Worship, Language, and the Liturgy

  One of Tolkien's most stunning innovations seems to be his ability to create fairy in a manner which retains its alignment with christian theology while incorporating an understanding of the real mythos in the great works of English Heritage. It seems that for Tolkien Language exists as a form of a roadmap to an understanding of that which is holy. Language itself therefore becomes a format of subcreation. On this blog a post raises the question of whether “worship” in Tolkien's framework is evil due to the fact that the word is only used in negative contexts throughout the books. While the post continues in an analysis of Tolkien's concept of “following” which in some way demonstrates an alternative to “worship”. Furthermore this piece examines how true and noble reverence is illustrative of the key role of free will in subcreation. Thinking about this problem led me to think about Tolkien's naming of his gods and the power of language and names throughout Tolkien relative to the problem of what worship constitutes. In his project, Tolkien acts as a reverent sub-creator in naming and following preexistent lists of names that once within them held a story. Furthermore, in attempting to reconcile this problem with Tolkien's understanding of the reality of his stories which he insisted existed not only within the world as he created them but within the words which he drew from. Language is a consistently fluxing phenomenon and Tolkien understood it as such, however it also seems that for his universe, words possess a latent power and might themselves be considered worship.  

    We might start with the fact that Tolkien's philology is by nature not secular, and it might be helpful to, in lacking an understanding of a field which has essentially died in the modern godless present by comparing it with new ideas regarding Language. Philology has been replaced by more critical methods of the analysis of language. In particular the emergence of a completely atheological understanding of the interconnectedness of words seems to have hints of Tolkien's understanding of subcreation, insofar as that linguistic relationships seems to very clearly be illustrative of the idea that names and words themselves contained multitudes and might only be understood by the way the weave together with others in a web of intricacies. Essentially this idea would fully legitimize the understanding presented by Tolkien that within words there are worlds which are both grounded and their own. However, to Tolkien the subcreation of these worlds themselves would be an act of divinity. Rather than a corruption and a twisting as is illustrated by the acts of Melkor, it instead acts as something holy and transcended. As such, the names themselves as presented in the Valquenta, have power and this is where Tolkien very clearly bifurcates from the more modern presentations of linguistic analysis insofar as he seemingly finds that certain points within language contain a divine richness. Even in the reverence with which names are dealt with in the stories convey this. The summoning of ages past and the communication of relationships are not the only thing that words hold for Tolkien, but these microcosms that modern theories mainly seek to analyze are present within Tolkien  “mr. frodo” is the easiest example. Furthermore Tolkien does much better as shows us a world contained in words, and his fascination with the naming of gods and that ephemeral sensation. Rather than attempting to logically and rationally explain such a phenomenon Tolkien attaches it to the material world through the divine. 

The practice of saying names and the presence of songs is an essential component of not only Tolkien’s storytelling method, but also the manner in which the plot unfolds. The beauty of Sam's song stands tall in the tower of art, and also communicates what Tolkien's vision of worship might actually be. The liturgy here becomes useful. In essence the reason that the liturgy is such an important element of Christianity is that it is what retains and fuels the presence and faith of god. The action of reading and of song, are holy within this framing. The liturgy and act of language also intersect with Tolkien's project of the sub-creation of a mythology for England. The main manner in which christianity existed and persisted within the creation of England was through the continual recitation of the psalms and this core practice of Christianity. Language contains holiness and it is in this framework  that we can better understand what Tolkien sees as worship. The practice of subcreation through language exists in a striking parallel with the ideals of the bringing of Glory to God displayed within the early English mythos. Absent the images of a dying and martyred Christ, Anglo-Saxon iconography shows a noble Christ on the throne in glory and power adorned by the beauty of God's creations. In such a manner, Tolkien's worship is the practice of the power within those words, the act of song was a spiritual experience, and maybe the earliest one possible, the act of sub creation is that in echoing of the creative processes of beauty from their roots, unlike the theft of the lights, words function as paths and echoes of gods glory, and the worlds we make from that are as real as the transcendent nature of godliness itself. For Tolkien, speech itself becomes mighty words that have magic. How do we make stories and songs real? By telling them, guided by the path and practice of linguistic beauty.

Acting in the dark: Kierkegaard and Free Will in Middle Earth

The concept of free will underpins everything in Tolkien’s sub-creation. As I already mentioned in my last blog post, there is a reality to Middle-Earth existent so profound that it is rivalled by few other stories across literature. This may seem an overstatement, that writers such as Kafka, Dickens, and Orwell cannot offer the same all-encompassing sense of life as a writer of fantastical stories, but we must think about the fundamental central assumptions that they carry.

We know Kafka for his intensely dark, surreal psychological themes; Dickens offers incredibly nuanced social commentary; the works of George Orwell focus on modern politics and the possible effects of systems. However, when we think about Lord of the Rings, the answer does not come so quickly – is it simply a fun adventure story? Is it a tale of good and evil? Is it some sort of allegory for the Great War and Britain’s history? Is it the product of the invention of a language? Is it something else altogether? There are evidently so many layers to Tolkien’s work that it becomes impossible to reduce the story (or any of its constituent parts, for that matter) to one singular interpretation. This is because the only true assumption Tolkien makes is that of Free Will. As Professor Fulton Brown showed us, Tolkien shows that “if you have free will, everything will follow” (Prof. Fulton Brown, discussion on April 27th 2026). The reason for such a claim is because Free Will is the most fundamental underlying assumption we (or at least a lot of us) have about life. It is the anchor upon which the great ship humanity has built through civilization, wars, technology rests. Indeed, Tolkien – in a letter he ultimately never sent – writes that “I tried (…) to make visible and physical the effects of Sin or misused Free Will by men” (Letters, 290). So, misused Free Will – which implies (and Tolkien explicitly writes that about two sentences later) the necessity of Free Will – finds itself at the core of The Lord of the Rings.

But what does it mean for characters to have free will? Do they not simply act at the whim of their author? Well, Tolkien claimed that “in order that [free will] may exist, it is necessary that the Author should guarantee it, whatever betides” (Letters, 290). In The Lord of the Rings, we are shown the characters’ free wills by their choices. The importance of choice, without perfect knowledge or control of its consequences, is paramount. All the characters of The Lord of the Rings are faced with choices they must make of their own accord, for only it is only in their independent choosing that they have free will. During the Council of Elrond, for example, the Lord of Rivendell makes this clear as he cautions Frodo about the implications of his choice to take the Ring, saying that “‘it is a heavy burden. So heavy that none could lay it on another. I do not lay it on you. But if you take it freely, I will say that your choice is right.’” (LotR, bk. II Ch. II) In the same speech, Elrond exclaims (with regard to Frodo becoming the ring bearer): “‘Who of all the Wise could have foreseen it? Or, if they are wise, why should they expect to know it, until the hour has struck?’” (LotR, bk. II Ch. II) Thus we see that there is no inevitability in Middle Earth. Elrond, an ancient, noble Eldar who has the gift of foresight himself is taken aback by Frodo’s choice.

Here we already see wisdom and structure in Tolkien’s thought. Rather than acting as a dominating master (such as Melkor), he shows the reader: Behold your free will, and what comes of it! Similarly, Frodo chooses to cross the river in the breaking of the fellowship and make for Mordor on his own. Here, Tolkien shows us, very subtly, a clear instance of free will in the story – as Aragorn contemplates that “‘[Frodo] is debating which course is the most desperate, I think,’” (LotR, bk. II Ch. X), we see the dilemma Frodo is having in real time, trying to decide what path to take, knowing that he cannot turn back. This introduces yet another integral facet of Tolkien’s understanding of free will – the lack of foreknowledge.

This made me think of a famous quote by Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. The nineteenth century Christian existentialist wrote in his journal: “It is really true what philosophy tells us, that life must be understood backwards. But with this, one forgets the second proposition, that it must be lived forwards.” We do not understand what the future brings; that knowledge is an impossibility for humans. Thus – remembering our Free Will – we must choose to act righteously, not to fall into temptation or complacency, without fully understanding the implications of our actions. Tolkien expresses this beautifully in his poem Mythopoeia, in which one stanza reads:

Blessed are the men of Noah’s race that build

Their little arks, though frail and poorly filled,

And steer through winds contrary towards a wraith,

A rumour of harbour guessed by faith.

We must act following a faith that the Good will prevail, although we cannot know it for certain. Again, we encounter Kierkegaard, whose famous ‘leap of faith’ concept – that we must live believing in a Good despite lack of reason or evidence – is embodied frequently by the Fellowship. Gandalf explains this to Frodo in Bag-End, saying that “all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us” (LotR, bk. I Ch. II). There is no possible way for Frodo to ascertain the future (which, very understandably, fills him with fear), and yet he chooses to act in a manner that reflects a deep moral faith and duty.

In this sense, Tolkien’s Middle-earth is not merely a world of myth, but a narrative of the human condition itself. Like Kierkegaard’s individual, Tolkien’s characters must act without certainty, choosing the Good without guarantee of its triumph. It is precisely this burden – and dignity – of free will that makes Middle-earth feel so real: its inhabitants do not simply inhabit a story, but confront the same moral and existential demands that define our own lives.

 

—EP

Good and Evil: The Strength of the Sauron’s Will

            In Chapter 5 of The Road to Middle-Earth, Shippey analyzes Tolkien’s portrayal of good and evil throughout LOTR through two different schools of thought. The Boethian view posits evil as something internal, the absence of good in a person, calling evil beings (such as Trolls or Orcs) a “perversion rather than a creation”, a “counterfeit” version of the real, good thing (respectively: Ents and Elves). The Manichaean view posits evil as an external force, equal and opposite to good, that everyone must fight back against—Sauron, for example, whose will all the protagonists of LOTR must in their own way resist. Ultimately, Shippey shows that Tolkien allows space for both schools of thought, leaving many aspects of the story open to interpretation. Either view of evil is plausible in his world, and this mirrors our modern reality, wherein evil does seem to take both forms, arising from within every one of us as well as from external forces.

The question of free will is always relevant in the discourse between good and evil, but it is specifically even more relevant when looking at Tolkien’s work, which focuses so heavily on the strength of one’s will. While there are many literal fight scenes, a lot of the conflict between good and evil actually takes place through spiritual battles, of two characters’ wills. For example, the Palatiri provide a direct connection between two users; when used to communicate with Sauron, the strength of the user’s will directly impacts their response to the magic. Saruman succumbs entirely, becoming Sauron’s servant; Denethor retains his mind but his perspective is warped subtly over time until he sees evil’s victory as an inevitable future; and Aragorn, true King of Gondor, has such a strong will that he can look into the Palantir, into Sauron’s soul, and not only retain his mind but even bait Sauron into thinking a new Ring Lord is rising up against him.

A similar battle of wills, between evil (Sauron) and good, takes place within the One Ring. The Ring is the ultimate source of power in Arda; whoever puts it on can use it as a weapon and will inevitably win the war, thus gaining the dangerous and tantalizing power to shape the resulting world according to their vision. The specific power of the Ring does not seem to fall neatly within the realms of creation or sub-creation but rather emphasizes control over another: as stated in lecture, the power lies in the ability to dominate another’s will. Despite being the manifestation of evil, Sauron’s will is one of the strongest of any character in the LOTR, which suggests that strength of will and morality do not always necessarily align. When Frodo’s will finally fails at the brink of Mount Doom, succumbing to the evil persuasion of the Ring (and Sauron), Tolkien does not characterize this as a “moral failure” (Letter 246). Frodo has a lot of virtue, but something about Sauron’s will is strong enough to overwhelm even the most “good” and virtuous of wills. Perhaps it is the simple allure of power, a desire within all of us that doubles as a seed of evil—this is in line with the Boethian view of good and evil, and following this line of thought further implies an internal battle of two halves of the Ring bearer’s wills, the good versus the evil. Sauron’s will factors a little less into this resulting fight—even so, it is undeniable that Sauron’s will is extremely powerful, persuasive, and dangerous.

The strength of Sauron’s dark will, to me, is really made manifest in Tolkien’s references to “enslavement.” Enslavement is the most extreme form of domination of one will over another, subjugating the slave until they are no more than mindless puppets. When Gandalf first introduces the Ring’s power to Frodo in Book 1, he says that if “the Dark Power [Sauron] overcame the Shire,” then all of the hobbits would become “enslaved.” When the Ring is at last destroyed, cast into the flames of Mordor, Tolkien writes of Sauron’s army:

            “The creatures of Sauron, orc or troll or beast spell-enslaved, ran hither and thither mindless; and some slew themselves, or cast themselves into pits, or fled wailing back to hide in holes and dark lightless places far from hope. But when Men of Rhun and of Harad, Easterling and Southron, saw the ruin of their war and the great majesty and glory of the Captains of the West. And those that were deepest and longest in evil servitude, hating the West, and yet were men proud and bold, in their turn now gathered themselves for a last stand of desperate battle. But the most part fled eastward as they could; and some cast their weapons down and sued for mercy.” (928)

            “Spell-enslaved” implies a magic derived from language; in Tolkien’s world, magic and language and power are all inextricably linked. The keyword here, though, “enslaved,” implies that Tolkien’s army was unable to give consent to his domination of their wills. This seems like a contradiction: one must give consent, in some form, to be persuaded by an external voice, no matter how magical. However, once that consent has been given, can it be freely revoked, especially under a fear-based system of domination such as the one Sauron implements in Mordor? The reactions of most of Sauron’s army after Sauron’s defeat imply that it was Sauron’s will alone that animated them, and once it is gone, their own wills have dwindled so much over the years of subjugation that they are now incapable of thinking on their own. Thus they are deemed “mindless.”

            There are, however, some exceptions: Tolkien describes the corrupted Men in Sauron’s army who do break free from Sauron’s will and decide to continue to fight anyway as “proud” and “bold”. These are adjectives one might commonly associate with noble, good characters—“bold” in particular is similar to brave, or courageous, in meaning, and we have already established that, in Shippey’s words, “courage is perhaps the strongest element in the Tolkienian synthesis of virtue.” Bold, however, is not the exact same as courageous, despite being related; in the same vein, the men of Sauron’s army are not the same as the men in the West, despite both fighting on the ground in this war. The “proud and bold” men continue to obey Sauron’s orders even after Sauron has died; in this way Sauron’s power, the ability to persuade others into siding with him, lives on (briefly) beyond Sauron in his not-creations, but perversions. 

—AY

The Corruption Process of the Ring

  The One Ring serves as a corrupting force throughout the entirety of The Lord of the Rings. What does this corrupting process look like for the ring bearer? What are the long-term effects of bearing the Ring? How does the Ring affect different people in different ways? The Ring wears down its bearer over time and uses traits already possessed by the bearer to corrupt them.

The Ring itself is inherently evil. Elrond says this himself, stating, “‘It belongs to Sauron and was made by him alone, and is altogether evil. Its strength, Boromir, is too great for anyone to wield at will, save only those who have already a great power of their own. But for them it holds an even deadlier peril. The very desire of it corrupts the heart’” (348). According to Elrond, since the Ring was forged by Sauron, it took on Sauron’s characteristics. When someone bears the Ring, they are taking on some of Sauron’s evil into their lives. This evil is powerful, and only the powerful can wield the Ring. However, the evil is still very much present and leads to corruption. Even though Sauron made the Ring, the Ring can act independently. Gandalf tells Frodo, “‘A Ring of Power looks after itself, Frodo. It may slip off treacherously, but its keeper never abandons it. . . . But as far as I know Bilbo alone in history has ever gone beyond playing, and really done it. He needed all my help, too’” (73). The Ring’s power and independent will is so strong that no one seems to fully let go of it, for even Bilbo only left it behind under particular circumstances. This shows how difficult it would be to destroy the Ring, since the Ring would not wish for itself to be destroyed. This essentially forces the corruption process on the ring bearer.

Books I and II of The Lord of the Rings give insight into how Bilbo was affected by the Ring. When Gandalf explains how Bilbo found the Ring and spared Gollum, he says, “‘Be sure that he took so little hurt from the evil, and escaped in the end, because he began his ownership of the Ring so. With pity’” (78). Bilbo’s pity reveals his character prior to being a ring bearer. Gandalf believes that because he started with good morals, this slowed some of the effects of the corruption of the Ring. This could also be why he was able to give it up at all, since some of the previous ring bearers killed the former bearers to take possession of it, but Bilbo began his ownership with the complete opposite action. This does not mean Bilbo was unaffected by the Ring, however, as Frodo observes, “To his distress and amazement he found that he was no longer looking at Bilbo; a shadow seemed to have fallen between them, and through it he found himself eyeing a little wrinkled creature with a hungry face and bony groping hands” (302). Bilbo still felt the effects of the Ring long after having given it to Frodo. The Ring is addictive, and this allows Frodo to later have a better understanding of Gollum.

        Gollum’s character was also taken into consideration when he gained ownership of the Ring. Gandalf recounts, “‘He was very pleased with his discovery and he concealed it; and he used it to find out secrets, and he put his knowledge to crooked and malicious uses. . . . The ring had given him power according to his stature’” (70). Gollum was not previously a powerful figure, but the Ring did take advantage of his characteristics to further corrupt him. The phrase “according to his stature” suggests that the Ring led Gollum to do evil in the simple ways that he could. However, Gollum was not fully consumed by evil. The Two Towers presents a fascinating moment in which Gollum has a brief moment of redemption before reverting back to his conniving ways: “For a fleeting moment, could one of the sleepers have seen him, they would have thought that they beheld an old weary hobbit, shrunken by the years that had carried him far beyond his time, beyond friends and kin, and the fields and streams of youth, an old starved pitiable thing” (935). This removed the evil from Gollum for a brief moment and revealed a tired, pitiable hobbit. The use of the word “hobbit” gives Gollum his personhood back and shows an opposite reaction to Bilbo. Bilbo had a fleeting moment of evil, whereas Gollum had a fleeting moment of good. The Ring’s hold is incredibly strong on a bearer even after it has been lost, but it is still possible for hints of morality.

        Frodo’s corruption by the Ring is gradual over the course of The Lord of the Rings. It starts innocently by thinking a lot about it or putting it on a couple times, but by the time he is about to reach Mount Doom, there is a particular instance in which he threatens Sam and “A wild light came into Frodo’s eyes. ‘Stand away! Don’t touch me!’ he cried. ‘It is mine, I say. Be off!’ His hand strayed to his sword-hilt” (1225). By the point Frodo refuses to give up the Ring in the Cracks of Doom, he is fully taken by it. Frodo at the beginning of the story would not threaten to attack Sam under any circumstances. At one point, Sam views Gollum and Frodo fighting over the Ring as “A crouching shape, scarcely more than the shadow of a living thing, a creature now wholly ruined and defeated, yet filled with a hideous lust and rage; and before it stood stern, untouchable now by pity, a figure robed in white, but at its breast it held a wheel of fire. Out of the fire spoke a commanding voice” (1234). Gollum is the crouching shape that has been very eroded by the Ring, yet still has a burning passion to get it back at all costs. Frodo is the powerful figure with a wheel of fire and a commanding voice. The Ring has given him power over Gollum and turns Frodo into something completely unrecognizable to Sam. This is right before his refusal to give up the Ring, and this shows how much he has changed over the course of the story. 

        The Ring is evil, powerful, independent, and is only fit for Sauron. Anyone else who uses the Ring inevitably succumbs to its influence. It erodes a person’s character and desires, but this can be slowed by having a strong moral character prior to bearing the Ring. Bilbo, Gollum, and Frodo all have vastly different journeys with differing results but also common threads.

-KW

Tolkien’s Metaphysics

What I find far and away most intriguing about Tolkien’s treatment of Sauron is that he does not merely give the Dark Lord a name, but a voice—an utterance that is itself a kind of magic. In The Lord of the Rings the very sound of Sauron’s words can be felt in the marrow, a resonant echo that reaches even to the hidden halls of Dol Guldur. Yet this is only one strand of a richer tapestry in which Tolkien’s philological sensibility and his belief in the creative potency of names intertwine with a world that is capable of producing physical objects of power. The One Ring, the Palantíri, and the many swords forged by the Elves are not mere artefacts; they are embodiments of word‑power made manifest in matter. From this duality we can read an argument that words are more than labels, that the essence of beings in Tolkien’s universe is partible, and that such partibility invites us to reconsider the Aristotelian notion of actuality in light of a world where form can be reshaped by name and craft.

Tolkien saw names as linguistic scaffolding on which reality is understood and conceived, which his philological work cannot have but emphasized. In this sense Sauron’s voice, is not simply a narrative device but an operation that transfigures the world (literally, in many senses, as when the world darkens when his name is mentioned). The words, imbued with the very essence of his malice, become a conduit for fear and domination. The Sindarin, “Lammen Gorthaur,” make him quite literally the “Voice of the Abomination.”

This is not an end in itself. “The magic of Faërie is not an end in itself, its virtue is in its operations,” Tolkien reminds us. The power of Sauron’s voice lies not merely in the fact that it exists but in its effect: to corrupt, to manipulate, to command. The voice is a tool of sub‑creation that works in tandem with the physical objects he creates or controls. Thus, while Sauron’s words are a form of “magic,” they are an instrument whose purpose is to create (or, in some perverse sense, create by destroying). 

But Tolkien’s world is not limited to the linguistic. He also created a material culture in which objects can hold power. The One Ring, forged by Sauron in the fires of Mount Doom, is a tangible manifestation of his will. It contains a portion of Sauron’s own power, an echo of his voice that is bound to the metal. The ring does not merely represent Sauron; it is a vessel through which his voice can be felt even when he is physically absent. The ring’s power to corrupt, to bind, and to dominate is a direct translation of the linguistic potency of Sauron’s name into a physical form.

Similarly, the Palantíri—those seeing-stones—are objects that allow communication across distances. They are not merely tools; they are conduits of influence, channeling the words and intentions of those who wield them. When Sauron looks into a Palantír, he is not merely seeing; he is speaking across the stone, his words becoming a force that can be felt by those who peer into it. Thus, the physical objects in Tolkien’s world are not passive; they are active participants in a network of word‑power.

If words can shape reality and objects can embody word‑power, then the essence of beings in Tolkien’s universe must be partible. In The Silmarillion we see that the Elves, though created by Eru Ilúvatar, possess a capacity for sub‑creation that allows them to shape their own destinies. The fact that Sauron can carve his voice into the One Ring, and that Frodo can wield the ring to influence others, suggests that essence is not a fixed, monolithic property but a malleable one. The very act of naming or crafting can alter the essence of an object or being.

Aristotle’s metaphysics distinguishes between ousia (essence) and hylē (matter). In a purely Aristotelian view, the essence of a thing is immutable; its actuality is merely the realization of that unchanging form. Yet Tolkien’s world suggests a different trajectory: essence can be reshaped by the application of words and craft. The One Ring’s essence is not purely that of a simple metal band; it is the essence of Sauron’s will, condensed and made tangible. The essence of a ring can be changed if the ring is destroyed or if its name is altered—think of the destruction of the One Ring, which severs Sauron’s link to his own essence.

This has interesting implications for the modification of actuality. In Aristotelian terms, actuality is the state in which potential becomes real. In Tolkien’s world, the potential for power within an object can be actualized through the act of naming or crafting. The ring’s potential to corrupt is actualized when Sauron’s voice imbues it; it is also diminished when the ring is destroyed. Thus, the Aristotelian chain of potentiality to actuality becomes a dynamic process that can be altered by linguistic and material intervention.

Tolkien’s treatment of Sauron offers a rich case study in the interplay between language, matter, and essence. The Dark Lord’s voice is a magical operation that does not exist in isolation but functions within a broader system of word‑power. The physical objects he creates—most notably the One Ring—are not merely artefacts but embodiments of that power, channels through which his voice can be felt even in his absence.

These observations invite us to reconsider the Aristotelian notion of actuality. In Tolkien’s universe, the essence of a creature or object is not immutable; it can be reshaped by name and craft. The process of sub‑creation—whether through the forging of a ring or the naming of a place—transforms potential into actuality in ways that Aristotle would have found both familiar and novel.            

 —NH