How did Gollum talk with Shelob?

[Kalimac]

One thought while re-reading "Shelob's Lair" which I'd really like to get some opinions on: Could Shelob understand language at all? The way she's described is basically as an extremely malevolent animal, and certainly she never gives any indication of understanding what Frodo and Sam are saying in the scene where they're trapped in the Spider's Pass. Essentially the only thought process she seems to be experiencing there is "Food. More food. Blood. Good. Food."

But in the long passage describing her, Tolkien refers to Gollum having "bowed and worshipped her" and promised to bring her food. And the Orcs refer to Gollum's "having some sort of understanding with Her Ladyship." So how did Gollum *communicate* with her? Hand gestures? Could she understand Westron, maybe just not speak it? For that matter, considering that she's probably only heard Black Speech from the Orcs, and some Elvish long ago, how would she understand Westron? (and certainly Gollum doesn't seem to speak anything else). It's understandable that she wouldn't have bothered to eat the fleshless Gollum, whether or not he could communicate with her, but how did he reach an understanding like that with a spider?

[Kuruharan]

That is a very good question that I had never really thought of before!

I think that Shelob was probably more than just a beast. Her mother was a spirit of power and some of that probably came down to her daughter. She likely had at least some degree of intelligence and 'reason,' maybe even a fairly high order of those qualities. Just because she was primarily interested in food does not mean that she is unintelligent. Like Sauron, who would hardly be called dumb, she focused all of her energies into eating everything in sight, like he focused all his power into dominating everything in sight. (Not to say that they were in any way equal, just a comparison.)

As for the means of communication I really have no idea. There may have been some sort of convergence between the two of them because Shelob could probably tell that Gollum was a creature of more than usual malice, who might be useful in finding more food (since he was rather "fleshless").

[lathspell]

Shelob is an offspring of Ungoliant and maybe because of this he could speak in Westron, like the spiders in Mirkwood when Bilbo tries to save the dwarves from death. Bilbo heard some hideous voices and after some time he began to understand them. Maybe the same thing happened to Gollum when he came to Her Ladyship for the first time.

Ungoliant could also certainly talk for he made a deal with Morgoth to take the Silmarils and do great harm by killing Finwe, High-King of the Noldor. After these deeds they come in Lammoth where Ungoliant speaks to Melkor:

'Not so much,' said Ungoliant. 'But thou hast a great treasure from Formenos; I will have all that. Yea, with both hands thou shalt give it.'

So after all these spiders speaking I think that Shelob could speak and understand language. The reason of Shelob's 'first-talking-than-eating'-method with Gollum I do not know. Maybe even she felt pity for the wretched creature, just as Frodo and before that Bilbo, and therefore she listened to him worshipping her and making promises of food.
Anyway I believe that Shelob could understand language as did her mother.

[Birdland]

All of the above makes sense. Just as some Ents would become more "treeish", and revert to a more vegetative state, maybe Shelob through the years had regressed to a more animal-like creature, obsessed solely with her appetites.

She could have understood any of the languages mentioned above, and just not cared to communicate in those ways anymore. Gollum's "worship" of her obviously meant nothing to her, except as another source of food.

So maybe Shelob was not only evil and malevolent, but in a sense, "insane" as well.

[Kalimac]

Hmmm...all of this makes a lot of sense, hadn't thought of it before. Ungoliant was definitely much more, how to put this, un-animal-like than Shelob - she specifically wanted jewels and fine things which Melko(r) promised to her, which implies a much more human-like mind at work than in Shelob's case: "Little she knew or cared of Rings, or towers" or anything except her appetites. But one thing I just remembered is that Tolkien mentions Shelob's descendants spreading to the fastnesses of Mirkwood, and those spiders could obviously speak some sort of language, though they don't give the impression of being any more interested than Shelob in the finer things. It's mostly food for them, too. Maybe the influence of Ungoliant was being slowly diluted when it came to things besides the basic instincts.

So the odds are that she understood language at least, given her mother and her offspring. But as for speaking it - I still get the impression that whatever power of speech she had may have gone by the point in the story that we see her, possibly on the use-it-or-lose-it principle; whom would she have spoken with, after all? And if she'd really wanted to terrify the hobbits into not resisting (especially Sam, at the end) a spoken word or two would certainly have helped.

As for Gollum; well, maybe it was a one-sided conversation? He sees her, squeals in terror, starts backing off and promising things to her, she pauses and listens in interest, he takes her not eating him as a sign that she's considering it. It's definitely a shadow of the scene where he's promising to feed Ungoliant "with both hands." Can't believe Shelob would have pity on anything, though, however wretched; it just isn't in her.

The only thing about that is, Gollum being in the state that he is, he would seem like the last person capable of producing decent food (he can't even feed himself properly). Maybe she just figured that he wasn't worth eating by himself and who knew, maybe he'd actually come through on his promise.

[Gimli Son Of Gloin]

I think Tolkien just used litterary license, That part wouldn't make sense if they couldn't communicate.

You´re right, they could talk to each other... I think

[Keeper of Dol Guldur]

I know Bilbo exaggerated a lot, but didn't the spiders of Mirkwood talk and listen, they were quite intellegent. And Shelob may not have actually ever spoken to us, but she didn't have vocal cords, so it may not have been as easy as gurgling. Plus, I think maybe since she always has time to play with her victims, she may have just watched Gollum beg and let him do it. And she definitely understood languages.