[Mithadan]

I do not believe that Turin's "curse" was a curse in the classic sense, meaning that Morgoth simply created an enchantment that followed Turin and his kin, causing bad things to happen resulting from the words he uttered themselves. I think that it was, instead, the result of specific attention and will being exerted by Morgoth. To quote some posts I made a little while back:

Until the publication last year of The Nature of Middle Earth (NoME), a significant essay by JRRT, Osanwe-Kenta, was only available in a limited fashion. Originally published in Vinyar Tengwar in 1998, this essay was available only to those who had a copy or could find it, or excerpts of it, on the internet. Osanwe-Kenta was known to many here, and I was fortunate enough to get a copy of that edition of the pamphlet shortly after it came out.

The essay, on its face and from a quick review, addresses mind to mind communication, primarily what we see at the end of LoTR during the post-war journey back north, when the bearers of the three Elven Rings converse in this manner after the Hobbits have fallen asleep. However, the essay goes much deeper than being a simple discussion of Elvish "telepathy." The essay touches upon the relationship of the "soul" (Fea) to the body (hroa), the "clothing" of Valar and Maiar in "bodies," and, applicable here, gives insight into the fundamental nature of Morgoth.

Osanwe-Kenta states that for minds to communicate without words, among other things, both the sender and the receiver must be willing participants. Osanwe can not be used when a participant is unwilling. This type of communication cannot be forced. Nor can information be "stolen" from another's mind without permission. For this reason, when Hurin was captured and brought to Angband, Morgoth could not simply look into his mind and take from him the location of Gondolin. Morgoth could physically torture Hurin or use Osanwe to pressure Hurin's mind or cause pain or distress. Morgoth could also use Osanwe to show things to Hurin (just as Gorlim, a member of Barahir's band, was "shown" an image of his wife to cause him to betray Barahir). But Morgoth could not simply take from an unwilling Hurin's mind the information he wanted.

So what does this have to do with Hurin's curse? The essay also discusses "axani" and "unati." Axani are rules or laws imposed by Eru. It would be an axan that one should not murder another. Unati are things that are impossible or cannot be done due to the nature of Arda. Among the unati is using osanwe against one's will. It cannot be done. Morgoth's nature, at least as he evolved, was to repudiate all axani and rage against all unati. Imagine Morgoth's fury when he could not take from Hurin the location of Gondolin. But he could use osanwe to pressure Hurin and his family and to deceive them or lead them astray.

Turin, Morwen and Nienor were willful and prideful. But these traits were subject to the influence of Morgoth, at least when his attention was focused upon them. Elsewhere on these boards, it has been speculated that while they were in Doriath, behind Melian's girdle, Morgoth could neither perceive them or directly affect them. But their temperaments had already been affected by Morgoth, and in their pride and willfulness, they left Doriath and became available to Morgoth's influence. This is how I believe Morgoth's curse worked it's way to fulfillment.

and

Morgoth did not undertake to influence or even kill Hurin, he chose to destroy him and his family. Hurin and his family were not merely shown images, whether false, exaggerated or subject to misinterpretation. They were the focal points of Morgoth's malice and influence, which, as I suggest above, was inexorable and beyond their ability to resist. At the end, Hurin was physically and emotionally a broken man, but he was not "perverted" as perhaps Saruman was. He did not, at least not intentionally, betray his old friends and allies. He did slay Mim (at least in some versions), which may have been wrongful though deserved. He was undeservedly scornful towards Thingol, at least until he was, to some extent, relieved from Morgoth's sway by Melian. But his disclosure of Gondolin's general location was not a knowing betrayal. Ultimately, his will was not broken.

However, I also noted:

The wording of Morgoth's curse is relevant here. There is a marked difference between what appears in the Silmarillion and what is said in the Children of Hurin (and, unfortunately, I cannot put my hands on Unfinished Tales right now). The Silmarillion barely summarizes the curse, stating that "Morgoth cursed Hurin and Morwen and their offspring, and set a doom upon them of darkness and sorrow..." This, on its face, might not extend past the family itself. In contrast, Children of Hurin sets out an extended dialogue between Hurin and Morgoth. In relevant part, Morgoth is quoted as follows:

Quote:
"But upon all whom you love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them down into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak, their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and death."

Maybe this explains why Turin and his family seemed to shed ill-fate like a duck sheds water?