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03-30-2010, 05:03 AM | #1 | |
Alive without breath
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: On A Cold Wind To Valhalla
Posts: 5,912
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Sauron's lack of Death...
A thought struck me last night while reading a bit of The Shadow of the Past. This is one of my favourite lines in Tolkien, but I think it says something about the whole drive of the narrative...
Quote:
It seems an odd thing, doesn't it? They spend all this time and effort to destroy the ring, they go through war and hardship and in the end, no death blow is dealt to the enemy. Now, this probably has a lot to do with the fact that Sauron probably can't 'die', being a Miar. However, I still think it is an interesting point. So often in an adventure of this kind (evil tyrant seeks to destroy / take over world), the antagonist is killed by the hero. This is another way in which The Lord of the Rings differs itself from many others. I can't help referencing The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe wherein the White Witch is ultimately killed by Aslan. Or His Dark Materials where god is killed or Harry Potter where Voldemort meets that same fate. Sorry if that's a spoiler for some of you. But Sauron lives. Diminished, defeated; a lonely spirit wandering useless. But still 'alive' in some sense. There seems to be a very personal angle to killing in the book, I've noticed. Those who the main characters kill are done so in close proximity. Gandalf's main point to Frodo is that he has not 'seen' Gollum. And when Frodo does, he has much more pity for him and spares his life. Whenever there is death in the story, they at least see the victim, it seems. No one sees Sauron. He is an invisible presence. Perhaps beyond pity, perhaps beyond reason. But still, he does not die. Is there something about seeing, or meeting someone that Tolkien hold important in these instances? Sauron can only be judged on the actions his servants take, because he is not there any more. His servants die. He does not. Discuss...
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