In the novel The Children of Hurin by J.R.R.Tolkien, the main theme is the “sorrowful consequences of war”. These consequences are depicted through the betrayal of allies, loss of friends and relatives, and death of their friends. This novel reveals a tragical life of Turin, Son of Hurin, who lost his father in a battle of “Nirnaeth Arnoediad” (Tolkien,56), The Battle of Unnumbered Tears, lost his mother and sister due to the departure to elves’ castle Menegroth, lost his friends due to the slayer of them, and in the end killed himself because he could not bear the guilt and sorrow of his deeds. Thus, all this evidence portrays that the theme of this novel is the sorrowful consequences of war between powers of Morgoth, “Elder King” (Valar-God) (64) and armies of elves and men.
The tragical story of Turin Turambar and his family starts with the capture of his father Hurin. After the defeat in Nirnaeth Arnoediad, powers of Morgoth captured Hurin and brought him to the fortress of Morgoth, Angband, “Therefore the Orcs grappled Hurin with their arms; and ever their numbers were renewed, till he fell buried beneath them. Then Gothmog (orc captain) bound him and dragged him to Angband with mockery” (60). After the arrival to Angband, Hurin mocks Morgoth, “Blind you are, Morogth Bauglir (The Constrainer), and blind shall ever be, seeing only the dark” (62). Morgoth becomes infuriated because of this and curses the kin of Hurin, “But upon all whom you love my though shall weight as cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak, their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and deat...
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...ism, in this novel, is reflected through the stone throne in which Morgoth sets Hurin as a punishment for his mockery, “He (Morgoth) set him (Hurin) in a chair of stone upon a high place of Thangorodrim (Mountains of Tyranny), from which he could see afar the land of Hithlum in the west and lands of Beleriand in south. Morgoth standing beside him cursed him again and set his power upon him, so that he could not move from the place, nor die, until Morgoth should release him” (65). Hence, stone throne portrays sorrow, suffer, torment, torture, pain, and inescapable agony. The stone throne also symbolizes punishment which one receives if he or she defies God. Thus, J.R.R.Tolkien uses symbolism of throne in this novel in order to show that one should not defy God or he will be punished and to show that one’s wrongdoings will lead to his eternal and inevitable suffering.
In Tolkien’s lecture, “Beowulf: The monsters and the Critics,” he argues that Beowulf has been over analyzed for its historical content, and it is not being studied as a piece of art as it should be. He discusses what he perceives the poet of Beowulf intended to do, and why he wrote the poem the way he did. Tolkien’s main proposition, “it was plainly only in the consideration of Beowulf as a poem, with an inherent poetic significance, that any view or conviction can be reached or steadily held” (Tolkien). He evaluates why the author centers the monsters throughout the entire poem, why the poem has a non-harmonic structure, why and how the author fusses together Christianity and Paganism, and how the author uses time to make his fictional poem seem real. He also discusses the overall theme of Beowulf and other assumptions of the text. To support his viewpoints, Tolkien uses quotations and examples from the poem, quotations from other critics, and compares Beowulf to other works of art. Tolkien discusses several statements in interpreting Beowulf as a poem.
The paper will begin with a look at the life of Tolkien. This will serve the purpose of providing some context for the novel. Looking into the life of Tolkien will also serve to give the reader some insight into the mind that gave birth to such a rich land and why the novel may have some importance for sufferers of mental illness. Next will likely be a short summation of the
In contrast with Beowulf’s concrete depictions of good versus evil, The Odyssey focuses more on the gray areas of punishment and revenge. A main theme throughout the poe...
“Out of the Great Sea to Middle-earth I am come. In this place will I abide, and my heirs, unto the ending of the world,” states Aragorn upon his victorious return to Minas Tirith (Tolkien 946). This moment marks the culmination of years of trial and toil for Aragorn as he strived to regain his kingship; yet, throughout his existence, he remained the epitome of the chivalric hero and maintained his kingly qualities in secrecy. In J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, the character of Aragorn is just one of many examples of chivalry Tolkien utilizes to create his “mythology for England.” Tolkien also does not just limit himself to this one example of medievalism in his novels. The concept of feudalism is also present at pivotal moments of the novels and aids in structuring the governmental workings of Middle-earth. Both of these aspects of medieval England can be found in numerous places throughout Tolkien’s works including in the bonds between characters, in the heraldry of the various kingdoms, in the sacred ceremonies and high language of characters, and in the personalities and actions of the characters, themselves. Together, in The Lord of the Rings, these two aspects of medieval England blend together beautifully to create the sense of depth, history, and weight Tolkien strived to achieve in his works.
Tolkien, J.R.R.. “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Frodo’s experiences are universal to humankind. For some, a fight against your own evil that tries to bring you down can relate to both Frodo and the humankind. Facing challenges and tasks that you may not w...
Throughout the Iliad the warriors' dream of peace is projected over and over again in elaborate similes developed against a background of violence and death. Homer is able to balance the celebration of war's tragic, heroic values with scenes of battle and those creative values of civilized life that war destroys. The shield of Achilles symbolically represents the two poles of human condition, war and peace, with their corresponding aspects of human nature, the destructive and creative, which are implicit in every situation and statement of the poem and are put before us in something approaching abstract form; its emblem is an image of human life as a whole.
The Hobbit shows J.R.R. Tolkien’s belief in the ancient heroic tales of the Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian epics. He asserts that a being goes through many adventures with the help of friends who believe that anything can happen. Tolkien reveals how bravery and courage make ordinary individuals succeed at ordinary tasks.
J.R.R. Tolkien can be considered the founding father of the genre fantasy. Most of Tolkien’s texts revolve around the same themes. An author will often write about important messages that pertain to society as a whole. His texts often have hidden messages that relate to his themes. In the fantasy novel The Hobbit and novella “Farmer Giles of Ham”, J.R.R. Tolkien demonstrates that possession ears to overconfidence, greed and selfishness.
Warfare is a prominent theme in Beowulf . The reasons and conduct for and during warfare are mentioned and displayed throughout the poem. The reason for warfare is usually for retribution. As an act of revenge, battles are fought. The conduct is also very standard and prevalent. All warfare fought by honorable men had to be fought fair. If the opposing side bore no weapons, then the other side also used no weapons. The author of this poem depicts himself/herself to be an advocate of warfare. By idolizing Beowulf because of his heroic deeds during warfare, the poet makes armed conflict courageous and noble.
The relationships between parents and their sons in the Iliad are not relationships we expect to see in today’s society. The Iliad portrays the relationships between fathers and sons as something more than just physical and emotional. It is based on pride and respect for one another. The expectations of their son are more so to pass on their fathers reputable name and to follow in their father’s footsteps of being noble warriors. These relationships are the driving forces in the Iliad, making each son in the Iliad identifiable first by their father’s name. An outcome of the father–son relationships is ancestral loyalty among the characters which play a prominent role in war. Therefore, not only does the Iliad share a major war story, but the strong relationships among fathers and sons, ancestral loyalty among characters, and relationships between mothers and sons.
...t religious undertone, like in the themes of redemption and forgiveness. Those that follow the example of Jesus by acting as a servant or sacrificing their own life, are the heroes of Tolkien’s epic.
Beowulf is the conventional title of an Old English epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in Scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature due to the fact that it is the oldest surviving epic poem of Old English and also the earliest vernacular English literature. Tragedy and epic have been much discussed as separate genres, but critics have not hesitated to designate certain characters and events in epics as tragic. For the most part, they have assumed or asserted an identity between epic and dramatic tragedy. Even in The Odyssey, Penelope and Telemachus suffer enough to rouse their deep passions and to force them like the tragic sufferer to consider their own predicaments in the world they live in. C.L. Wrenn wrote on Beowulf, “A Germanic hero is a tragic hero, who shows his highest greatness not alone in winning glory by victory, but rather by finding his supremely noble qualities especially in the moment of death in battle” (Wrenn 91). Beowulfs hubris, the representation of wealth as a profiling characteristic for the villages, and Beowulf’s ability to find his might in his moment of “death,” all show the very nature of the poem which defines it as not only an epic poem, but also a tragic one.
Beowulf, being Tolkien’s biggest inspiration in The Lord of The Rings, is the prime example of Anglo-Saxon Literature. Written anonymously, it is the oldest surviving epic poem in history. The Anglo-Saxon time period thrived on the heroic codes of Honor, Strength, and Bravery. The warrior, Beowulf himself, exemplified this heroic code...
One of the oldest and most prominent issues that mankind has faced throughout history is that of their own mortality. In every society mankind has wrestled with the inevitable problem of their eventual death, and literature often reflects each society’s take on their mortality. For instance one of the most pronounced motifs in the epic poem Beowulf is the impending doom that each and every character knows will eventually come for them. This is most clearly illustrated by the protagonist himself in his dialogue with other characters. It is also perpetuated by the compelling need for glory and renown that many of the characters continuously search for. Lastly, the issue of mortality is presented by the preeminence of the history of the clans