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#1 | ||
Fading Fëanorion
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: into the flood again
Posts: 2,911
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Can I post something on topic?
![]() I don't think the sinking of Numenor was supposed to be a punishment. This seems to me to be an unexpectedly calculated action by Iluvatar. Who should it be a lesson to? Sauron? It was not very effective, then. The surviving Numenoreans and the other people of Middle-earth? I can't think so. What would the lesson be? A lesson of fear, of course. But Eru doesn't at one (other) time give me the impression of being a father who desired to be feared by his children. The other option seems to be that he destroyed Numenor out of wrath. But this seems equally unlikely, because, as has been mentioned, Eru doesn't give a wrathful impression anywhere else either. Quote:
What I don't understand is, why did Eru wait to take action until Manwe asked him to, and then decided he would need to deal out punishment / decided he wanted to be wrathful. Wouldn't he just have addressed Manwe's plea, which was only to protect Valinor? Where did this idea come from? Or did Eru make up his mind long before, but didn't want to realize his plan as long as it would undermine Manwe's authority? I'm not sure whether any of this makes sense. Let's have a look at the quote. Quote:
In the second paragraph, Tolkien gives a reason for the sinking of Numenor, being that "it was nigh to the east of the great rift". In other words, Numenor just happened to be in the way. This does not sound like its destruction was a prime intention of Eru. Now, one could ask, if he didn't want to destroy Numenor, couldn't he, being Eru, have devised a way to destroy Ar-Pharazon's fleet and remove Valinor without it? This is difficult to answer. Maybe Arda's geography really didn't allow it without a change to its laws of physics, who knows? But the feeling I get is that maybe Eru has simply ceased to care for Numenor. After all, the Numenoreans used to be the only people who didn't "just" worship the Valar primarily, but himself. I would say that Eru didn't really wanted to destroy Numenor - otherwise the blow would have been more direct, and the text passage wouldn't carry the feeling of collateral damage - but that Eru has grown indifferent enough towards it that it didn't matter to him very much anymore and if it had to be sacrificed to protect Valinor, then so be it. (I have to add that I haven't checked any passages from HoMe to check for different descriptions, so I could be rather wrong.) |
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#2 | ||
shadow of a doubt
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Back on the streets
Posts: 1,125
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Judging by the description in the Silmarillion Eru sees upon his creation much like a work of art and he wants it to be perfect and complete. To achieve this end, ugliness, suffering and evil deeds are just as important as beauty, goodness and pleasure, because without the former, the latter would of lesser value. Eru doesn't seem bothered at all by the suffering of individual people (or elves) in Arda and the millions of innocent drowned in Numenor is of little or no importance to him I believe. Eru sees the big picture. Perhaps good people get their reward in the after-life (the gift of men) but of this not a word is spoken in the books. What becomes of men when they die is a complete mystery. As for why Eru chose to destroy Numenor and remove Aman from the circles of the earth it is hard to say. Personally I feel that Tolkien thought not so much about Eru's inner motives and the theological implications when he wrote the story but rather about how good a story, or myth, it was, tying in with the Atlantis myth as it does. He probably pondered the theology as well, but imo this was more likely an afterthought and not the prime motivation behind the story. If I am to make a guess, I'd say Eru removed Aman for sentimental reasons. It was so pretty and he couldn't stand to lose it, and his buddies the Ainur.. Since men have the freedom to make their own destiny, he might have hoped that they would play nice and leave Aman alone or at least not ruin it. But as it was, men would inevetably ruin Aman had it been left reachable on earth. Perhaps men will eventually make a new paradise of Arda (I forgot what they called it in HoME X) but sooner (Ar-Pharazon) or later (modern air pollution and the plundering of resources) Aman would have been ruined, there's no doubt about that.
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#3 | ||||
A Voice That Gainsayeth
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: In that far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 7,431
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You should know that I smirked a little when reading this, because the note seemed just false to me. Eru, as far as I know, is addressed as "he" in the book, and so I would say he is "he", simply because there's no argument which would make us think we should call him "she" or "it", which is both as nonsens-ish, mind you. Why this seemed silly question to me is because Tolkien's books are a literary work we are given, and we have characters in them. You don't ask whether Frodo is "she", why should you ask the same about Eru. I hope it's understandable what I mean (the last sentence makes it pretty clear I think).
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"Should the story say 'he ate bread,' the dramatic producer can only show 'a piece of bread' according to his taste or fancy, but the hearer of the story will think of bread in general and picture it in some form of his own." -On Fairy-Stories |
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#4 | |||||
Fading Fëanorion
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: into the flood again
Posts: 2,911
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In the Silmarillion there are many deeds worthy of punishment by Eru, especially by Morgoth, yet he never comes to punish them. Why would Eru make such an exception? Why does he count the trespasses of those who are supposed to rule Arda in his stead less than the trespasses of his Children that live in it? Would it not make more sense the other way around? Quote:
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#5 | ||
A Voice That Gainsayeth
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: In that far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 7,431
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So, stemming from this, the destruction of Númenor, to me, doesn't look like the well-thought intervence of the omnipotent and omniscient creator, but rather the intervence of the omnipotent and omniscient creator who was asked by desperate King of Arda and heard his call. Something like "okay, you asked for it, so I will do it". And if I caricate it a little bit, he might have been saying: "All right, dear Manwë, I understand you. Yes, the course of the events is horrible, Men are going to violate Aman. I will remove the Undying Lands. *cough*itwilldestroynúmenorasitisontheedgeoftherif t*cough*" This is actually how I would imagine it.
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"Should the story say 'he ate bread,' the dramatic producer can only show 'a piece of bread' according to his taste or fancy, but the hearer of the story will think of bread in general and picture it in some form of his own." -On Fairy-Stories |
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#6 |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Ah, so we finally get the answer. The lesson was pointed at Manwe! I'm not sure what the lesson is, whether that he should have called on Eru earlier to solve some issues, or that he, being King of Arda, should NOT have ever needed to call on Eru.
Regardless, if we are polling, I'm going with Manwe.
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There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it.
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#7 | |
A Voice That Gainsayeth
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: In that far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 7,431
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__________________
"Should the story say 'he ate bread,' the dramatic producer can only show 'a piece of bread' according to his taste or fancy, but the hearer of the story will think of bread in general and picture it in some form of his own." -On Fairy-Stories |
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#8 | |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Lesson one - If Manwe sets aside his authority, run (don't walk) to the nearest submarine berthing facility, find one and set sail east as quickly as possible.
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There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it.
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