Were all the Sons of Feanor really that bad?

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Macalaure

None was evil. They did some rather evil things, enough to no longer make them able to touch a Silmaril, but that's not the same as being really evil. Without the Sons of Feanor, no Siege of Angband (or rather, a much weaker one) and no Union of Maedhros, although their deeds were also the cause for the Union's failure, so there's some good to outweigh their evil to a little extent, too.

Evil? Perhaps, perhaps not. Despicable, craven, haughty, savage? Those are the descriptions I would lay on their heads. If one eliminates the Oath of Feanor as an excuse, there are some evil deeds that cannot be explained away, save that these were some malignant elves.

Of the sons of Feanor, Celegorm seems the most malevolent. In addition to being involved in two separate Kinslayings, he attempted to murder Beren, tried to carry off Luthien (an attempted rape and forced marriage), and it was his servants who kidnapped Dior's sons, Elured and Elurin (and most likely murdered them). It was Celegorm and Curufin who spoke against Finrod and led to that noble elf's eventual death, and their continued malingering caused the weakening of Nargothrond, as well as the sapping of strength from the Union of Maedhros (Thingol, of course, would have nothing to do with the likes of Celegorm).

Ironically, Maedhros and Maglor eventually abandoned the Oath of Feanor, which was supposedly at the heart of all the murder, betrayal and death. One wonders about the level of free will inherent in these elves, and whether or not the chain of mayhem could not have been broken (there were elves of conscience who chose not to participate in either of the Kinslayings, after all). Had they the wisdom and the strength to stay the madness earlier, then perhaps Morgoth would not have destroyed all the great Elvish kingdoms of the 1st Age. Celebrimbror, Curufin's son, either defied the Oath or (most unlikely) was not forced to take it.