Spoilers, duh.
A number of people on this board and others like it have pointed out that disappearing magic is a standard fantasy, mythology theme as it is in LOTR, where the Elves must face that they no longer have power in Middle Earth, that it was fading.
So I was sitting watching The Daily Show, and it hit me that if the magic was really disappearing, what the hell was he fighting for and wanting the ring back? Well, the rings give power to preserve things and stave off that diminishing and end of magic, otherwise Sauron’s fight was pure folly.
So if Sauron wanted the ring and dominion of Middle Earth, he must have counted on some inevitability of his being invincible as the only one able to have this preserved power, there being too few Elves and far less Numenorean might to counter him.
But this power of preservation was the same thing that the Elves in Rivendell and Lothlorien were striving for, except for a different asthetic representation, one beautiful and good and another ugly and evil.
Combine this with Saruman’s speech to Gandalf that he loathes the coming age of men, and we see that the tragedy of the Elves is that their power will disappear.
So what is Morgoth’s and Sauron’s rebellion (and Saruman’s treason) about anyway? The end of their power and presence in the world and their desire to order things to their liking. This is a lot like what Galadriel is struggling with and also the Elves in general. So she really is quite right in her statements that she would be setting up herself as a Dark Queen and no different than Sauron. It is Illuvatar’s will that that kind of power be ended, and she submits to it, where Sauron and Saruman are destroyed by refusing to accept and fighting against it. So ultimately the rebellion of Morgoth et al is against the ages of Men and the other power’s capitulation to that idea.
‘One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.’
Sauron was a Maia, his power/magic wasn’t going anywhere. Sauron wanted The One Ring back because he put most of his power into it! He also wanted the ring back so he could enslave all of the people of Middle-Earth.
Morgoth and Sauron were around long before Men awoke. They are not rebellion against anything really. They were bad seeds to begin with. Their desire for power corrupted them further, and eventually they became evil, pure evil. Either that or they were pure evil from the get go.
But that begs the question of what is “evil” in Tolkein’s universe. I don’t have a copy of the book handy, but wasn’t “rebellion” just the word to describe the attitude of Melkor (i.e., Morgoth-to-be) in the Music of the Ainur? He tried to impose his own vision on Eru’s creation by introducing discord into the musical theme. Added to the prideful sacrilige committed by the Numenoreans, Sauron’s (IIRC) prideful refusal to reform himself after Morgoth’s fall, and the examples of Galadrial and Saruman mentioned above, and I would agree that the common denominator of “pure evil” as you put it is rebellion against the way the world is put together–which is the same as rebellion against God.
Back to the OP, the question posed here reminds me of The Screwtape Letters, written by Tolkien’s close associate C. S. Lewis. In that book, a fallen angel describes Satan’s rebellion against God as being precipitated largely by God’s plan to create hybrid animal-spirit creatures–i.e., men–which a pure spirit like Satan found rather revolting.
Yes, good points Doghouse. Melkor, from the very beginning, was rebelling against Eru’s grand plan as it were. Selfishness, greed, power; the overwhelming desire to change things to his own liking.
It should be added that Sauron was corrupted by Melkor, a lot like the Balrogs and Orcs were. IIRC Sauron was originally a “good” Maia of Aule’s people.
It is clear that Melkor was the root of all that is bad in the world of Arda. Was he evil from the start? I really don’t know. Nature versus Nuture, you decide.
I don’t really know if they idea can go too far, but I do think it fair to say that Tolkien (and Lewis, I am a bit embarrassed to admit I haven’t read the Screwtape Letters) felt that the problem of evil was worth spending some time on. I do remember that in The Silmarillion that Illuvatar says that no part of the song did not come from him, which Melkor/Morgoth interprets as a rebuke to him.
M’s rebellion begins in the song, and it is clear that he doesn’t like the direction of the themes, so he starts a dischordant one of his own that glorifies himself. He may be incidentally the enemy of the world, but he is directly the enemy of Men.
But if I may elaborate a little on the original point, then end of the Third Age becomes a choice for the Elves, who have many opportunities to take up the ring from Frodo: to preserve the stuggle that has ensured since the destruction of the two trees and the good and evil that come with it, eventually corrupting all the good by the preserving power of the rings through the one, or to graciously step off stage by seeking the destruction of the ring and their powers of preservation too. To make way for the Age of Men. While they like Aragorn just fine, Elves for the most part have nothing to do with Men, whose evil deeds are rather common compared to the rare Kinslaying events of the Elves through Feanor and sons. Saruman clearly thought and was in part persuaded by the fact that Men were capable of far more evil than he was. Again, I think that the exchanges between Gandalf and Saruman are stand ins for some of the rationale of Sauron and Morgoth, neither of whom get a single line in LOTR, although a few in The Silmarillion.
It might be interesting to look at Illuvatar’s words in light of the ongoing discussion of the Book of Job. If Melkor, Sauron, Saruman, Galadrial, and the others complained about the disappearance of what they perceived as strong and good in the world, would Iluvatar answer, " Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding"? Perhaps Galadrial ultimately could reconcile herself with this (non) answer and submit to the Creator’s unfathomable will, whereas Melkor and Sauron could not accept it and pridefully fought for their own vision.
