Sauron's lack of Death...

[Hookbill the Goomba]

A thought struck me last night while reading a bit of The Shadow of the Past. This is one of my favourite lines in Tolkien, but I think it says something about the whole drive of the narrative...

Originally Posted by The Shadow of the Past

"I am sorry," said Frodo. "But I am frightened; and I do not feel any pity for Gollum."
"You have not seen him," Gandalf broke in.
"No, and I don't want to," said Frodo. "I can't understand you. Do you mean to say that you, and the Elves, have let him live on after all those horrible deeds? Now, at any rate, he is as bad as an Orc, and just an enemy. He deserves death."
"Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends..."

While this is a famous line and certainly a favourite of many readers, I hardly ever really thought about it in regards to the rest of the story at large. Of course, it relates mostly to Frodo's relationship with Gollum and how that changes as soon as he meets him. But the point I want to discuss is how, in the end, Sauron is not killed, he is vanquished.

It seems an odd thing, doesn't it? They spend all this time and effort to destroy the ring, they go through war and hardship and in the end, no death blow is dealt to the enemy. Now, this probably has a lot to do with the fact that Sauron probably can't 'die', being a Miar. However, I still think it is an interesting point. So often in an adventure of this kind (evil tyrant seeks to destroy / take over world), the antagonist is killed by the hero. This is another way in which The Lord of the Rings differs itself from many others.
I can't help referencing The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe wherein the White Witch is ultimately killed by Aslan. Or His Dark Materials where god is killed or Harry Potter where Voldemort meets that same fate. Sorry if that's a spoiler for some of you.
But Sauron lives. Diminished, defeated; a lonely spirit wandering useless. But still 'alive' in some sense.

There seems to be a very personal angle to killing in the book, I've noticed. Those who the main characters kill are done so in close proximity. Gandalf's main point to Frodo is that he has not 'seen' Gollum. And when Frodo does, he has much more pity for him and spares his life. Whenever there is death in the story, they at least see the victim, it seems.

No one sees Sauron.

He is an invisible presence. Perhaps beyond pity, perhaps beyond reason. But still, he does not die.

Is there something about seeing, or meeting someone that Tolkien hold important in these instances? Sauron can only be judged on the actions his servants take, because he is not there any more. His servants die. He does not.

Discuss...