What role do towers serve in The Lord of the Rings? As is everything within The Lord of the Rings, they don’t exist just to look pretty. Towers, as does most everything else, have their symbolisms as well. There are four towers in particular that I want to examine: Angrenost, Minas Anor, Minas Ithil, and Barad-dur.
There is, firstly, the role of towers as fortresses and outposts. Meant to be unassailable and impregnable, each tower serves a strategic purpose. Often, they are not only for defending, but for a related task, watching. Angrenost, to the northwest corner of Gondor, and better known as Orthanc, was kept by Gondor after ceding Rohan to the Northmen for its strategic value in guarding the mountain gap. Minas Ithil, later renamed Minas Morgul after its fall into the hands of the Nazgul, was built to keep watch on the lands of Mordor. Minas Anor, better known as Minas Tirith, kept an eye on both Mordor and Minas Morgul. Barad-dur, the tower of Sauron, was meant to keep an eye on… well, everything. It’s kind of what it’s known for, actually. It’s not just their height, however, that makes them useful for watching. Each of these towers housed one of the four palantiri of the South-kingdom, with the exception of the Master Stone, lost in the waters of the Anduin. The palantiri are seeing and scrying stones, used for communication and observation. They are linked to each other, and in so doing, the purposes of these towers are also inextricably linked. Apart from their looks, these towers might not be so different from each other as they might seem.
Towers also serve an aesthetic purpose. So, yes, part of their meaning may lie in looking pretty. Of course, Barad-dur is more ominous than Minas Tirath. At first glance, you might think “ah yes, Minas Tirith is good and Barad-dur is bad.” It is more than just that, however. We must consider the idea of artistry and sub-creation as well. Architecture is no exception. Comparing Minas Tirith to Barad-dur, there is a clear architectural difference in how they are presented. Minas Tirith, originally named Minas Anor, the Tower of the Sun, is marbled, resplendent, and strangely maritime in its construction. But Barad-dur is large and terrible, dark with its clawing spires. It is not to say that architecture is only present in one and not the other: both are certainly their own aesthetic styles. However, the architecture of Barad-dur is hostile, full of spikes pointing outwards and surfaces that, if it were a model, you wouldn’t want to touch with your bare hands. In contrast, the architecture of Minas Tirith is defensive, protective, seeking to guard whatever is inside its walls. As expressions of both artistry and goals, one conveys ambition while the other conveys guardianship. Towers reflect the mindscapes of their sculptors, and function as sub-creations under the created world of Eru and the Valar. Barad-dur reflects Sauron’s ambitions and greedy; Minas Anor the bastion of Anarion to guard against Mordor; Minas Ithil the resistance of Isildur and his fall; Angrenost the decline of the Numenor and the corruption of Sauron.
- CLP
1 comment:
Ah, the Towers! Yes, I can appreciate why you would meditate on Towers. I would have liked to hear more about the effects of the Towers on the characters in the story, and how their interactions play into the symbolism. One might also think about the drawings that Tolkien did. We have very few character studies (he wasn't good at human figures), but multiple drawins of Isengard and Barad-dur (which, in his drawing, wasn't spikey, but more Roman). Perhaps you were thinking primarily of the Towers as rendered in the movies? How does Jackson's rendering affect their symbolism as compared with Tolkien's? You make me thoughtful! RLFB
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