Reading and Interpreting the Works of J.R.R. Tolkien by Clinton Greg

Author:Clinton, Greg [Clinton, Greg]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Enslow Publishers, Inc.

A simple story that is intended to teach a lesson or moral.

The Fall

For Tolkien, all stories involve a fall from grace, a disruption of primal perfection, a conflict that must be confronted or resolved. “There cannot be any ‘story’ without a fall—all stories are ultimately about the fall—at least not for human minds as we know them and have them.”27 When he refers to “the fall,” he is alluding to the Christian myth of the rebellion of Lucifer, who is cast out of Heaven and establishes his dominion in Hell. “The fall” can also allude to Adam and Eve being cast out of paradise, an analog to Lucifer’s arrogance and independence. As easy as it might be to connect the Christian “fall” with Tolkien’s cosmogony, he insists that his are “different in form ... to that of Christian myth. These tales are ‘new,’ they are not directly derived from other myths and legends, but they must inevitably contain a large measure of ancient wide-spread motives or elements.”28 Just as the gods fall away from union with Ilúvatar, the elves fall away from Valinor through their own rebellion, and men are similarly corrupted by Sauron’s tempting influence into attacking Valinor directly, after which they are prohibited from sailing West. Tolkien argues:

[T]he Downfall is partly the result of an inner weakness in Men—consequent, if you will, upon the first Fall, (unrecorded in these tales), repented but not finally healed. Reward on earth is more dangerous for men than punishment! The Fall is achieved by the cunning of Sauron in exploiting this weakness. Its central theme is (inevitably, I think, in a story of Men) a Ban, or Prohibition.29

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