Skip to main content

the lord of the rings - If Sauron had won, would the Valar have intervened?


In the First Age, when the Elves first awoke and were terrorized by Morgoth, the Valar came to help as soon as they learned of it, defeated and captured Morgoth.


When the Noldor went against the will of the Valar and followed Morgoth to Middle-earth, and were eventually defeated by him, the Valar listened to Eärendil's pleas and began the War of Wrath, defeated and captured Morgoth.



So if Gandalf and Frodo had failed, would Sauron really have had complete dominance forever? Or would the Valar have intervened again? If not, why? Is it because in Arda Marred, the Valar are not able and/or willing to directly intervene anymore, and sending the Istari was all they could do?


Are there any statements in Tolkien's writings about this?



Answer



Most likely not.


The Valar didn't really directly intervene since bringing the Elves to Valinor and the first capture of Melkor; they were essentially powerless during the events leading to the capture of the Silmarils and the Flight of the Noldor, they sent a lesser representative (Eonwe) to lead the War of Wrath (the relevant chapter of the Silmarillion is quite careful to always mention "the host of the Valar" rather than "the Valar", and has Eonwe cast in a quite definite decision making/judgemental role), and even the downfall of Numenor was not an intervention by them - it was a case of "for that time the Valar laid down their government of Arda".


There was also the small matter of the Music of the Ainur - in particular the fact that the initial vision was taken away before the end: "and some have said that the vision ceased ere the fulfilment of the Dominion of Men and the fading of the Firstborn; wherefore, though the Music is over all, the Valar have not seen as with sight the Later Ages or the ending of the World". In other words, it's quite clearly inferred that by the time we get to the end of the Third Age and the War of the Ring, the Valar very probably just do not know what Eru's intention actually is - intervention on their part would have been a huge risk; they may be going against the intended destiny of the world, and for all they knew a victory for Sauron may have even been the event that precipitated the Dagor Dagorath. Big mistake to try prevent that!


(All references the published Silmarillion.)


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

How do Pokemon trainers collect their winnings?

According to Bulbapedia , Prize money is the money that a Trainer pays out at the end of a battle. So we know that the money comes directly from the trainer that just lost, and not some third-party committee or sponsor. But how is this done? It can be easy seeing the random trainers who challenge you along the way wanting to wager and then, after admitting defeat, sticking to their word and handing over their hard-earned pokebucks. Then there are the likes of Team Rocket and Giovanni, who also give money once they lose. This doesn't seem like something people in a criminal organization would willingly do. From this it appears that trainers have no say in whether or not they cough up the dough after losing, but I can't find anything on how exactly the funds are transferred from loser to winner. So how do Pokemon trainers receive their winnings?
Post a Comment
Read more