the Ents show. The Ents inspire viewers to respect and take care of nature.
Since if they don't, they'll be like Saruman. And what Lord of the Rings fan would want that? Saruman is on the side of evil, after all. So fans would much rather stick with the good side, and in this case, that's the side of the Ents. Of course, not every Lord of the Rings fan will agree with this assessment of the Ents. Some might not see them and their defeat of Saruman as too symbolic, or be that inspired by it. That's fine, everyone's different. Yet the Ents are definitely intriguing characters, who play a key role in the War of the Ring. Without them, things would have been worse for the Fellowship and all on the side of good. They also seem to be somewhat symbolic and representative of a great respect for nature.