Orcs, Evil, etc. (Part 1)
Emmy Allen's posting about Orcs, Violence and Evil, got me thinking about this issue again.
So the following is probably less a response, and more a bunch of rambling thoughts inspired by it. Also, though I've read Lord of the Rings again recently, her Tolkien lore rating (and your own, dear reader) may be higher than mine, so with a grain of salt:
Big "E" Evil as Emmy's post characterizes it is a rare thing innate to certain alien non-person entities: a monomania or existential necessity for specific innately destructive or corrupting concepts, similar to other beings of alien mindset or more akin to elemental forces. I find this idea interesting, and have enjoyed stories where this was the case in the past. But reading the post gave me an urge to do a more in-depth compare and contrast of the idea against how evil and personhood appear in the Lord of the Rings trilogy itself.
Few of the powerful supernatural beings in LotR quite start out as monomaniacal alien/demon/elemental forces, though some seem to make their way in that direction. Even the "gods" seem to have human-ish capacity for free will and ability to relate to others, though maybe with different focus or restrictions. Those who become more monomanical (less "person-like") seem to do so as they abandon other concerns in search of control.
Sauron putting part of himself into the ring and Saruman spawning orcs and seeking the ring are the two main examples of this. But I think even the ring wraiths and barrow-wights hint at the idea: beings seeking to influence the world beyond their natural limits with no capacity to care about those they effect.
Shelob is the only creature I can think of who seems to have been innately alien-mindset-style Evil from the very start.
And the only being I can think of who is somewhat monomaniacal but without power-hunger or disregard for others is Tom Bombadil. He has a narrowly focused "alien" mindset, but just happens to inhabit a role not antithetical to most other being. Sort of an "elemental of this neck of the woods".
Other beings construed as "evil" are generally corrupted by secondary influence of the stronger beings lusting for power. Examples:
The Haradrim & Easterlings - Specifically these are human. At one point Frodo actually reflects on the humanity of one of the dead Haradrim, wondering what wants or fears drove him to come fight alongside Sauron's forces.
Smeagol - The supernatural power of the ring magnified his own initial base impulses over the centuries, but there are flashes of regret and kinder things even after this time.
Orcs - I've heard Tolkien went through different ways of thinking about them (goblin-men of The Hobbit or some form of "broken" elves). But in LotR itself, there a few trends in their portrayal:
So, in the context of LotR at least, orcs show some people-ish qualities. But it's also pretty clear that whatever innate drives or cultural norms they have make casual brutality normal and concern for those outside their group unheard of.
So the following is probably less a response, and more a bunch of rambling thoughts inspired by it. Also, though I've read Lord of the Rings again recently, her Tolkien lore rating (and your own, dear reader) may be higher than mine, so with a grain of salt:
Big "E" Evil as Emmy's post characterizes it is a rare thing innate to certain alien non-person entities: a monomania or existential necessity for specific innately destructive or corrupting concepts, similar to other beings of alien mindset or more akin to elemental forces. I find this idea interesting, and have enjoyed stories where this was the case in the past. But reading the post gave me an urge to do a more in-depth compare and contrast of the idea against how evil and personhood appear in the Lord of the Rings trilogy itself.
Few of the powerful supernatural beings in LotR quite start out as monomaniacal alien/demon/elemental forces, though some seem to make their way in that direction. Even the "gods" seem to have human-ish capacity for free will and ability to relate to others, though maybe with different focus or restrictions. Those who become more monomanical (less "person-like") seem to do so as they abandon other concerns in search of control.
Sauron putting part of himself into the ring and Saruman spawning orcs and seeking the ring are the two main examples of this. But I think even the ring wraiths and barrow-wights hint at the idea: beings seeking to influence the world beyond their natural limits with no capacity to care about those they effect.
Shelob is the only creature I can think of who seems to have been innately alien-mindset-style Evil from the very start.
And the only being I can think of who is somewhat monomaniacal but without power-hunger or disregard for others is Tom Bombadil. He has a narrowly focused "alien" mindset, but just happens to inhabit a role not antithetical to most other being. Sort of an "elemental of this neck of the woods".
Other beings construed as "evil" are generally corrupted by secondary influence of the stronger beings lusting for power. Examples:
The Haradrim & Easterlings - Specifically these are human. At one point Frodo actually reflects on the humanity of one of the dead Haradrim, wondering what wants or fears drove him to come fight alongside Sauron's forces.
Smeagol - The supernatural power of the ring magnified his own initial base impulses over the centuries, but there are flashes of regret and kinder things even after this time.
Orcs - I've heard Tolkien went through different ways of thinking about them (goblin-men of The Hobbit or some form of "broken" elves). But in LotR itself, there a few trends in their portrayal:
- All orcs seem to have a taste for general brutality or befouling anything the others find "beautiful". Is this a cultural quality or innate one? Some lingering influence of having served (or been slaves to?) dark forces in times long past?
- I can't remember any mention of non-combatants, kin or families. It is possible they don't have such groupings? They're produced through some vague "spawning" process, so possibly the parent-child bonding which strongly shapes mammalian and avian development isn't even a thing for orcs.
- Moria orcs - Independent creatures with enmity to all that seems to arise simply because they like to eat and obtain possessions and don't really value the life of others. Also, they might be influenced by the Balrog.
- Mordor orcs - Seem to like cruelty and jerkishness for it's own sake. But also among themselves have some measure of comradery (albeit tenuous). Possibly their outlook influenced by being continually dominated by Sauron for generations.
- Orthanc orcs - Fanatically obedient. Possibly most closely shaped by their creator's will (Saruman).
So, in the context of LotR at least, orcs show some people-ish qualities. But it's also pretty clear that whatever innate drives or cultural norms they have make casual brutality normal and concern for those outside their group unheard of.
One thing which I find interesting is how in Tolkein's work evil is almost contageous: everything seems to start out pure and innocent, and contact with powerful evil corrupts it. Orthanc's orcs are corrupted by Saruman, who was corrupted by sauron, who was himself corrupted by morgoth. All the evil in the world ultimately can be 'traced back' to morgoth. (except ungoliant and her spider children, who are weird).
ReplyDeleteRe-reading the chapters of LotR where merry and pippin are captured by saruman's orcs, I remember being surprised by how nuanced their portrayal was; how these aren't just monsters, but still basically people.
I've never managed to plow far into the Silmarillion, so all my knowledge on ancient stuff in the setting is pretty much based on wiki entries and some old hardcover Middle Earth mini-encyclopedia.bWith that caveat:
DeleteMy impression is that even Morgoth started out more peeson-like and only got to his eventual state through an increasing obsession with control without regard for harmony with others.
Ungoliant's corruption seems a little murky to me. Various things I've read suggest she might be a primeval force of Darkness and sided with Morgoth in rebellion. But other things seem to view the Darkness as a manifestation of Morgoth's rebellion itself.
So, kind of a chicken-egg dilemma. Not sure if Tolkien clarified anywhere, or if it's one of those mysterious numinous things that defy causal explanation.
I agree about the orcs. I'd forgotten until the recent reread the different factions with Piping and Merry and their contrasting outlooks. I also thought the apparent mix of friendship and animosity between Morgul Vale orcs and Barad-dur orcs gave interesting insight into their mindset.