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The Writings of J.R.R. Tolkien
The Lord of the Rings
The Mythological Expression of Evil
Fascinating products of the imagination play an important role in Tolkien's mythological expression or creation of evil.
Thus the flowers of Morgul Vale are poison. Morgul Vale was the valley of the tower of Minas Morgul, the gates of which the Black Riders initially issued from . At the Council of Elrond, Aragorn whined of the dangers one will have should one, as he himself had done, walk "the deadly flowers of Morgul Vale" (Fellowship, 266).
When the Company was attacked in Moria, Frodo stabbed the foot of the great cave-troll with his small sword Sting. Trolls have black blood, and either their blood is hot or it reacts like an acid when it comes in contact with other surfaces. "Black drops dripped from the blade and smoked on the floor" (Fellowship, 339).
It is part of the mythological expression of evil, and fascinating product of the imagination at the same time, that evil fears evil.
When the Balrog entered the Chamber of Records, "the orcs themselves were afraid and fell silent" (Fellowship, 341).
As the pursuit got under way and the Balrog came up, the Orcs moved away, "as if they themselves were afraid" (Fellowship, 344).
It was a common technique of Tolkien's, rather than say that something was, to say that something was like something, rather than to say that something was something, when it was in fact the case. Tolkien was not the best of writers. So it is here. The Orcs behave the way they do because they are afraid of the Balrog, not as if they are afraid.
As the pursuit got under way and the Balrog came up, the Orcs moved away, "as if they themselves were afraid" (Fellowship, 344).
And here many people will agree, and many people will disagree. Tolkien was not the best writer in the world.
Tolkien built his mythological expression of evil in other ways. A cat's ability to see in the dark may not be in and of itself a fascinating product of imagination. But combine this ability with a goblin-like creature, and it starts to become fascinating.
Orcs can see in the dark, and they have a keenly developed sense of smell, much like a blood-hound's. Paddling down the Great River, the Company strayed too close to the eastern side when they were fired upon by Orcs. The Company was in peril because of "the night-eyes of Orcs" (Fellowship, 402).
When the Company spent their first night on the outskirts of Lorien in the tree-tops, a company of orcs passed them by underneath. Frodo felt little comfort in the safety offered by the trees. "Orcs were as keen as hounds on a scent" (Fellowship, 359).
The blades of the Orcs were often tipped with poison. Sam killed his first orc in Moria. He also received his first Orc-wound. When later in the day Sam began to flag, Aragorn feared that the cut was poisoned, "as the wounds of orc-blades too often are" (Fellowship, 350).
Similarly evil frequently just smells bad. Aragorn once captured Gollum and reported that "he stank" (Fellowship, 267).
So, too, the Watcher in the water of the pool outside Moria stank. When it attacked, it emitted "a hideous stench" (Fellowship, 322).
When Gollum was rescued by the Orcs, it was done on a night of utter darkness so as to avoid detection. After all it is easier to escape in the dark than in the light if you can see well in the dark and others cannot. Nevertheless there is something fascinating about the image, aside from logical reasons as to why. Orcs descended on the Elves on a night that was "moonless and starless" (Fellowship, 269).
Evil lies.
The free peoples of the West do not even tell white lies. Not even Boromir after he tried to take the Ring, lied. He just did not tell all, and the others knew that something had happened.
Evil on the other hand lies and lies wisely. Evil mixes lies with the truth so as to obfuscate matters and make the lies believable. Evil tells half-truths.
Sauron lies.
When the Eagle rescued Gandalf from Orthanc, the Eagle told him that the Riders of Rohan pay yearly tribute to Sauron in horses. When Boromir heard this at the Council of Elrond, he threw a fit and declared it to be untrue. "It is a lie that comes from the Enemy" (Fellowship, 275).
Saruman lies. He was an unreliable source of information. In his heart Gandalf knew that it was true that the Ringwraiths had arisen and were abroad: "apart from the words of Saruman which might be lies" (Fellowship, 274).
Evil tells half-lies or half-truths. There was a grain of truth to the lie that Rohan paid a tribute of horses to Mordor. Orcs would cross the Great River and steal horses. They always favored the black horses. In fact, the horses whom the Black Riders rode were probably from Rohan.
While the message that Saruman forwarded to Gandalf was for the sole intent and purpose of bringing Gandalf to him, Saruman nevertheless used a true lie: the Ringwraiths had arisen and were abroad.
Evil tells half-lies. At the Council, Glorfindel argued that they should throw the Ring into the Sea where it would be lost forever. He said this because this is what Saruman had once told them: that the Ring had fallen into the River and rolled out to the Sea where it was safe. Glorfindel thinks that this might work, for "oft in lies truth is hidden" (Fellowship, 280).
It is part of the mythological expression of evil that the Free Peoples of the West are themselves divided. Sauron has effectively divided his foes and intends to finish them off one by one. If the various races could unite, they could concentrate their power and fight a more effective war. Alas this was not to be. In particular, there has been bad blood between the Elves and the Dwarves going back thousands and thousands of years. When the Company enters Lothlorien they are halted at the border by guards. The next day Gimli is made to put on a blindfold before going further, at which point bloodshed almost erupts. Haldir observed: "Indeed in nothing is the power of the Dark Lord more clearly shown than in the estrangement that divides all those who still oppose him" (Fellowship, 362).
It is part of the mxe that evil does not understand good, whereas good understands evil perfectly. This is odd, because in the imagination of this story, nothing is evil to begin with and therefore everything evil was once not evil and therefore should be able, you would think, to understand what is not evil. While good has never had the opportunity to become evil, so how could it understand evil? But so it is.
This is why Elrond decided to try and destroy the Ring: because it was a move that the Enemy would not suspect. Sauron feared one of the leaders of the West--Gandalf, maybe, or Elrond, or Galadriel--to come forth wearing the Ring. It never entered his mind that they would try to destroy the Ring and not want to rule Middle-earth as he himself desired.
Haldir took Frodo to the top of a tree on Cerin Amroth. From there Frodo could see, on the one hand, Caras Galadhon, the city of Lorien, and a power emanated from it. On the other hand, Frodo could also see in the distance Dol Guldur, former stronghold of Sauron where he still kept a presence, and a darkness surrounded it. The two powers held one another at bay. Haldir: "In this high place you may see the two powers that are opposed one to another ... but whereas the light perceives the very heart of the darkness, its own secret has not been discovered" (Fellowship, 366).
At the Mirror, Galadriel tells Frodo: "even as I speak to you, I perceive the Dark Lord and know his mind ... And he gropes ever to see me and my thought. But still the door is closed!" (Fellowship, 380).
That secret is that Galadriel wields one of the three elven Rings of Power. He suspects but he does not know. How dense. However, if Sauron conquers, he will find out.
There is a mythological structure to much of Tolkien's creation of evil.
Sauron is a fallen Power of Middle-earth. Powers in Middle-earth, however, are able to assume bodily form. So it is here. It was Gandalf who discovered Sauron's identity. that it was none other than their old enemy Sauron "at length taking shape ... again" (Fellowship, 263).
Sauron is so far gone that he is no longer able to assume a fair appearance. This was not always so. Elrond is old enough to remember a time in the Second Age when Sauron was fair to look upon, and he was able to use this to help him deceive: "in that time he was not yet evil to behold (Fellowship, 255).
When a Power assumed a bodily form, however, it was permanent until the body was destroyed. The Power was then subject to hunger, fatigue, and even death.
After the fall of Numenor, Sauron was unable to assume a fair shape. The body that he assumed was also very hot, and black, as if charred and consumed by fire from within. It was so hot that Isildur was able to read the writing on the ring after it had been cut from Sauron's hand. That was how Gil-galad, the Elven-king who led the coalition against Sauron, died. He was burned to death in hand to hand combat with Sauron. Isildure wrote down: "The Ring misseth, maybe, the heat of Sauron's hand, which was black and yet burned like fire" (Fellowship, 266).
It is part of the mythological expression of evil that much of the power of Sauron resides in other things. The Ring for instance. Or the Ringwraiths. Anything with the word Ring in it. The Ringwraiths cannot be destroyed, or cannot be destroyed easily, because their existence depends in large part on Sauron's. Frodo thought that the Black Riders had all perished in the flood. Gandalf explained that Ringwraiths cannot be killed so easily: "The power of their master is in them" (Fellowship, 286).
In the case of the Ring, destroy it and you destroy Him. In the case of the wraiths, you must destroy him in order to destroy them.
It part of Tolkien's mythological expression of evil that evil was able to cause extremes of harsh weather. In the mythology, the winters seemed to grow more harsh as the power of Morgoth, the Dark Lord of that time, grew: "they said that the winters worsened in Beleriand as the power of Angband grew" (Silmarillion, 204).
So, too, in the LR Sauron is able to bring down snow out of the north to prevent the company from crossing the top of the Misty Mountains, thereby forcing them underneath where the Balrog awaits. It is part of Tolkien's mythological expression of evil, but it is also more than that. For it is also an expression of supernatural providence.
In LR as the Company of the Ring made its way south from Rivendell, snow followed. It could be seen in the mountains behind them. "'Winter deepens behind us,'" Gandalf said. "'The heights away north are whiter than they were; snow is lying far down their shoulders" (Fellowship, 300).
Aragorn noted the oddity: "it seldom falls heavily so far south" (Fellowship, 302).
This is part of Tolkien's mythological expression of evil, but is also an expression of supernatural providence. When they attempted to cross the Redhorn Gate, it snowed so heavily on them that they had to stop. When they turned back, the weather broke. They were then able to see that it had snowed on them and very little in other places.
Last revised 11/2K4