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Originally Posted by davem
WE learn a lot about Saruman in this chapter. We learn his true desire, & all his clever philosophising in his talk with Gandalf is exposed. He wants to be Sauron
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This is where we finally hear the narrator's absolute word on Saruman, and he tells us that he was indeed trying to be like Sauron. Until now, we've only heard via the voices of other characters what Saruman is all about. We've heard what Gandalf has to say about him at the Council of Elrond, and we accept this because we have grown to love and trust Gandalf, both through
The Hobbit and the early chapters of LotR. We also see something of Saruman's nature through the actions of Grima, and reports of his raids on Rohan. Then we see a little more of this to devastating effect at Helm's Deep. But it is not until now that the narrator steps in and tells us what he is like. And we still haven't even heard Saruman speak for himself.
This is wonderful character building, and dare I say it, Saruman comes across as far more sinister than Sauron because of this. He has met and dealt harshly with one of our most loved characters, and several other characters have had dealings with him. These are real, tangible events, unlike the dark, slightly mysterious psychological effects which Sauron has on his enemies. I also think it is testament to Tolkien's writing that he can have us invest so
much in characters like Gandalf and Theoden, that we are prepared to believe that what Saruman has done to them is diabolical, even though we have never yet 'met' with this character. This all sets the scene perfectly for
The Voice of Saruman, as we have heard all these tales, and now we have had the narrator himself step in and tell us just how terrible he is.