Feanor and Maedhros - My favourite Silmarillion characters
Who is my favourite Tolkien character? Silmarillion is rich with tragic characters, but whose tale moved me the most? I find it a bit difficult to choose one from among them. There are two candidates primarily - Feanor and his son, Maedhros.
I like Feanor because of his artistic skill and, most importantly, his arrogance. I have even devised a new phrase - 'Feanorian arrogance' which I consider synonymous with 'enlightened arrogance' (sounds oxymoronic, I know). He had reason to be arrogant. He was far too skilled and gifted than others. I like such anti-heroes, such as Darth Vader of Star Wars. Such characters have a mysterious, unfathomable element in their personalities.
Some regard Feanor as nothing more than a mad-man. But think like this: Feanor's rebellion was obviously part of Iluvatar's plans for Ea. If it hadn't been for him, the Light of the Two Trees would have been lost for ever. If it hadn't been for him, the Noldor wouldn't have returned to Middle Earth, and Men wouldn't have received the gifts of art and music from them. If it hadn't been for his actions, the three beautiful unions of the mortal and immortal would never have happened. If it hadn't been for him, his grandson Celebrimbor would not have created the three great Elven rings of the "Lord of the Rings".
In short, without Feanor there is no Silmarillion and Lord of the Rings! It is the fruits of Feanor's madness that we see throughout the First, Second and Third ages in Middle Earth. He is undoubtedly the greatest Elf in the legendarium on account of his skill and influence in shaping the history of Middle Earth.
The other contender is Feanor's eldest son, Maedhros the tall. His tale is one of honesty, nobility, bravery, resilience and yet, replete with fallibility and the inevitable tragedies that arise from it. He is my image of a true male, a true son, a man of word. He remained steadfast to the commitments he made to his dying father. He must never have satisfied his father with his soft nature and warm-relationships with the Houses of Fingolfin and Finarfin. His inability to please his father must have weighed upon him for all his life. He probably decided to redress this when his dying father commanded him to assume the leadership of the House and continue the battle. He remained true to his word till the end, even when his death seemed certain due to it. He knew that the battle was hopeless. He knew he was on the wrong side and that he was doing things which he shouldn't be doing. But the weight of the Oath and his commitment to his dead father over-ruled everything else.
His story is also one of resilience. He had to endure horrific tortures at the hands of Morgoth. He was hung on his right hand for many, many days from the sheer face of a cliff. His spirit nearly broke down when Fingon found no way of rescuing him. But after his rescue and recuperation, he displayed a surprising strength of will. He learned to fight with his left hand instead of the maimed right hand. It is said that he wielded his sword with this left hand with even greater power and ferocity than he ever did with his right hand.
Despite all this, he ultimately failed in his mission. He had to commit sins and inflict cruelty on others, though his heart was bleeding all along. But he never went back on his words. He never failed his father till death. Eonwe knew his fate when he allowed Maedhros and Maglor to escape with the Silmarils. Eonwe, and all the Valar for that matter, were powerless to prevent what fate had in store for Maedhros, the former High-King of Noldor in Middle-Earth who was also the only one to relinquish the title in favour of another.
I like Feanor because of his artistic skill and, most importantly, his arrogance. I have even devised a new phrase - 'Feanorian arrogance' which I consider synonymous with 'enlightened arrogance' (sounds oxymoronic, I know). He had reason to be arrogant. He was far too skilled and gifted than others. I like such anti-heroes, such as Darth Vader of Star Wars. Such characters have a mysterious, unfathomable element in their personalities.
Some regard Feanor as nothing more than a mad-man. But think like this: Feanor's rebellion was obviously part of Iluvatar's plans for Ea. If it hadn't been for him, the Light of the Two Trees would have been lost for ever. If it hadn't been for him, the Noldor wouldn't have returned to Middle Earth, and Men wouldn't have received the gifts of art and music from them. If it hadn't been for his actions, the three beautiful unions of the mortal and immortal would never have happened. If it hadn't been for him, his grandson Celebrimbor would not have created the three great Elven rings of the "Lord of the Rings".
In short, without Feanor there is no Silmarillion and Lord of the Rings! It is the fruits of Feanor's madness that we see throughout the First, Second and Third ages in Middle Earth. He is undoubtedly the greatest Elf in the legendarium on account of his skill and influence in shaping the history of Middle Earth.
The other contender is Feanor's eldest son, Maedhros the tall. His tale is one of honesty, nobility, bravery, resilience and yet, replete with fallibility and the inevitable tragedies that arise from it. He is my image of a true male, a true son, a man of word. He remained steadfast to the commitments he made to his dying father. He must never have satisfied his father with his soft nature and warm-relationships with the Houses of Fingolfin and Finarfin. His inability to please his father must have weighed upon him for all his life. He probably decided to redress this when his dying father commanded him to assume the leadership of the House and continue the battle. He remained true to his word till the end, even when his death seemed certain due to it. He knew that the battle was hopeless. He knew he was on the wrong side and that he was doing things which he shouldn't be doing. But the weight of the Oath and his commitment to his dead father over-ruled everything else.
His story is also one of resilience. He had to endure horrific tortures at the hands of Morgoth. He was hung on his right hand for many, many days from the sheer face of a cliff. His spirit nearly broke down when Fingon found no way of rescuing him. But after his rescue and recuperation, he displayed a surprising strength of will. He learned to fight with his left hand instead of the maimed right hand. It is said that he wielded his sword with this left hand with even greater power and ferocity than he ever did with his right hand.
Despite all this, he ultimately failed in his mission. He had to commit sins and inflict cruelty on others, though his heart was bleeding all along. But he never went back on his words. He never failed his father till death. Eonwe knew his fate when he allowed Maedhros and Maglor to escape with the Silmarils. Eonwe, and all the Valar for that matter, were powerless to prevent what fate had in store for Maedhros, the former High-King of Noldor in Middle-Earth who was also the only one to relinquish the title in favour of another.
Labels: Tolkienism
posted by Maedhros at 9:12 AM
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