Thursday, October 25, 2018
Terrorism in Tolkien's Works
For some readers Tolkien's text resonate differently today after 9/11 and other terrorist occurrences in this century. But, do terrorists as we think of them today appear in Tolkien's works? What is the relationship between terrorism and Tolkien's works? Do Tolkien's works suggest anything that connects with terrorism as we know it today? Why or why not?
7 comments:
The horrifying large-scale terrorism we see today where large numbers of people are unexpectedly killed does not occur in Tolkien’s works as far as I know. That being said, however, Tolkien’s works are quite applicable to the terrorism we see today because of the way they handle fear. The best example is the Black Riders. They start out as a mysterious menace hunting the Hobbits, and pursue members of the Fellowship. However, as the story progresses, one thing becomes more and more clear. While they do have deadly physical weapons, their only real power is fear. This fear is crippling to all but the most steadfast hearts. In order to fight them and the evil armies they protect, soldiers need to overcome the fear. The main scene that comes to mind is the Siege of Gondor, with Gandalf urging the men to fight in spite of their fear, and later Théoden doing the same. The Nazgûl (and the rest of Sauron’s massive armies) turn out not to be invincible when warriors have the courage to face them in spite of their fear.
~Ulmo
I would argue that Saruman is something of a terrorist, for sure. Especially in the way in which we think of big organizations like ALKAEDA or ISIS they go around and recruit similar minded people and create and intricate web of allies in order to achieve some sort of machiavellian goal. They work purely of the terror they can put into people. Similarly Saruman finds allies in those who are currepted like him, he promises power and control. To those who do not go along with his plans he distributes threats, acts of villanism, and keep them at bay with fear.
I agree with Aulë with regards to Saruman being a type of terrorist, but I would argue that he is dissimilar to ALKAEDA or ISIS. Saruman does use terror to gain power and allies, but his movement seems to be more of a higher source of power leading lower levels. I think this is different from ALKAEDA or ISIS where it was more of a grassroots movement to gain power. Saurman had power to begin with, whereas many of the terrorist groups we recognize today use terror to gain an initial power.
I wonder if the type of terrorism changes its effect. What do you think?
The idea of Saruman being a terrorist is an idea that is completely new to me. I am more inclined to agree with Ulmo's idea that the Black Riders are terrorists, more so than Saruman himself, but the two are very related. Saruman is very powerful, and I think of him as more of a negative politic figure, a potential dictator, more than I think of him as a terrorist. I believe this because the root of all of his evil is his want for power. He is not too concerned with acting on behalf of his religious beliefs or morals, but he wrecks havoc in his quest for complete and total power. Where terrorist organizations do want power, to a degree, I think that the main motivation of many terrorist organizations is to get their opinions and beliefs across.
-Melian
I would agree that certain characters within Tolkien's mythology are terroristic in nature. I, however, would argue that they are not terrorists, at least in the way that I perceive them. I believe that the 'evil' characters within the mythology, are simply living their life based off of how things should be done given the time frame they are working in.
I think one of the most intimidating aspects of terrorism is one person's will (and even desire) to control others through fear and physical violence. It's the threat to take the life of another just for the advantage of the terrorist that makes terrorism so evil. Based on this definition of terrorism, we can safely say that it exists in Tolkien's works and is seen especially in Sauron and his servants. From Sauron all the way down through the ranks to the Orcs, each component of evil in The Lord of the Rings is motivated by selfishness and willing to destroy anyone who stands in the way of furthering their agenda. The difference between present-day terrorism and terrorism in Tolkien's work is where it takes place. In Middle-earth, terrorism takes place where one would expect it: during battle. Present-day terrorism, however, permeates far beyond our battlefields to the quiet places of everyday civilization. For this reason, our terrorism is more potent, because we experience violence when we do not expect it as it disrupts the peace of everyday life. It seems like Tolkien generally excluded terrorism from peaceful places, like Rivendell,while allowing it to happen when expected, like in the Battle of Helm's Deep when the Orcs were expected. Overall, I think Tolkien included enough terrorism to make his story realistic without making it an overbearing shadow.
This is going to sound like a very odd beginning to a comment, but here goes nothing.
Terrorism, to me, is a lot like the action of raping someone. They simply do it in order to create fear, to feel dominant, the feel as if they have power and control, and it is reckless for both parties.
According to that then, I think that there are many terrorist-like figures in LOTR.
As others have mentioned, there are the Black Riders (who are a tool but also evoke fear and sorrow in people and leave everyone afraid), maybe not the Nazgul specifically because they are utilized more as tools, Orcs(because they are often like suicide bombers or kamikaze type of terrorists where they use their own bodies as a weapon), Saruman is definitely a terrorist to the Ents (he objectifies them for his own power and will), and Sauron is also like a terrorist (he approves various attacks in order to instill fear, has no mercy on his war prisoners, and allows the massacre of citizens for no good reason other than to exemplify his "power").
While I don't think that Tolkien meant for them to be viewed as terrorists as opposed to just plain villains, I do think parallels can be drawn there.
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