Spells have always been cast

From Le Morte D'Arthur, I find two examples of casting enchantments:
"Than would he have slayne hym for drede of hys wratthe, and so he lyffte up hys swerde. And therewith Merlion caste an inchauntemente on the knyght, that he felle to the erthe in a grete slepe." Book One, Chapter 24

"So this enchauntemente was caste uppon sir Launcelot, and than they leyde hym uppon his shylde and bare hym so on horseback betwyxte two knyghtes, and brought hym unto the Castell Charyot;" Book Six, Chapter 3
 
Well, we spent almost a whole session talking about the meaning of the word, 'cast'. Obviously, in hindsight, we were far too hasty. Treebeard would not approve.

Several usages of the word were not even discussed! No one brought up 'cast' as in casting (or being cast) in a play or a film. 'He had a cast in one eye', was not mentioned. We did not consider 'cast' as the supporting wrap of plaster given to a broken bone (not the same as cast metal, as there is no mold).

We spent most of our time considering 'cast' as 'to throw' (which seems to be its original meaning, from Old Norse 'kasta'), versus 'cast' as 'to form' as in 'casting something from metal'.

In the context of casting a story into verse, all these definitions could apply.

Bilbo could throw, or hurl his story into the cauldron of poetry:

He could craft his story and his words into the mold of verse:

He might chose his words to fit the poetry as a director chooses his actors to fit a film:

Poetry and prose might portray a story from different aspects, as with a cast in an eye, a squinting man looks in two directions at once:

A story that is somewhat broken might be mended through casting it in verse.

I see no reason to suppose that Elrond did not mean all of them at once, as well as his display of Hobbitry?
 
Flammifer said:
Well, we spent almost a whole session talking about the meaning of the word, 'cast'. Obviously, in hindsight, we were far too hasty. Treebeard would not approve.

Several usages of the word were not even discussed! No one brought up 'cast' as in casting (or being cast) in a play or a film. 'He had a cast in one eye', was not mentioned. We did not consider 'cast' as the supporting wrap of plaster given to a broken bone (not the same as cast metal, as there is no mold).

We spent most of our time considering 'cast' as 'to throw' (which seems to be its original meaning, from Old Norse 'kasta'), versus 'cast' as 'to form' as in 'casting something from metal'.

In the context of casting a story into verse, all these definitions could apply.

Bilbo could throw, or hurl his story into the cauldron of poetry:

He could craft his story and his words into the mold of verse:

He might chose his words to fit the poetry as a director chooses his actors to fit a film:

Poetry and prose might portray a story from different aspects, as with a cast in an eye, a squinting man looks in two directions at once:

A story that is somewhat broken might be mended through casting it in verse.

I see no reason to suppose that Elrond did not mean all of them at once, as well as his display of Hobbitry?
Click to expand...

All of these meanings derive from the Old Norse 'kasta': etymonline - cast

Cast, as in throw - c.1200

A mold 'cast' can be made of plaster, sand, or clay (pottery). Pottery is described as being 'thrown'. The original casts were made by artisans (sculptors), rather than doctors. 15c

'Casting' a play involves distribution of parts to actors - metaphorically throwing the parts. - 1630s

A 'cast in the eye', from an earlier sense - early 14c

A cast for repair of a bone is derived from the earlier sculpting method -1883.

These are all related, but in the context, I think the best fit is that of an artisan shaping a work of art.

Also 'cast into verse' is found multiple times in the English Corpus before Tolkien, so he is using a previously understood phrasing:
Google NGram Viewer
 
  1. He needed all my help, too. And even so he would never have just forsaken it, or cast it aside.
  2. ...and then with an effort of will he made a movement, as if to cast it away - but he found that he had put it back in his pocket.
  3. ...to find the Cracks of Doom in the depths of Orodruin, the Fire-mountain, and cast the Ring in there...
  4. 'You shall clean grimy hands, and wash your weary faces; cast off your muddy cloaks and comb out your tangles!’
  5. In the midst of it there stood a single stone, standing tall under the sun above, and at this hour casting no shadow.
  6. The standing stone was cold, and it cast a long pale shadow that stretched eastward over them.
  7. Be glad, my merry friends, and let the warm sunlight heal now heart and limb! Cast off these cold rags!
  8. They themselves do not see the world of light as we do, but our shapes cast shadows in their minds, which only the noon sun destroys...
  9. Tinúviel the elven-fair, / Immortal maiden elven-wise, / About him cast her shadowy hair / And arms like silver glimmering.
  10. ...and together they passed through great dangers, and cast down even the Great Enemy from his throne...
  11. They cast themselves down in the heather a few yards from the road-side, and fell asleep immediately.
  12. He could see them clearly now: they appeared to have cast aside their hoods and black cloaks, and they were robed in white and grey.
  13. It should have been cast then into Orodruin's fire nigh at hand where it was made.
  14. I was in the company that held the bridge, until it was cast down behind us.
  15. He cast his sword upon the table that stood before Elrond, and the blade was in two pieces.
  16. And if you have not yet cast your story into verse, you may tell it in plain words.
  17. 'Then, said Glorfindel, 'let us cast it into the deeps, and so make the lies of Saruman come true....'
  18. On him alone is any charge laid: neither to cast away the Ring, nor to deliver it to any servant of the Enemy...
  19. The Moon, now at the full, rose over the mountains, and cast a pale light in which the shadows of stones were black.
  20. '...How I hate this foul pool! ' He stooped and picking up a large stone he cast it far into the dark water.
  21. 'He is dead then,' said Frodo. `I feared it was so.' Gimli cast his hood over his face.
  22. ...orcs crouching in the shadows behind the great door posts towering on either side, but the gates were shattered and cast down.
  23. Doom. Grief at last wholly overcame them, and they wept long: some standing and silent, some cast upon the ground. Doom, doom.
  24. `Yrch!' said the Elf in a hissing whisper, and cast on to the flet the rope-ladder rolled up.
  25. Haldir skilfully cast over the stream a coil of grey rope, and he caught it and bound the end about a tree near the bank.
  26. Over all the sky was blue, and the sun of afternoon glowed upon the hill and cast long green shadows beneath the trees.
  27. The others cast themselves down upon the fragrant grass, but Frodo stood awhile still lost in wonder.
  28. He cast himself down upon his couch and fell at once into a long sleep.
  29. So bright was it that the figure of the Elven-lady cast a dim shadow on the ground.
  30. Yet they will cast all away rather than submit to Sauron: for they know him now.
  31. There it casts its arms about the steep shores of the isle, and falls then with a great noise and smoke over the cataracts of Rauros...
  32. ...guiding the boat with skilful strokes; his hood was cast back, and his dark hair was blowing in the wind, a light was in his eyes...
  33. ...plans for great alliances and glorious victories to be; and he cast down Mordor, and became himself a mighty king, benevolent and wise.

All 33 references to "cast" in FoTR. In these sentences, selected with reference to a single random verb, is the entire story of FoTR told; and thus is the whole contained in each and every part. (This reminds me of the (incredibly brilliant) scene in Frozen II where Olaf recapitulates the first movie for the Northuldra.)
 
Meanings:
  1. To throw something away from one's hand (1,2,3,13,15,17,18,20,25,30)
  2. To shift a piece of one's clothing (12,21,32)
  3. To take off a piece of one's clothing (4,7)
  4. To shift one's position to lying (11,23,27,28)
  5. To place or reach around something else (9,31)
  6. To grab onto (24)
  7. To shape or reshape something (16)
  8. To push something down or destroy it (10,14,22,33)
  9. To move light or create a shadow (5,6,8,19,26,29)
 
In (11,23,27,28) it's more specific than just shifting one's position to lying. In every case it is 'throwing' oneself into the lying position.

I think in (24) he isn't grabbing onto the rope-ladder.
He seems to be holding onto the flet with one hand and throwing the rolled up rope-ladder onto the flet with the other.
A rope-ladder is perfect for just such a purpose. You can easily pull it up behind you and store it without trouble, making it harder for others to get to you.

And for (10,14,22,33) disabling or destroying things are often referred to as 'throwing things down'. 'thrown down' appears five times in TLotR.

Every one of these is in the sense of throw, with possible contention about (16)

If you'll forgive a potential transgression, each line has been recast (;-) below with the appropriate form of 'throw' in place of 'cast':
1. He needed all my help, too. And even so he would never have just forsaken it, or throw it aside.
2. ...and then with an effort of will he made a movement, as if to throw it away - but he found that he had put it back in his pocket.
3. ...to find the Cracks of Doom in the depths of Orodruin, the Fire-mountain, and throw the Ring in there...
4. 'You shall clean grimy hands, and wash your weary faces; throw off your muddy cloaks and comb out your tangles!’
5. In the midst of it there stood a single stone, standing tall under the sun above, and at this hour throwing no shadow.
6. The standing stone was cold, and it threw a long pale shadow that stretched eastward over them.
7. Be glad, my merry friends, and let the warm sunlight heal now heart and limb! Throw off these cold rags!
8. They themselves do not see the world of light as we do, but our shapes throw shadows in their minds, which only the noon sun destroys...
9. Tinúviel the elven-fair, / Immortal maiden elven-wise, / About him threw her shadowy hair / And arms like silver glimmering.
10. ...and together they passed through great dangers, and threw down even the Great Enemy from his throne...
11. They threw themselves down in the heather a few yards from the road-side, and fell asleep immediately.
12. He could see them clearly now: they appeared to have thrown aside their hoods and black cloaks, and they were robed in white and grey.
13. It should have been thrown then into Orodruin's fire nigh at hand where it was made.
14. I was in the company that held the bridge, until it was thrown down behind us.
15. He threw his sword upon the table that stood before Elrond, and the blade was in two pieces.
16. And if you have not yet thrown your story into verse, you may tell it in plain words.
17. 'Then, said Glorfindel, 'let us throw it into the deeps, and so make the lies of Saruman come true....'
18. On him alone is any charge laid: neither to throw away the Ring, nor to deliver it to any servant of the Enemy...
19. The Moon, now at the full, rose over the mountains, and threw a pale light in which the shadows of stones were black.
20. '...How I hate this foul pool! ' He stooped and picking up a large stone he threw it far into the dark water.
21. 'He is dead then,' said Frodo. `I feared it was so.' Gimli threw his hood over his face.
22. ...orcs crouching in the shadows behind the great door posts towering on either side, but the gates were shattered and thrown down.
23. Doom. Grief at last wholly overcame them, and they wept long: some standing and silent, some thrown upon the ground. Doom, doom.
24. `Yrch!' said the Elf in a hissing whisper, and threw on to the flet the rope-ladder rolled up.
25. Haldir skilfully threw over the stream a coil of grey rope, and he caught it and bound the end about a tree near the bank.
26. Over all the sky was blue, and the sun of afternoon glowed upon the hill and threw long green shadows beneath the trees.
27. The others threw themselves down upon the fragrant grass, but Frodo stood awhile still lost in wonder.
28. He threw himself down upon his couch and fell at once into a long sleep.
29. So bright was it that the figure of the Elven-lady threw a dim shadow on the ground.
30. Yet they will throw all away rather than submit to Sauron: for they know him now.
31. There it throws its arms about the steep shores of the isle, and falls then with a great noise and smoke over the cataracts of Rauros...
32. ...guiding the boat with skilful strokes; his hood was thrown back, and his dark hair was blowing in the wind, a light was in his eyes...
33. ...plans for great alliances and glorious victories to be; and he threw down Mordor, and became himself a mighty king, benevolent and wise.

(16) is the only one that seems truly awkward.

Interestingly (5), (8), (9), (16), (26?), (29?), and (31) can also work if replaced by the correct form of 'form', but not as well.
 
It would be interesting to know if the sub-meanings 1-9 above can also have the same words applied across them in other languages. In German, to cast a shadow uses the same word for throw, werfen (as Italian does, gettare); and you can say meine Kleider abwerfen, to cast off my clothes. I would suspect so. Maybe all these 1-9 uses of cast/throw have sort of a natural-category basis in distinctive actions or basic-level categorizations, a la Roger Brown and George Lakoff from cognitive linguistics.
 
Hi Anthony,

In your examples, the action is either actually or metaphorically throwing. All work to some extent as throwing metaphors, but some are rather tortured and might work better with another meaning of cast.

An interesting set of examples are all those references to casting shadows. Here, the metaphor gets stretched, as the standing stone, or person is not really acting to throw the shadow. The sun or moon or Earendil's star is acting by throwing light. These metaphors can sometimes work better with another meaning of cast than throw. Particularly if the light emitter is not present in the sentence. (Though things casting shadows is a common metaphor in English, so it is not surprising to find Tolkien using it.)

So:

5. In the midst of it there stood a single stone, standing tall under the sun above, and at this hour throwing no shadow.

Even though the sun is in the sentence, this would work just as well if forming no shadow, or creating no shadow was used.

8. They themselves do not see the world of light as we do, but our shapes throw shadows in their minds, which only the noon sun destroys...

This would (I think) work better if our shapes formed shadows in their minds. There is no light source creating shadows, and our shapes are not throwing images (however shadowy) towards the Black Riders.

9. Tinúviel the elven-fair, / Immortal maiden elven-wise, / About him threw her shadowy hair / And arms like silver glimmering.

Here, I think shaped would work as well as threw. It has the added advantage of alliteration, though it slants her action slightly less impulsive and more deliberate. Cloaked would also work, with the intimation of casting a veil or net of privacy (similar to throwing, but more shaping a cloak, than throwing her hair).

29. So bright was it that the figure of the Elven-lady threw a dim shadow on the ground.

The figure formed a dim shadow on the ground, or shaped a dim shadow on the ground, would work as well as threw, and also both alliterate.

So, some of the lines where shadows are being cast work perfectly well using a shaped or made meaning for cast, particularly where the casting is not being attributed to the light source.

There are some other examples where I think other meanings than threw work better for cast.

14. I was in the company that held the bridge, until it was thrown down behind us.

Cut down behind us, or chopped down behind us would be more accurate than thrown. I like broken, for the alliteration with bridge and behind.

22. ...orcs crouching in the shadows behind the great door posts towering on either side, but the gates were shattered and thrown down

Smashed down or broken down would work as well as thrown down, unless Tolkien was trying to create the image of a single giant Stone Troll or Balrog who could lift the great gates and hurl them.

Finally, Elrond's comment to Bilbo:

16. And if you have not yet thrown your story into verse, you may tell it in plain words.

I agree that this is the instance where interpreting cast as thrown is the most awkward (though it still works as a metaphor). Made, shaped, crafted, formed, would all be better interpretations of cast in this context than thrown.
 
I like the meaning which is associated with shaping a creation, because that meaning echoes the Old English word for a poet -- sceop, which itself seems to be derived from the verb scieppan, to create.
 
Flammifer said:
Hi Anthony,

In your examples, the action is either actually or metaphorically throwing. All work to some extent as throwing metaphors, but some are rather tortured and might work better with another meaning of cast.

An interesting set of examples are all those references to casting shadows. Here, the metaphor gets stretched, as the standing stone, or person is not really acting to throw the shadow. The sun or moon or Earendil's star is acting by throwing light. These metaphors can sometimes work better with another meaning of cast than throw. Particularly if the light emitter is not present in the sentence. (Though things casting shadows is a common metaphor in English, so it is not surprising to find Tolkien using it.)

So:

5. In the midst of it there stood a single stone, standing tall under the sun above, and at this hour throwing no shadow.

Even though the sun is in the sentence, this would work just as well if forming no shadow, or creating no shadow was used.

8. They themselves do not see the world of light as we do, but our shapes throw shadows in their minds, which only the noon sun destroys...

This would (I think) work better if our shapes formed shadows in their minds. There is no light source creating shadows, and our shapes are not throwing images (however shadowy) towards the Black Riders.

9. Tinúviel the elven-fair, / Immortal maiden elven-wise, / About him threw her shadowy hair / And arms like silver glimmering.

Here, I think shaped would work as well as threw. It has the added advantage of alliteration, though it slants her action slightly less impulsive and more deliberate. Cloaked would also work, with the intimation of casting a veil or net of privacy (similar to throwing, but more shaping a cloak, than throwing her hair).

29. So bright was it that the figure of the Elven-lady threw a dim shadow on the ground.

The figure formed a dim shadow on the ground, or shaped a dim shadow on the ground, would work as well as threw, and also both alliterate.

So, some of the lines where shadows are being cast work perfectly well using a shaped or made meaning for cast, particularly where the casting is not being attributed to the light source.

There are some other examples where I think other meanings than threw work better for cast.

14. I was in the company that held the bridge, until it was thrown down behind us.

Cut down behind us, or chopped down behind us would be more accurate than thrown. I like broken, for the alliteration with bridge and behind.

22. ...orcs crouching in the shadows behind the great door posts towering on either side, but the gates were shattered and thrown down

Smashed down or broken down would work as well as thrown down, unless Tolkien was trying to create the image of a single giant Stone Troll or Balrog who could lift the great gates and hurl them.

Finally, Elrond's comment to Bilbo:

16. And if you have not yet thrown your story into verse, you may tell it in plain words.

I agree that this is the instance where interpreting cast as thrown is the most awkward (though it still works as a metaphor). Made, shaped, crafted, formed, would all be better interpretations of cast in this context than thrown.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that Tolkien uses thrown down five times already in the work, in exactly the same sense as those points where you prefer 'cut', 'chopped', 'broken', or 'smashed'.

Shadows being 'thrown' is also a common usage, although I tend to think it is derivative from 'cast'.

There is no escaping the fact that all meanings for 'cast' come from a meaning that is closest to 'throw', with some deriving from that metaphorically.
 
Yes, the verb 'to cast', originally meant 'to throw' in old Norse. But language changes, and cast has acquired different meanings over time. Of course, all derived from metaphors of throw. But throw is not the best interpretation of cast every time it is used.

For example, the bridge being cast down behind us. Not even Gondorians can throw a bridge. Of course thrown down can work as a metaphor for violent destruction, but chopped down, cut down, or broken would be more accurate descriptions of the actual actions applied to the bridge. Interestingly, they would be using cast to mean the opposite of one of its more usual meanings as formed or shaped or created. So, we could interpret cast down here as just a metaphor based on thrown for the violent destruction of the bridge. Or we could assume a more literal and original (at least unusual) new meaning of cast down, as the unmaking of something that was originally shaped or created.

Is Tolkien creating new meanings for the word cast, and shaping and changing the English language?

A more striking instance where cast as thrown does not work well at all, is when 'our shapes cast shadows in their (the Black Riders') minds'. Really? Our shapes throw themselves into the minds of the Black Riders? It only barely works as a metaphor! If you use the definition of 'to form' instead of 'to throw' for 'cast', it works much better. 'Our shapes form shadows in their minds'.

Which brings up another question. Why does Tolkien make 'our shapes' the noun in this sentence? He could have written, 'their minds perceive our shapes as shadows'. But he didn't. Go figure?
 
Last edited:
I've always associated shadow with cast. I'm not sure any other verb really works there.

The stone threw a shadow.
The stone covered the dell in shadow.
The stone created a shadow.
The stone lobbed a shadow.
The stone projected a shadow.
The stone created a shadow.

A couple of these sound ok, but cast just works better. Maybe because I'm used to it, though.
 
Hi No One,

Yes, shadows being cast is a cliché in English. It is a curious cliché, somewhat like a 'piercing gaze', as neither shadows nor gazes are really projected from the subject noun. The stone blocks an action (the projected light) and does not act at all. Likewise, the gaze does not project and 'pierce'. Seeing is passive. The light enters the eye and is captured. So, both these clichés create an active actor where there really is none. They are metaphors.

To avoid the cliché, one approach is to reverse the subject:

The shadow from the stone darkened the dell.
The shadows of the mountains crept across the plain.

Another approach would be to credit the light source as the subject:

The light from the bright sun was blocked by the standing stone, and the dell was shrouded in shadow.
The sun had just risen, so, though the clouds were bright, the plains were still in the shadow of the mountains.

A third approach would be to attribute the shadow to the object:

The stone's long shadow darkened the dell.
The mountains' shadows crept across the plain.

Yes, sometimes we want to preference the object to its shadow. Yes, if we do, we often say that the shadow is cast by the blocking object. True, that other verbs don't sound as right as cast. But that is because it is a trope and a cliché in English that shadows are 'cast' by objects.

Probably best avoided in general. Only used if with deliberate intent.
 
Last edited:
Flammifer said:
Yes, the verb 'to cast', originally meant 'to throw' in old Norse. But language changes, and cast has acquired different meanings over time. Of course, all derived from metaphors of throw. But throw is not the best interpretation of cast every time it is used.

For example, the bridge being cast down behind us. Not even Gondorians can throw a bridge. Of course thrown down can work as a metaphor for violent destruction, but chopped down, cut down, or broken would be more accurate descriptions of the actual actions applied to the bridge. Interestingly, they would be using cast to mean the opposite of one of its more usual meanings as formed or shaped or created. So, we could interpret cast down here as just a metaphor based on thrown for the violent destruction of the bridge. Or we could assume a more literal and original (at least unusual) new meaning of cast down, as the unmaking of something that was originally shaped or created.

Is Tolkien creating new meanings for the word cast, and shaping and changing the English language?

A more striking instance where cast as thrown does not work well at all, is when 'our shapes cast shadows in their (the Black Riders') minds'. Really? Our shapes throw themselves into the minds of the Black Riders? It only barely works as a metaphor! If you use the definition of 'to form' instead of 'to throw' for 'cast', it works much better. 'Our shapes form shadows in their minds'.

Which brings up another question. Why does Tolkien make 'our shapes' the noun in this sentence? He could have written, 'their minds perceive our shapes as shadows'. But he didn't. Go figure?
Click to expand...

If it's Tolkien making the new sense then he had a secret time machine:
Google NGram Viewer

From 1810 quoting a report from 1772:
Thrown Down

I have to say that you appear to be intentionally obtuse and unnecessarily resistant to the phrasing 'thrown down'. Tolkien himself uses it five times in the remainder of the work, in the same sense; not in the sense of having been lifted up and then thrown at the ground to break it, but in the sense of taking it from its current place and destroying it such that it is now lower: No-one could seriously expect anyone to be able to throw Barad-Dur, yet from RotK:
‘We must walk open-eyed into that trap, with courage, but small hope for ourselves. For, my lords, it may well prove that we ourselves shall perish utterly in a black battle far from the living lands; so that even if Barad-dûr be thrown down, we shall not live to see a new age.
Click to expand...
Also in RotK Saruman is thrown down, without anyone laying a hand on him.

Please don't confuse modern understandings of how light works with terms that were developed long before that understanding was gained.
As Corey has explained a number of times, it was once thought that light left the eye as part of the process of seeing, and our language is littered with examples of this way of thinking. We 'look out a window', we don't 'stand at the window and allow light from outside to strike the retinas'.

In the archaic sense, light leaving the eye to see something would be prevented by a shadow which would be thrown over the light like a cloak. Hence the sense of throwing a shadow is appropriate. Casting a shadow seems to be a much older turn of phrase ( a strong indicator of preference by Tolkien) with Form shadow, Throw shadow, and Project Shadow all being much less used in written works considered by the Google NGram Viewer.

In a shadow puppet show, the rear projection light is blocked from the screen by the puppets, and it would be most common to describe that as viewing the shadows cast on the screen. I believe this is the metaphor being used with 'our shapes cast shadows in their minds'.

In writing all of this I recognise that I've been drawn into another disproportionate discussion and have previously said much that has been left unaddressed and seemingly unconsidered, so I'll leave it at that.
 
Hi Anthony,

You seem to think I am arguing with you. I am not.

I agree that Tolkien most often uses 'cast down' as a metaphor for 'thrown down'.

I don't think I am being 'obtuse and resistant', but rather 'illuminating and exploratory'.

When an author uses poetic and metaphoric language, instead of straightforward description, we should wonder why.

  • It could be that the author is just thoughtlessly falling back on old clichés? Possible, but unlikely for Tolkien.

  • It could be that the author is trying to create a 'higher', more 'ancient' more 'epic' prose style? Very common for Tolkien.

  • It could be that the author is trying to layer levels of meaning into the sentence in a way that would not be easy with straightforward description? That is what I am trying to explore.
Here is a non-Tolkien example:

"The church bells of Europe were cast down to make cannon for the War."

A straightforward factual description would read: "Many church bells in Europe were taken down and melted to be cast into cannon for the war."

In this case, the poetic language layers many meanings into the sentence. The bells were not literally 'thrown' down from their bell towers, but the author is using this common cliche to indicate that though the bells were not violently hurled down physically, their removal was violent spiritually. The bells were melted down physically, not 'cast down', but here the sense of 'cast down' can be used in a novel way to mean 'un-made'. It has a slightly different sense than 'melted', as found substances such as iron ore, or sand can be melted down to make iron or glass, whereas 'cast down' might only apply to the unmaking of things that were previously crafted. 'Cast down' is also a play on one of the common definitions of 'cast' as to shape an object by pouring it into a mold in its molten state, which is what is going to happen to the substance of the bells when they are turned into cannon.

In the example sentence, the use of the phrase 'cast down' can imply that this action was a spiritual catastrophe in a way that the straight description does not. It can also question whether the unmaking of works of sub-creation is a good idea? Particularly when they are un-made to be re-purposed into works of more morally dubious intent.

It is particularly useful to explore the meanings of the word 'cast' when reading TLOTR. After the Council of Elrond the entire thrust of the story is to 'cast down' the Ring into the fires of Mt. Doom.

Of course, this means 'throw the Ring in the Fire!' But it also has other meanings. Chief among them is 'Melt down the Ring! Un-make it!" When the Ring is un-made, Sauron is un-made, and Barad-Dur is unmade.

This raises one of the interesting questions in TLOTR: What should we think about the 'un-making' of great sub-creations?

The Ring must rank as one of the most impressive sub-creations ever achieved in Arda after it's formation. The Trees, the Silmaril, the Sun and the Moon, the Ring (rings), the Palantir: what else counts if we focus after the formation of the whole world by the Valar?

Who has ever set out to deliberately destroy a great sub-creation hitherto? Only Melkor and Ungoliant, when they destroyed the Trees?

Yet now, the Council proposes to un-make a great sub-creation. Yes it is evil, but also 'beautiful' and 'precious'.

It is no wonder, that when TLOTR was published, many people thought that the Ring was an allegorical reference to the Atomic Bomb. Of all the great and terrible sub-creations of Man, that is the one that many people most wish could be un-made. (Of course, this interpretation was famously rejected by Tolkien).

So, Tolkien likes the word 'cast'. He uses it a lot. No wonder! It is a perfect word for the central theme of the story, which is to un-make the Ring by throwing it into the Fires of Doom. It is the perfect word, because it has more meanings than 'throw'. Although Tolkien uses it often just as a 'throw' metaphor, this is not by any means the only way Tolkien uses the word, and it is interesting whenever he uses it to see what other definitions might be implied.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top