Like mother, like daughter? Ungoliant and Shelob - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Kalimac · 03-13-2002, 12:34 AM

Just a question I had - I'm reading the "Unfinished Tales" for the first time and had a question about Ungoliant the spider as she appears in "The Theft of Melko" (her name there is Ungwe Lianti). She is described much the same way as Shelob ("she brought forth only that darkness that is a denial of all light") and the friendship between her and Melko is rather reminiscent of Gollum and Shelob, but she is also described as having a lust for gems and precious things - "but [Ungwe Lianti] was ahungered of the brightness of that hoard of jewels as soon as she saw them....and so came all the treasury of most lovely gems fairer than any others that the world has seen into the foul keeping of Wirilome."

When you read about Shelob in TTT though, it explicitly denies that she cares about anything other than food and death. "But her lust was not his lust [for the Ring]. Little she knew of or cared for towers, or rings, or anything devised by mind or hand, who desired only death for all others, mind and body, and for herself a glut of life." It seems a little strange that the one giant spider essentially lived for things "devised by mind or hand" while her daughter was hardly aware of them. And I'm not sure if there's an answer somewhere in the Silmarillion, since I haven't read it yet (planning to, though).

So why were they different? Was there a big reason I'm missing or did they just have different personalities, as giant spiders go? [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img]

[ March 13, 2002: Message edited by: Kalimac ]

03-13-2002, 12:34 AM	#1
Kalimac Candle of the Marshes Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Flyover Country Posts: 780	Like mother, like daughter? Ungoliant and Shelob Just a question I had - I'm reading the "Unfinished Tales" for the first time and had a question about Ungoliant the spider as she appears in "The Theft of Melko" (her name there is Ungwe Lianti). She is described much the same way as Shelob ("she brought forth only that darkness that is a denial of all light") and the friendship between her and Melko is rather reminiscent of Gollum and Shelob, but she is also described as having a lust for gems and precious things - "but [Ungwe Lianti] was ahungered of the brightness of that hoard of jewels as soon as she saw them....and so came all the treasury of most lovely gems fairer than any others that the world has seen into the foul keeping of Wirilome." When you read about Shelob in TTT though, it explicitly denies that she cares about anything other than food and death. "But her lust was not his lust [for the Ring]. Little she knew of or cared for towers, or rings, or anything devised by mind or hand, who desired only death for all others, mind and body, and for herself a glut of life." It seems a little strange that the one giant spider essentially lived for things "devised by mind or hand" while her daughter was hardly aware of them. And I'm not sure if there's an answer somewhere in the Silmarillion, since I haven't read it yet (planning to, though). So why were they different? Was there a big reason I'm missing or did they just have different personalities, as giant spiders go? [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img] [ March 13, 2002: Message edited by: Kalimac ] __________________ Father, dear Father, if you see fit, We'll send my love to college for one year yet Tie blue ribbons all about his head, To let the ladies know that he's married.