Note: There is a parallel between Tolkien’s conception of the wraith-world and the “Upside Down” from Netflix’s Stranger Things. There may have been some Tolkien influence on that concept, such as the inability to see those who are brought into this corrupted, parallel world.
The depiction of the wraith-world in the films have an uncertain and unclear visual quality that is hinted at by the description of Frodo’s experience as the Morgul wound begins to affect him.
Glorfindel’s appearance in the wraith-world as a shining light hint that this is not an inherently evil place, but that it is a neutral plane where both good and evil beings are and look different.
From Gandalf’s words, we know that this phenomenon is not unique to Glorfindel but is true of all of the Calaquendi who have dwelt in Valinor.
Valinor exists on the same plane of existence as the wraith-world, after the fall of Númenor.
This is parallel to a concept of Faerie being a parallel existence in the same place as our world.
The power of Glorfindel over the Ringwraiths is partly a light vs shadow situation, but also one in which Glorfindel is a native of that plane, while the Ringwraiths are unnatural and trespassing.
For Elves who have gone to Valinor, this dwelling in both planes at once is both a natural consequence and seemingly a fulfillment of the fate of the Elves.
For Ringbearers, they have been damaged by their possession of the Ring and by entering the wraith-world whenever they wear the Rings.
Note: The idea of the Blessed Realm as “Elvenhome” is in contrast to the idea that perhaps it was a mistake of the Valar to bring the Elves to Valinor, though that may be in terms of timing.
The major distinction between the Elves and the mortal races is that the Elves have a soul that is bound eternally to Arda, while mortals have a destiny outside of Arda.
The process of pulling a mortal body into the immortal spiritual plane is the concept of becoming a wraith, which is a violation of the proper place of those two things.
Note: Tolkien emphasizes that mortals seeking physical immortality is unnatural and leads to evil. Aragorn’s death scene in the appendices is shown as the original model of mortals’ passing.
Note: By allowing the Ringbearers the grace to travel to Valinor to receive healing for the unnatural way that they had been drawn into that plane through the power of the Ring. Bilbo and Frodo do not become immortal there; rather, they are cleansed of the corruption of the Ring so that they can pass more easily outside the circles of the world, like all mortals. This is in contrast to the concept of Purgatory, which is about correcting one’s own moral failings made through their choices, whereas this corruption was an external force imposed on them. Frodo and Bilbo may have died earlier than they would have naturally but do so cleansed and in peace.
Power of another kind:
In answering Frodo’s question about the safety of Rivendell, Gandalf emphasizes that the might of a place to resist is not always clear in its appearance.
We are reminded that the primary battle is on the spiritual level, and in that sense, Rivendell is a fortress, protected by spiritual power, and not walls or weapons, or even by geography.
There does not seem to be a coincidence between the jolly singing of the Elves on the periphery of Rivendell and its power to resist evil things, even Sauron himself, in this spiritual battle.
Just as Rivendell is strong, the Shire is said by Gandalf to be strong in a different way. Though this power is still spiritual, we know that the Shire is not invulnerable to the entry of evil beings.
This difference is not just about quantity of power, but in qualities and source. That Frodo was able to resist the wound, and the hobbits to confound the Witch-king’s plans show this.
This spiritual power to resist the Ringwraiths that exists in the Shire is part of the explanation for why they have such a hard time there and in dealing with the hobbits.
We see the Ringwraiths put forth their power of fear in Crickhollow and assimilate it over time, but we also see them verbally thwarted by the likes of Gaffer Gamgee and Farmer Maggot.
This power extends to The Prancing Pony in a similar way, as the Ringwraiths can’t enter there.
Their strength in the wilderness is due to the absence of the things that thwart them in the Shire and Bree, being community, domesticity, joy, peace, and contentment.
Being a Ranger, Strider would seem to be without all of these things, yet he is able to foster those things in the hobbits, and therefore oppose the Ringwraiths under Weathertop.
Once Gandalf raises the specter of the might of Mordor being brought against Rivendell, he speaks more widely about the peril to all places that might resist Sauron’s power.
Gandalf begins to consider not only the strengths, but the plans, of the Enemy. The fact that Sauron has sent forth the Ringwraiths at all is a sign that the time of open war has come.
Sauron has rebuilt his strength, spiritually and militarily, and is now putting it forth offensively.
Note: It’s possible that Gandalf might later regret telling Frodo some of this right now, as it goes against Elrond’s instructions for Frodo’s spiritual recovery.
Comment on the Three Rings:
The possibility of Celebrimbor imbuing the Three Rings with some of the strength of the Elf-lords seems unlikely given the evidence that we see, and this doesn’t seem quite possible.
We know that the Elven realms fail after the destruction of the One Ring, but this is due to the loss of power of the Rings, and they were unable to maintain those realms, and chose to leave.
Sauron had to weaken himself in order to put his power into the One Ring, in order to master the other Rings, which seems like a different process to what the Elves do when making Rings.
We have seen how makers can imbue their will into objects, and these are called magical items.
Note: Fëanor’s claim that he would die with the breaking of the Silmarils might not be objectively true, though Fëanor may have believed it to be true by his feelings for them.
A closer parallel to this sort of magic within The Lord of the Rings is Haldir’s claim in Lothlorien that the Elves place their thoughts of what they love all the things that they make with hands.
These things include thoughts of trees and earth and so on, and this is different from what Sauron does by placing a part of his own spirit. This is a dichotomy of love versus self.
The power of the Three Rings is the power to preserve that which the Elves love, such as healing and peace and the memory of the Elder Days, and it is these thoughts that empower the Three.
Fëanor and Celebrimbor both displayed love in attempting to preserve things that were fair, though they may have erred in applying that love.
For this reason, the creation of the Three Rings was probably a bad idea in the big picture, as this desire for stasis and control over change is misguided and ill-advised.
Comment on the applications of power by Sauron vs. Gandalf:
The Dark Lords are known for imbuing their followers and artefacts with their own power, which weakens them personally but gains them control over these things.
Gandalf does not necessarily operate in an exactly opposite way, but different context.
The wielders of the Three Rings, Elrond, Galadriel, and Gandalf, and their powers, are distinct from the power of the Rings themselves, though they interact.
Two of the Three Rings are now in the possession of someone other than their original owners.
Sauron is not giving of himself to his servants, but rather forcing his power upon them in order to dominate their wills. In contrast, Gandalf wants to empower others to act on their own.
This is parallel to Sauron’s appearance as Annatar, in which he pretended to give gifts in order to deceive their recipients into allowing him to dominate them. This is part of the bigger pattern.
The destruction of the power of the Three Rings is, in a way, a fulfillment of the fate of the Elves to fade, which they had tried to stave off for a while, though done with good intentions.
The Three Rings were not touched and corrupted by Sauron, but they were still his idea.
There is a sense of error in the Elves’ desire to slow change, against the nature of the world as Eru has ordained in Creation, and therefore the Rings’ destruction allows this natural order.
This misunderstanding shows that there were implications to what Sauron taught that they didn’t perceive at the time. They had good intentions, but they were ignorant and deceived.
Note: This is parallel to the misguided creation of the Dwarves by Aulë, which went against the expressed will of Ilúvatar, though his intentions were good, and for which he repented. In a similar way, the Elves are not rebelling against the will of Ilúvatar but are making a mistake.
Note: There is a sense in some interpretations of The Silmarillion that the Elves have less free will than Men, though that is in conflict with their depictions throughout Tolkien’s writings. This may be an oversimplification, and the difference may have more to do with their soul’s nature.
At this point in the story, there are few examples of Gandalf putting forth his power except with Bilbo in Bag End, so the nature of his means vs ends is not yet clear.
Note: The things said about Gandalf in Unfinished Tales and the published version of The Silmarillion are drawn from his depiction in The Lord of the Rings and did not inform its creation. He is commenting on the patterns that he sees in the text that already exists, and expounds upon it, but is not intended to be read as preexisting that text.
This difference between what the Allies and Enemies do with their power is the root of the objection of the Elves to having the Hobbits refer to both as “magic”.
