Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Nogrod
But why the southern brand of the Númenorians waned so much earlier? I think we come to Tolkien's "northern conservatism" here again (and how far is it from nazism and the stuff like it? I'm really concerned and interested in this one?).
|
Careful where you go with this... Tolkien, it is true, was a devoted "Fan" of Nordic culture, but he did not have the Nazi view of Northern superiority...
Quote:
|
People of the north had to endure hard climate and were morally purer than their southern counterparts. That's all nonsense of course (if we think of RL parallels), but probably was pretty serious stuff for J.R.R. himself. But it is no wonder that it would have been just this way. Think about the opposite and see for yourselves... Mordor in the west, the "land of the spirits" in the east, the villains as white people, the heroes as black, women taking charge...
|
The thing though, is that the people of North were NOT more morally pure than those of the South. While we are not given as close a view of the North as we are of the South, the division of the kingdom after the reign of Eärendur, and following petty squabling between Arthedain, Cardolan, and Rhudaur- and indeed, the alliance of Rhudaur with Angmar- is no better or more pure than Gondor and the Kinslaying, for example, except that Gondor always managed to keep itself intact in the end.
Perhaps the longevity of the Isildur's Line is somewhat Biblical in the concept, a sort of a special blessing passed down from Eldest Son to Eldest Son- rather similar to the blessing Isaac received from Abraham, and which Esau was cheated out of by Jacob.
Of course, Valandil was Isildur's fourth son... but his line was the elder. Just a thought...