Evil Dr. Cannon
New Member
Forgive the lengthy post, but last week’s class was a real epiphany for me and I got a bit excited. I wanted to organize my thoughts and get feedback from the group. I feel like I have a much better understanding of the nature of the Rings of Power than I previously had. I have a working hypothesis for what the rings actually do and how the manifestation of Sauron’s power is different from that of the elves’ or Gandalf’s. We’ll see how well my proposed explanation holds up as we collect more data, especially as we make our way through the Council of Elrond.
It seems that one of the fundamental themes in Tolkien’s Legendarium is agency. Like Pro. Olsen, I too believe that both elves and men have agency (though I’m going to steer clear of the quagmire regarding the potential differences in their ‘free will’). It is clear to me that agency is a grounding principle of Eru’s plan and is very important to him. From the music of Ainur during the creation in the beginning, we see him delegate governance of Arda to the Valar and lets them exercise their own agency, even to the point of allowing open rebellion in the case of Melkor, rather than stepping in to dictate events. It’s true that he may have foreseen the outcome and it may have even been part of his plan; nonetheless, he did nothing to suppress Melkor’s agency and from Melkor’s point of view he was acting of his own accord. Likewise, the Valar, who are the offspring of Iluvatar’s thought, emulate this principle in their own dominion as well. For example, they invited the elves to Valinor, but didn’t force them to come. They also didn’t stop the Noldor from leaving, even after the kinslaying. They didn’t even get involved in the fight against Melkor at the end of the first age until entreated by one fated to do so. And so on. They help out here and there, but largely let the people of Arda make their own decisions and deal with the consequences.
Keeping that in mind, I believe the elemental nature of the rings of power is their ability to impose the will of the bearer externally, i.e., to dominate. That is likely the fundamental basis of Sauron’s teaching regarding their making. Domination has a negative connotation, but I don’t think it’s always as severe as it sounds. We know that the inherent power and desire of the bearer has an impact on the ring’s resulting influence (Frodo is told this). The elves didn’t want thralls and slaves, but they did want their own dominion. We see this manifested in the many elven kingdoms that arise throughout each age. They clearly don’t like to consolidate under someone else’s reign, rather every brother, cousin, and uncle sets up his own realm. Additionally, we know the desire for dominion is explicitly true for Galadriel. Therefore, their rings enabled them to unnaturally impose their wills on the lands in which they lived, which is why their kingdoms lasted longer than they should have. Though this is perhaps against Eru’s original intention, it is certainly not to the extent of open rebellion. It’s more like when your kids stay up past their bedtime rather than going to sleep when you asked them 3 hours ago. The reason we don’t typically view their dominion as evil is because the elves’ desires (i.e., how they use their agency) are generally well-intentioned, in that they don’t seek to deprive others of their own agency. In contrast, this is precisely the nature of the dominion Sauron wanted, to replace the agency of all others with his own desire. Unlike the elves, Sauron’s use of the one ring is in direct conflict with the overall concept of letting the children of Iluvatar exercise their own agency.
I’m guessing what is meant by the elven rings being ‘unsullied’ is that since Sauron never touched them there is no element of his will inherent in them. Therefore, the effect of the elves’ use of their rings was a more pure representation of their desires and their dominion wasn’t corrupted. However, this is not the case for the other rings of power, which is why their use typically resulted in unfavorable outcomes for their bearers. The dwarves wanted to have dominion over vast wealth and indeed the rings helped facilitate this, but because Sauron’s influence was present in their rings that wealth led to ruin. For men, their desires were typically much more naturally aligned with Sauron’s to begin with, to dominate and conquer others. This is why they were so much more easily influenced by their rings and susceptible to his domination. We know little about the kingdoms of the men who had the rings of power before they were wraiths, but I’m willing to bet they weren’t bastions of righteousness.
I think Gandalf is an interesting case because he had no desire to set up a realm. As far as I can tell, what he wanted was to compel others to action- to stimulate them to use their own agency (albeit with his guidance). He convinced the white council to convene and expel Sauron from Dol Guldor. He helped Frodo make the choice to take the ring to Rivendell. He convinced Theoden to have the Rohirim ride out to confront Saruman, even against the influence of Grima. The list goes on. I think the ring probably made him more successful in his efforts than he otherwise might have been. However, the key point is that he was using his power to encourage the agency of others, rather than to stifle or suppress it.
I think further support for this interpretation comes from Tom Bombadil’s experience with the one ring. Tom has no desire for dominion or to impose his will on others or his surroundings. Goldberry makes it clear that he does not even claim the land around him as his own (“that would indeed be a burden”). At the council of Elrond it is stated that the Ring has no power over him. Evidently, his lack of desire for dominion is to such an extent as to completely nullify even the master ring’s influence.
There are certainly things that are still not clear to me though. For example, how do the different properties of the individual elven rings influence their effect. For example, what would happen if Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel all switched rings? Does each ring work with a particular bearer’s desire better than another ring might?
Also, in the previous class, we talked about how wraithification is not necessary for Sauron to make a slave of someone. He used the rings because he specifically wanted a group of wraith slaves. Did he think the rings would make wraiths of the elves and dwarves as well? Or perhaps his motivation for giving them rings is because he would not otherwise be able to subjugate the wills of such powerful enemies as Celebrimbor, Gil-Galad, Glorfindal, and the rest of the calaquendi. We know that Sauron made the one Ring to be able to control all the others. What exactly does that mean? Is it that he would be able to impose his will on (i.e., control) everything under the dominion of the lesser rings? Perhaps in this way, it would simplify his job by allowing him to give rings to a few individuals and, through their use of the rings, hold their entire kingdoms ‘under his sway’. Without the rings he might be able to conquer and destroy the elves, but maybe not override their agency. (Morgoth seemed to be able to do it when he twisted elves into orcs, but he was likely more powerful than Sauron, being the mightiest of the Ainur).
Like I said, I feel like I understand things better, but it’s definitely a work in progress...
It seems that one of the fundamental themes in Tolkien’s Legendarium is agency. Like Pro. Olsen, I too believe that both elves and men have agency (though I’m going to steer clear of the quagmire regarding the potential differences in their ‘free will’). It is clear to me that agency is a grounding principle of Eru’s plan and is very important to him. From the music of Ainur during the creation in the beginning, we see him delegate governance of Arda to the Valar and lets them exercise their own agency, even to the point of allowing open rebellion in the case of Melkor, rather than stepping in to dictate events. It’s true that he may have foreseen the outcome and it may have even been part of his plan; nonetheless, he did nothing to suppress Melkor’s agency and from Melkor’s point of view he was acting of his own accord. Likewise, the Valar, who are the offspring of Iluvatar’s thought, emulate this principle in their own dominion as well. For example, they invited the elves to Valinor, but didn’t force them to come. They also didn’t stop the Noldor from leaving, even after the kinslaying. They didn’t even get involved in the fight against Melkor at the end of the first age until entreated by one fated to do so. And so on. They help out here and there, but largely let the people of Arda make their own decisions and deal with the consequences.
Keeping that in mind, I believe the elemental nature of the rings of power is their ability to impose the will of the bearer externally, i.e., to dominate. That is likely the fundamental basis of Sauron’s teaching regarding their making. Domination has a negative connotation, but I don’t think it’s always as severe as it sounds. We know that the inherent power and desire of the bearer has an impact on the ring’s resulting influence (Frodo is told this). The elves didn’t want thralls and slaves, but they did want their own dominion. We see this manifested in the many elven kingdoms that arise throughout each age. They clearly don’t like to consolidate under someone else’s reign, rather every brother, cousin, and uncle sets up his own realm. Additionally, we know the desire for dominion is explicitly true for Galadriel. Therefore, their rings enabled them to unnaturally impose their wills on the lands in which they lived, which is why their kingdoms lasted longer than they should have. Though this is perhaps against Eru’s original intention, it is certainly not to the extent of open rebellion. It’s more like when your kids stay up past their bedtime rather than going to sleep when you asked them 3 hours ago. The reason we don’t typically view their dominion as evil is because the elves’ desires (i.e., how they use their agency) are generally well-intentioned, in that they don’t seek to deprive others of their own agency. In contrast, this is precisely the nature of the dominion Sauron wanted, to replace the agency of all others with his own desire. Unlike the elves, Sauron’s use of the one ring is in direct conflict with the overall concept of letting the children of Iluvatar exercise their own agency.
I’m guessing what is meant by the elven rings being ‘unsullied’ is that since Sauron never touched them there is no element of his will inherent in them. Therefore, the effect of the elves’ use of their rings was a more pure representation of their desires and their dominion wasn’t corrupted. However, this is not the case for the other rings of power, which is why their use typically resulted in unfavorable outcomes for their bearers. The dwarves wanted to have dominion over vast wealth and indeed the rings helped facilitate this, but because Sauron’s influence was present in their rings that wealth led to ruin. For men, their desires were typically much more naturally aligned with Sauron’s to begin with, to dominate and conquer others. This is why they were so much more easily influenced by their rings and susceptible to his domination. We know little about the kingdoms of the men who had the rings of power before they were wraiths, but I’m willing to bet they weren’t bastions of righteousness.
I think Gandalf is an interesting case because he had no desire to set up a realm. As far as I can tell, what he wanted was to compel others to action- to stimulate them to use their own agency (albeit with his guidance). He convinced the white council to convene and expel Sauron from Dol Guldor. He helped Frodo make the choice to take the ring to Rivendell. He convinced Theoden to have the Rohirim ride out to confront Saruman, even against the influence of Grima. The list goes on. I think the ring probably made him more successful in his efforts than he otherwise might have been. However, the key point is that he was using his power to encourage the agency of others, rather than to stifle or suppress it.
I think further support for this interpretation comes from Tom Bombadil’s experience with the one ring. Tom has no desire for dominion or to impose his will on others or his surroundings. Goldberry makes it clear that he does not even claim the land around him as his own (“that would indeed be a burden”). At the council of Elrond it is stated that the Ring has no power over him. Evidently, his lack of desire for dominion is to such an extent as to completely nullify even the master ring’s influence.
There are certainly things that are still not clear to me though. For example, how do the different properties of the individual elven rings influence their effect. For example, what would happen if Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel all switched rings? Does each ring work with a particular bearer’s desire better than another ring might?
Also, in the previous class, we talked about how wraithification is not necessary for Sauron to make a slave of someone. He used the rings because he specifically wanted a group of wraith slaves. Did he think the rings would make wraiths of the elves and dwarves as well? Or perhaps his motivation for giving them rings is because he would not otherwise be able to subjugate the wills of such powerful enemies as Celebrimbor, Gil-Galad, Glorfindal, and the rest of the calaquendi. We know that Sauron made the one Ring to be able to control all the others. What exactly does that mean? Is it that he would be able to impose his will on (i.e., control) everything under the dominion of the lesser rings? Perhaps in this way, it would simplify his job by allowing him to give rings to a few individuals and, through their use of the rings, hold their entire kingdoms ‘under his sway’. Without the rings he might be able to conquer and destroy the elves, but maybe not override their agency. (Morgoth seemed to be able to do it when he twisted elves into orcs, but he was likely more powerful than Sauron, being the mightiest of the Ainur).
Like I said, I feel like I understand things better, but it’s definitely a work in progress...