The Mouth of Sauron and the use of the Dark Lord’s name

Matt DeForrest

Active Member
The question came up, last class, about the minions of Sauron not being permitted to use his name conflicting with the Mouth of Sauron using it.

I did a quick electronic search of the text and couldn’t find evidence of any of his minions using Sauron’s name. Indeed, even Saruman won’t be using it in his exchange with Ganldalf (although Gandlaf does not use it either). They always speak of the Dark Lord or the Eye or, in Saruman’s case, the Power.

I suspect that the Mouth of Sauron getting to use the Dark Lord’s name is both a sign of his power and authority, which signals how big a deal he is, and that he is different. He is, after all, a willing participant rather than a thrall like the Nazgul are. It also highlights the cost. He has gained the authority to speak the name by losing his own identity — being reduced to (literally) Sauron’s mouthpiece.
 
Aragron mentions in when they are gathering the weapons of the Orcs/Urik Hai that Boromir slew:

‘I have not seen these tokens before,’ said Aragorn. ‘What do they mean?’
‘S is for Sauron,’ said Gimli. ‘That is easy to read.’
‘Nay!’ said Legolas. ‘Sauron does not use the elf-runes.
‘Neither does he use his right name, nor permit it to be spelt or spoken,’ said Aragorn. ‘And he does not use white. The Orcs in the service of Barad-dûr use the sign of the Red Eye.”

As Corey mentioned in class, there are exceptions to this rule. The Nazgul, for example, think about his name when they are fleeing Buckland — although who is narrating that scene is open to question and internal monologue is not the same as speaking the name of Sauron.
 
Alternate explanation, I guess, is that this is Arnorian legend and not necessarily true. Not a satisfying explanation.
As Aragorn spent many years campaigning in the south as Thorongil, it needn't be Arnorian legend.

If we allow ourselves to know what Sauron means (The Abhorred), as explained in the Silmarillion, we have what I think is a more satisfying explanation:
Sauron is not his 'birth' name, and is not a complimentary term. Therefore only the person assigned the right to speak on behalf of Barad-Dûr takes on the externally applied term; The reappropriation of the term being intentional in an attempt to cast the Dark Lord as a persecuted victim who has risen to overcome his bullies, rather than the long-term oppressor of the peoples of Middle-Earth.

It may be that in exchanges with other peoples he is 'The Mouth of Barad-Dûr'
 
I would be careful of basing any theory on the messenger being the Mouth of Sauron. That identification is not supported by the text. It's much more likely, that it's a Ringwraith. I think the ban on speaking his name is more likely to be something that was in effect before the Necromancer was discovered to be Sauron and removed to Mordor and re-established himself there, and Aragorn is working with out-dated information.
 
Last edited:
Thinking of the meaning of "Sauron", I find it odd the messenger would use this name. I think it would be more preferable to Sauron, that they used his original name, Mairon.
 
It could be that Gloin is paraphrasing. Perhaps the messenger actually said something closer to "The Lord of Barad Dur, known in your parts as Sauron the Great". It would be disingenuous or foolish to pretend that the moniker "Sauron" has not been applied, but you could talk around it without actually calling him directly by that name.
 
Back
Top