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05-30-2004, 06:16 PM | #1 |
Spirit of a Warrior
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The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth
http://www.kingdomwarrior.o-f.com/Th...Beorhtnoth.doc
I was just re-reading this today and was reading the Battle of Maldon. If you have read Maldon, The Last Survior's Speech, The Wanderer, or Beowulf, please comment on the style, the prose, etc of this work. What connection do you see in the code of ethics that the Norse lived by? Was it Heroic Code or was it more the Chivalric Code? When did that change take place? Which code was seen in the Sil; in LotR? Or was there a mixture in which the race decided the code?
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06-06-2004, 07:17 AM | #2 | |||||
Spectre of Decay
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This has the look to me of a set essay rather than a subject for discussion, but this work of Tolkien's deserves more than any other to be discussed with reference to Anglo-Saxon heroic verse in general, and the Maldon fragment in particular. Perhaps my response will prompt those with more knowledge of the subject to contribute their opinions.
The Battle of Maldon, to which The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth is a sequel, is a late flowering of the English alliterative epic style, in which the battle of August 991 is described from the formation of the English troops to a point just before their final destruction. Most space is given to the speeches of various East-Saxon combatants, housecarles of Beorhtnoth who elect to fight on to the last man rather than retreat; but an important passage that occurs at lines 85-90, shows Beorhtnoth agreeing to a cunning request from the Vikings that they be allowed to cross a vital bridge, which they could only have taken with great difficulty. Beorhtnoth accedes to this request "for his ofermod" (for his excessive pride), and according to Tolkien crosses the line that divides heroism and chivalry. In so doing he condemns those whom he commands to death, and his people to Viking depredations. It is probably wise to point out at this stage that the word 'chivalry' is not one that the Anglo-Saxons would have recognised. It is a medieval French word that derives from chevalier: a knight or horseman. Tolkien's definition is between the behaviour that one might encounter in the Morte D'Arthur, in which fights to the death are treated as sporting contests, and simple heroism, which causes a man to go to extreme lengths in the pursuance of a particular goal. Beorhtnoth has a duty to his people and to his king to defend them from the invading army, but his insistence on seeing the contest as essentially a sporting one (prompted, no doubt, by excessive self-confidence) causes him to fail in his duty. Heroism, as evinced in his refusal to hand over treasure to the Vikings without a fight, overreaches itself and defeats its own object. By contrast, Beorhtnoth's household, by refusing to abandon their leader and retreat, are shown in much the same light as Tennyson's Light Brigade: men condemned by another's incompetence to die, and yet prepared to do their duty nonetheless. The speech of the old retainer, Beorhtwald, is regarded by many, Tolkien included, as the finest extant expression of the Northern heroic spirit: Quote:
A similar lesson is taught by The Wanderer. At lines 66-73, the poet lays down his criteria for a good warrior: Quote:
Beowulf teaches much the same lesson. Throughout the poem, we see various acts from the eponymous hero that may be considered chivalrous: he insists upon fighting Grendel with his bare hands; he travels to meet Grendel's mother in her own home, even though it is deep underwater; and as an aging king he travels to face a dragon alone, leaving his loyal retainers behind. On the first two occasions, what Beowulf stakes is simply his own life, so despite being contrary to Hygelac's advice to him on departure, they redound to his credit; but as we see from the conclusion of the epic, when he fights the dragon he stakes the wellbeing of his entire kingdom. Beowulf's funeral pyre is that of his people's fortunes, and again the echo can be heard of the cry of 'ofermod' when Wiglaf says: "Oft sceall eorl monig anes willan wreaec adreogan" ("Often by one man's will many must woe endure"), lending force to Hrothgar's exhortation at lines 1758-68, which advises Beowulf to shun pride in favour of eternal rewards. The clear implication is that a leader has more to consider than his own honour. He has a responsibility to those under his command neither to waste their lives nor his needlessly. Beowulf and Beorhtnoth both leave their people without defence against hostile foes, but each is culpable in different ways. Beorhtnoth sacrifices the lives of those most loyal to him for the sake of pride, whereas for the same reason, Beowulf sacrifices the security of his country. In refusing to allow his retainers to aid him, Beowulf denies them the opportunity to discharge their own responsibilities; and eventually the dragon is killed only because his orders are not universally obeyed. In both cases, acts of bravery are carried too far; in both cases this is disastrous. We can see the same form of contrast throughout Tolkien's writings, but I will confine myself here to two examples: Húrin and Huor's rearguard action at the Nirnaeth Arnoediad and Eärnur of Gondor's acceptance of single combat with the Witch-king. In the former case, the men of Dor-lómin, led by Húrin and Huor, fight a doomed action to cover Turgon's withdrawal. This is a necessity if any Elven host is to leave the field intact, and the men of Dor-lómin, by their sacrifice, allow a small hope to be retrieved from the crushing defeat. Quote:
By contrast, when King Eärnur accepts a challenge from the Witch-king of Angmar to single combat, his action is entirely unnecessary. When the first challenge arrives on his accession to the throne, he is dissuaded from accepting by the counsel of the steward Mardil, whom Tolkien describes as 'the good Steward'. Mardil quite rightly sees the Morgul Lord as one not to be trusted, and the proposed duel as a trap, but we have already been told that Eärnur's courage outstrips his wisdom. When the Witch-king repeats his challenge, adding fresh insults, the king can be restrained no longer and rides out to face his treacherous enemy, exactly as Beorhtnoth allows his enemies the advantage for the sake of his own honour. His inevitable disappearance raises the spectre of the Kin-Strife and places his country, to which his first loyalty ought to be given, in a state of uncertainty. The incident, from the description of Eärnur's character until his disappearance from the narrative makes it plain that his is a selfish and foolish decision; and if Tolkien wrote an account of the last stand against the treacherous enemy, I have no doubt that it would have borne a striking resemblance to the Maldon fragment. One should never, says Tolkien, allow the desire for honour to stand in the way of one's responsibilities and obligations; and in this he echoes the exhortations to wisdom that the ancient poets directed at their warlike and aristocratic audiences. It is no coincidence that Tolkien and the authors of the other works I have mentioned above shared a common religious belief in the sinfulness of pride. Morgoth, Sauron and the Witch-king are all excessively proud characters, and in each of them this leads them from wisdom into evil and eventual destruction. In giving himself up to the sins of the Enemy, Eärnur literally places himself at their mercy, as the Maldon poet might have said, for his ofermod. By contrast, in sacrificing themselves in the furtherance of a noble cause, Huor and Húrin become deservedly heroic figures in the legends of the Elder Days. Although pride undoubtedly plays a part in the latter action, it is sufficiently restrained to stop at heroic self-sacrifice without bringing this about needlessly. The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth differs markedly from both its Anglo-Saxon forbears and from Tolkien's other writings in that it does not stop at criticising the folly of chivalrous pride in a leader. It goes on to question war itself and therefore the whole basis of the very epic poetry that inspired it. It is no coincidence that the poetry in the piece is spoken by the callow Torhthelm, whose grandiose verses are deflated by the old soldier Tídwald. When Tídwald does use the rhetoric of epic poetry, it is with satirical intent: Quote:
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07-23-2004, 07:53 PM | #3 | |||
Cryptic Aura
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oft sceall eorl monig anes willan wræc adreogan
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A set essay indeed, Squatter and one I have long and several times perused it in contemplation of how best to extend the discussion. You have with eloquence compiled several facets of Tolkien's thought on Maldon and on heroic narrative. To my mind, you provide an admirable explication of Tolkien's argument in the third section, "Overmod" to The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, where Tolkien contrasts the selfishness of chivalric sport with true heroism. As an addendum to your evidences from other works I would add a passage from LotR, Faramir's words to Frodo in "The Two Towers" chapter 'The Window on the West' which I think bear quoting here at length. Particularly Faramir?s words answer Joy's question about whether the races were differentiated by the kind and type of heroism each upheld. Quote:
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07-25-2004, 02:18 AM | #4 |
Illustrious Ulair
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Kuruhuhuaran I wouldn’t disagree with any of those points regarding Turin’s pride. But Tolkien seems slightly ambivalent as regards ofermod. Clearly, his (concious?/official?) position, is condemnatory, but some of his greatest heroes clearly display ofermod. Feanor,greatest of the Noldor is a prime example of this overweening pride - & would he have achieved as much as he did were he not so supremely self assured?
Turin does bring disaster on others, no doubt, but he is remembered, held up as a hero & elf friend by those in later ages, & he, not one of those ‘others’, will be the one who faces down & defeats Morgoth in the Great Wrack. Turin is, for all his faults, a great hero. He is a tragic hero, not a villain. Much the same could be said of Feanor - for all the disaster he initiates, he is never seen simply as a ‘bad guy’. He is usually referred to as the greatest of the Noldor, Morgoth’s first & most implacable foe. My point is that Tolkien doesn’t see ofermod as simply a trait of villains - though we do find it in villains - Saruman a prime example. It is also a flaw in some of his greatest heroes, & in their cases it is a tragic flaw, but it is essential to their greatness - they would not be great without it - or not as great. In the essay on Maldon Tolkien never goes so far as to present Beortnoth as a ‘villain’. Beortnoth is a flawed hero, as is Turin, Feanor & Boromir. In other words, this particular form of pride is not the prerogative of villains. It is not, either, a fluke, a one off event. Turin is the hero he is because of the ofermod which is so much a part of his character. He ‘suffers’ from it from childhood - he is born Lord of Dor Lomin, & all through his childhood he is made aware of this, particularly by his mother. He kills Brodda as much because Brodda is a usurper as because of the offences he has committed against Turin’s family & people. Without his ofermod he would have probably become a slave himself. Whatever Turin achieves in life - & it wasn’t all bad - he brought periods of peace as a result of his actions - was a direct result of his pride & refusal to submit. So, I submit (your honour ) that Tolkien wasn’t as unambiguous in his condemnation of ofermod as he’d like us to think. It is in the nature of the hero to suffer from this ‘fault’ - especially in the ‘heroic age’ of the Elder Days. It obviously has less place in the Third Age, when lessons have been learned, & wisdom gained. Yet, heroes are heroes, & they are necessary sometimes - for all their faults. Turin is presented as ‘mistaken’, or overconfident, cocky, as much or more so than he is presented as foolish or callous. |
07-25-2004, 03:17 PM | #5 | ||||
Regal Dwarven Shade
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I remain unconvinced. I don’t believe that a trait has to be found exclusively in villains in order for it to be condemned. If it is considered a flaw then it has merited some degree of condemnation.
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Perhaps ambiguity in this issue from Tolkien is a reflection of his understanding of the mentality of the society. They placed a certain value on the creation of a good tale through your life that had value beyond practical results.
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07-24-2004, 01:41 PM | #6 | ||
Illustrious Ulair
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Feeling uncertain about adding anything after Squatter's masterful analysis, I shall still dive in (another example of ofermod?)
There is an interesting essay in the collection 'Tolkien's Legendarium': Turin's ofermod by Richard C West. West analyses Tolkien's understanding of ofermod, as set out in the Homecoming, in relation to the Turin saga. He points out first of all, though, that Tolkien's interpretation is not universally accepted: Quote:
The essay focusses on Tolkien's exploration of ofermod in the Turin saga. To what extent can Turin's suffering be put down to Morgoth's curse, & how much does Turin bring it on himself? 'Can Morgoth's baleful influence penetrate even the Girdle of Melian?' West asks. 'The story of Turin is replete with this musing of Tolkien on the pros & cons of the heroic ethos. A hero's valiant deeds are never without cost even when they also benefit people, & they may not even do that if undertaken rashly & without serious thought' 'The same sort of overmastering pride that Tolkien discerned in Beortnoth consistently overmasters Turin'. 'Turin's story is tolkien's speculation on the limits of heroism, & how the mightiest hero, who achieves feats at which everyone marvels, nevertheless needs humane values.' The difference between father & son is clearly set out by Squatter's description of Hurin's self sacrifycing stand with his brother. We could also compare Turin's building of the bridge over the Narog, enabling the Elves more easily to make war on Morgoth's forces, with his cousin's construction of an escape tunnel from Gondolin - descretion clearly being, in Tolkien's view, the better part of valour. Who knows, though, how the son would have turned out if not deprived of the father? But, was Turin's pride entirely a bad thing? Would he have gone to face Glaurung if not driven by his ofermod? How many were spared by his reckless heroics? Which brings us to the question - was there some part of Tolkien which admired ofermod? Was he perhaps 'protesting too much? Turin comes to a bad end, yes, but he comes there heroically. Even at the last, he will not crawl. The WW1 veteran cannot glory in warfare, because he knows the human cost, yet he never entirely cast aside the original ending of Turambar: Quote:
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07-24-2004, 06:16 PM | #7 | |
Regal Dwarven Shade
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This is a mere technical point to interrupt the flow of this excellent analysis, but Morgoth’s curse is driving me to make it anyway.
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Even though his excessively heroic actions spared the Haladin (mostly) Turin’s interactions with Glaurung greatly abetted the dragon’s career. Turin’s pride caused him to convince the king that the Narog should be bridged, which allowed Glaurung to lead an army and destroy Nargothrond. During the sack of the kingdom, Turin’s pride allowed Glaurung to taunt Turin into doing something that can only be called stupid, which also cost many lives. Many more were lost because of Turin’s reckless heroics than were ultimately spared. If not for Turin, Nargothrond would not have fallen (at least in the way it did) and Brethil would not have been attacked by the dragon (or at least not a dragon in search of Turin). Even though it did accomplish something useful in the end, I believe that Turin’s heroics were essentially undesirable. Whether or not Tolkien retained any admiration for ofermod I don’t think can be justly determined from the tale of Turin. The problems contained in the tale are too tightly woven together. Boromir may be a slightly different case. Unlike Turin who (indirectly and over a long period of time) drew Glaurung to him, Boromir died doing something that needed to be done in a situation that was not entirely of his own making. True, he tried to take the Ring from Frodo and his return was what caused the Fellowship to scatter to the four winds. However, the Fellowship might have broken up to look for Frodo. In such a circumstance, Boromir might have died defending Merry and Pippin anyway. I think that Boromir’s death was (to a degree) more noble than Turin’s because Boromir died in a situation that was less of his own making.
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07-26-2004, 03:02 AM | #8 | |
Illustrious Ulair
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Lets take a look at Aragorn's 'ofermod' before the Black Gate, when he has just been given 'evidence' of Frodo's capture, the failure of the Quest. Defeat is inevitable, but he has been offered terms of surrender, & life & safety for his people. Does he take it, & 'live to fight another day'? No, he decides he will make a last stand against an overwhelming force, which, after it has destroyed his & his army, will go on & wipe out or enslave the rest of the West. Ok, that's not as extreme as Turin's actions, but its bordering on them - a 'glorious' defeat, going down fighting, rather than thinking of 'saving' his people he does what Beortnoth does & decides 'better death than dishonour'. And we know that Sauron wouldn't have simply slaughtered all & sundry, because he wanted slaves, not corpses. These kind of 'rash' actions run right through the Legendarium. Ofermod is a 'bad' thing in Tolkien's mind, dangerous, callous, & he'd prefer a 'civilised', 'Christian' world of universal love & peace, but, by the gods, ofermod can be glorious, it can also inspire succeding generations - who inspires you most, who did most damage to Morgoth, who 'lives on' - Turin's, Feanor's, or 'that elf guy, the tall one with the blue tunic, in Nargothrond' (can't remember his name, or exactly what he did, etc, etc.)? Turin inspires, so does Feanor. And the reason they inspire is due in large part (& whether Tolkien likes it or not) because of their ofermod. |
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07-26-2004, 07:31 PM | #9 | |||||
Regal Dwarven Shade
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Theoden fought because he had to. He made every effort to salvage as much as he could out of the wreck. This stands in stark contrast to the actions of Feanor and Turin who led their people (or in Turin’s case, several peoples) down the road to ruin. Quote:
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And Sauron would have killed every member of the army. There were plenty of slaves in the Western lands to take and he’d want to set an example. Quote:
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07-27-2004, 12:47 AM | #10 | ||||
Illustrious Ulair
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Ok. Take Eomer's reaction at finding Theoden & Eowyn on the field - Death, Death, Death, Death take us all. And all the Riders take up the cry. Rohan's is a 'death &/or glory' culture, very like that if the dwarves. Their concern is less with living a happy, peaceful life, as going down doing something heroic & having a song written about it. Quote:
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Tolkien quotes Chesterton in the Fairy Stories esssay - something along the lines of Children like fairy stories where the villain is put to death, or suffers some horrible fate, whereas we adults feel uncomfortable with those outcomes. Chesterton says its because Children are innocent & prefer justice, while we adults are wicked & therefore prefer mercy. Turin & Feanor simply never give in, & if they have a choice of losing the battle but winning the moral victory or winning the battle 'sensibly' but losing the moral victory, they'll choose the former, because its not just about who's standing at the end of the fight. Its about never crawling, never begging, never giving your enemie a moment's peace, & never letting him forget you - you're the thorn in his side. You're going to stand & fight honourably, so that in the end if you do win, you can say I won by right, not by cunning, or because I had the advantage of the higher ground. You thereby deprive your enemy of any excuse. He, & everyone else, will know you won because you were a true warrior, & the best one on the day. |
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07-27-2004, 01:50 PM | #11 | |
Shade of Carn Dûm
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Several of you have mentioned Feanor, and his own pride and burning desire to never surrender, even in the face of certain death.
But what about his half-brother? Fingolfin, becoming so fed-up (for lack of a better term) with evil, and having lost most of his people in the Battle of Sudden Flame, an act that was unexpected and the opposite of chivalrous, decided to march (alone, mind you) straight to Angband to do single combat with Morgoth. Fingolfin no doubt knew the odds that were stacked against him. He must have known that the Valar had all, at one point or another, fought Morgoth, and only just managed to hold him captive. Any way you look at this, it is a suicidal mission. A single elf going against the most powerful creature in Arda. And yet he went. I don't think this is chivalry. I don't think this follows what some of you have said about the quest for glory, even though by that act Fingolfin won about as much honor as could be won. This was heroism, but it was also a sense of protection. Fingolfin went, knowing he would most likely not come back alive. He went in the hope that somehow, he would save his people, who had already done so much for him by following him out of Valinor and into an uncertain fate. I think the tale of Fingolfin is much better told in poetic for, as in The Lays of Beleriand than in the paragraph form of the Sil. This could be something right out of Beowulf: Quote:
When Morgoth's foot came crashing down, Fingolfin knew he was going to die. But in a last attempt, he took up his sword and gave his foe a limp for the rest of his life on Middle-Earth. It was this, and the seven scars that the elven-king left as well, that Morgoth would remember. Fingolfin had died, but there were more out there with the same courage, and Morgoth would remember that. In conclusion, Fingolfin was full of ofermod, and his actions had good effects, and did not harm anyone else but him.
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07-27-2004, 10:13 PM | #12 | |||||
Regal Dwarven Shade
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Eowyn (Eomer) and Fingolfin I’m going to deal with both of these at once because they are rather similar in my mind (sort of). Eomer reacted in a passion during a period of intense stress. Such things are a natural part of combat. This in no way indicates that Rohan had a cultural policy of foolhardy battle-mania wildly driven on by unchecked pride. As I noted above, Theoden (who died in a way befitting a hero of that mode) never displayed that type of behavior. If he had he would have bravely charged the army guarding the road rather than chicken-heartedly going through Druadan Forest Quote:
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While this is probably not the place to discuss this at length, but just to provide a few instances: King Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Stamford Bridge caught King Harald Hardrada with his pants down (or more accurately, with his chain mail off) and Harold singularly failed to do the honorable thing and allow the Norse to retire to the other side of the bridge, bring up reinforcements, and get their armor on before he pounced upon them. King Alfred at the Battle of Edington not only sensibly snuck up on the enemy at dawn, but he seized the high ground and attacked the Vikings by charging down the hill to give his men the best advantage. That doesn’t sound terribly sporting to me. Quote:
Aragorn and Company Quote:
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