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01-27-2007, 02:20 PM | #1 | |||||||
A Voice That Gainsayeth
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: In that far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 7,431
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Sauron the Unnamed... really?
There is one thing I noticed when reading first chapter of the Two Towers. I haven't found any topics devoted to this on the Downs, which surprised me, because I consider it rather important, and I think someone (maybe ninja91 in some Mouth of Sauron thread, if I recall correctly) mentioned it, but just by-the-way.
Just to refresh it, this is the moment when Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli search through the dead bodies of the Orcs slain by Boromir and find four Uruk-hai from Isengard among them: Quote:
Let's stop at Legolas' point at first. The first thing, which popped up in my mind, was that we all know Sauron actually does use Elf-runes. Where? On the Ring, of course. But, humm, don't be hasty. In the Appendices, Tolkien says: Quote:
1) I always thought that Sauron's not using Elvish runes was supposed to convey a meaning that Sauron does not use the "pure" things, like that he does not use white. But what is a difference between using runes and letters? He does not use runes, but uses letters on the Ring? Seems to degrade the whole point to me. Like if you say you don't eat meat and eat just fish (as many "vegetarians" do - excuse me, please, if anyone of you is the case ). 2) According to the Appendices, both the (elvish) letters and the runes were used in M-E by almost every nation in Third Age: tengwar commonly used by all the Westron-users (no problem, Sauron wouldn't have to use them) and cirth "became known to many peoples, to Men and Dwarves, and even to Orcs, all of whom altered them to suit their purposes and according to their skill or lack of it". "The scripts and letters used in the Third Age were all ultimately of Eldarin origin," it is also said - so I cannot imagine orc runes (or special for-Black Speech-developed runes) being that different from original. The "altering" I imagine as adding one line here, one line there, swiching I for O, because it is more common in this or that language, and in Orcish adding a separate sybmol for "sh". But how could you know that what are you looking at are elvish, and not orc runes? If the rune for "S" was the same in all the versions (elvish, dwarven, orcish...), how could Aragorn have known that this is elvish and not orcish rune? And if elvish and orcish the runes' meanings were different, how could then he be sure that it is elvish S for Sauron and not, let's say, orcish B for Boss? To the second thing. Aragorn says that 'Neither does he use his right name, nor permit it to be spelt or spoken'. The very same Aragorn hears on his own ears: Quote:
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Okay, I know it is possible that Mouth of Sauron was actually of such a high rank, that he was even allowed by the Great Lord Sauron to use His Great Name. But I actually ever thought that Sauron didn't use this name because of it was actually disgraceful: Sauron means "Abhorred" or "Abomination", this would be the same as calling your lord "the Enemy" (or even worse). Now this seems pretty daring from the Mouth to call his (from what we know, obviously beloved) master "Abominable". Or perhaps he was just showing off before the Captains of the West? (not mentioning that I'd expect him to burst in anger and shout "Shut up!" when Gandalf or someone else uses the name of Sauron) And one last thing, it is said that MoS: Quote:
So, what do you think of it? Is there a logical explanation for these problems? And how comes that both these things are stated right after one another, in a scene which obviously, apart from informing us that Saruman is here, conveys a message that Sauron does not use certain things? Did Tolkien just scribble this scene late at night with half-sleeping mind, then fell to bed and never revised it? What is your opinion?
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"Should the story say 'he ate bread,' the dramatic producer can only show 'a piece of bread' according to his taste or fancy, but the hearer of the story will think of bread in general and picture it in some form of his own." -On Fairy-Stories |
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