Home » Reading & Literature » J.R.R. Tolkien » Is That an Orc in Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy to Be Evil? - Page 4

Is That an Orc in Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy to Be Evil? - Page 4

© Michael Martinez

Would the land remember Orcs? Trees clearly do remember the evil worked upon them, and the creatures which work that evil. When Fangorn Forest rises up against Saruman the trees' cause is just, their grievances are clear and indelibly etched in their memories. The wood of Huorns which marches to Helm's Deep is wreathed in a palpable anger that alarms the Men who must ride through the unexpected forest which has come to their aid. But there seems to be no indication that the Orcs have so inflicted harm upon the land that the rocks would rise up against them. Instead, the Orcs tunnel under the mountains and work stone and metal to their will. They are cruel and methodical, but only to living things. It would not be right, perhaps, to say that Orcs have an affinity for Aule's domain, as the Noldor clearly do. But it may be appropriate to say that the Orcs ignore the land. They do not afflict it with malice. They hate all living things, but the ground beneath them is also beneath their notice. They do not feel the pulse of the Earth. Orcs seem to utterly lack ambition with respect to either the world or their own works. The Elves create artifacts, or systems of knowledge, and they imprint their thought in everything they make. Men acquire artifacts, or treasures, and they impose their will on all who dwell around them. Orcs dream of setting up on their own somewhere with a few trusty followers and engaging in a little raiding. They'll kill enemies they fear have grown too powerful, but they won't try to conquer vast tracts of land or alter the landscape. The chief expressions of Elvish achievement had to be Finrod's realm of Nargothrond and Turgon's city of Gondolin. The heart of Finrod's realm was his underground city of Nargothrond, modelled on Thingol's Menegroth. But Nargothrond was guarded by towers and fortresses in the north and hidden fastnesses in the south. One could not venture across Finrod's kingdom without sensing or encountering symbols of his power. Finrod's people transformed the landscape on a massive scale. But they so disguised or disseminated their works that the land seemed largely unchanged. Turgon's people, on the other hand, set themselves the task of reconstructing the memory of Tirion upon Tuna. And they constructed gates of gold and silver, and hidden paths, and blocked all passes into the valley of Tumladen. They utterly transformed the landscape of their hidden kingdom into an image of their combined desires. When Tuor looked out upon Gondolin, he could not help but be awed by the presence of the Elves' artistic will.

The copyright of the article Is That an Orc in Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy to Be Evil? - Page 4 in J.R.R. Tolkien is owned by Michael Martinez. Permission to republish Is That an Orc in Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy to Be Evil? - Page 4 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.