Myths Transformed

Morgoth's Ring

Part One: Ainulindalë Part Two: The Annals of Aman Part Three: The Later Quenta Silmarillion The First Phase Of the Valar Of Valinor and the Two Trees Of the Coming of the Elves Of Thingol and Melian Of Eldanor and the Princes of the Eldalië Of the Silmarils and the Darkening of Valinor Of the Flight of the Noldor Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor The Second Phase The Valaquenta The Earliest Version of the Story of Finwë and Míriel Laws and Customs Among the Eldar Later Versions of the Story of Finwë and Míriel Of Fëanor and the Unchaining of Melkor Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor Of the Darkening of Valinor Of the Rape of the Silmarils Of the Thieves' Quarrel Part Four: Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth Tale of Adanel Part Five: Myths Transformed

Myths Transformed is the fifth and the last chapter of Morgoth's Ring. It gives us a glimpse on radical changes J.R.R. Tolkien conceived regarding the legendarium. Of arguably the utmost importance of the work is the complete change in the vision of the cosmology of Eä. The Round World version of the Silmarillion is probably the best example. Other then that, the section deals with the problem of the origins of the Orcs. As such, the majority of the chapter is written in relatively brief notes and jottings, with not a few of the texts left unfinished.

Introduction

As put before in the opening part of the text, Tolkien had come to have considerable doubts about the "Flat World" developed by him earlier, on which the basis of The Silmarillion, published posthumously, had drawn its source. He considered it "primitive" and unfitting that a myth written in the second millennium would have such a foundation. So he embarked on a quest of rewriting The Silmarillion on a wholly different level.

The Sun (and the Moon) before the Trees

When Ilúvatar created Eä, which in this context, means the entire universe as we see it now, with other Ainur governing the different parts of it, He gave a gift to Varda, a holy light, which Varda set in the Sun - the heart and the holiest place in Arda (which here means the entire Solar System), and gave it to Arien to protect and guide.

However, Melkor, after the war with the other Valar (of whom Tulkas had no place in the making of the World), desired the light of Arien and the otherworldly Light that was placed in the Sun. So he offered her to make her his spouse and to share this gift with him, but she refused and afterward he ravished her so that some say that her spirit left Eä altogether and the Holy Light was no more.

Afterwards, however, he was scorched and black, and as he desired light before, now he desired only darkness, and the light hurt him.

But this was not the end of the malice of Melkor, for he in secret came to the North of the Ambar (Earth). In the defiance of Melkor, who now only came forth at night and in the bittermost north, and would soon turn the night into his own domain and cover it with fear, the Valar made the Moon so to brighten the world that was slowly turning to Melkor's own.

The Significance of the Two Trees

Before Melkor ravished Arien, the Valar have managed to capture some of the Primeval Light that Ilúvatar put into the Sun at the beginning into the form of the Two Trees.

Awakening of Elves and Men

The Eldar worshipped Varda above all other Valar, as it is said in The Silmarillion, but in this version of the legendarium Varda didn't kindle the stars, for her power was limited to Arda alone.

So the significance of the "People of the Stars" was in that, though the World was always sunlit, that after Melkor somehow darkens the Earth, cutting off all vision of the sky, Manwë with his wind, blows away all the occulting clouds that Melkor wrought, so that precisely at that moment when the stars are again visible, the Elder Children of Ilúvatar awaken.

Also, the Awakening of Men is set much earlier, somewhere between Y.T. 1050 and Y.T. 1100 (considering the fact that Melkor managed to corrupt the hearts of Men before he was besieged in Utumno).

Valian Years

It is explicitly said that one Valian Year = 144 solar years. Tolkien proposed the idea that the Ainur and the Elves have similar life "cycles"; in other words their passage of time is different from that of Men. That is also one of the reasons why the Elvish long year (yén) is equivalent to the Valian Year. According to Tolkien, Ilúvatar arranged such a symbiosis between the two "immortal" kindred.

Problems arise when calculating, for example, the Flight of the Noldor, which took about 5 Valian Years. That would be about ~700 years according to the long count, from the murder of Finwë to the coming of Fingolfin to Beleriand. However, Tolkien said that the time passes "slowly" in Aman, so that the passage of 1 Valian Year to an Elf in Aman would seem like a one solar year for a mortal. That is also one of the reasons of the Ban of the Valar, so the Númenóreans would not get into a temptation of sailing to the "Immortal" Lands.

The Chaining of Melkor

This version of the story differs significantly in some of its details, but in the end the outcome is the same. The War for the Sake of the Elves is seen more as a desperate attempt at diversion of the forces of Melkor from the March of the Eldar. For in the beginning Melkor was second only to Ilúvatar in might and potency and the Valar expected (along with the lesser spirits he corrupted) an almost undefeatable foe.

However, when the host of the Valar and the Maiar marched to Utumno, they were surprised by how weak the stronghold is. Manwë himself could barely recognize his brother, Melkor, the spirit of power; for he has fallen so low, due to dispersing most of his essence into the matter of Arda and the corruption of other spirits, that he became bound to the very world he was trying to conquer, and so suspectable to imprisonment.

And so it happened indeed: Melkor fell to his knees, feigning repentance and desiring to go to Valinor along with the host that had attacked him; for so he thought that he could find vengeance against those that had humiliated him.

But it was not so...for though he was taken to Valinor, and he wasn't even chained (although Tulkas clinked the Angainor behind his back all the way to Aman), he was still judged and imprisoned in the Halls of Mandos for three ages. Ages later, at the end of the War of Wrath in F.A. 590 he wasn't just thrust out into the Void. He was beheaded, literally, and his impotent spirit fled outside the Time and Space.

Of the Origin of the Orcs

Evolution of the origin of the Orcs (or Orks, as Tolkien himself prefered) is complicated and Tolkien, apparently, didn't settle his mind on their nature.

In The Silmarillion we hearsay that they were bred from the captured Elves, and by slow arts of cruelty became what they are now.

In his latter writings, though, the Orcs are said to be mere puppets of their Lords, namely Morgoth and Sauron with the addition of some Orc-shaped Maiar (Boldog being a prime example of such a being).

Nonetheless, in his final writings, Tolkien speculated that the Orcs surely must come from Men, seeing as their fëar are weaker than that of the Elves. In addition Saruman bred Orcs (who already claim descent from Men; and perhaps some of the lesser Maiar) with Men, thus creating "Half-orcs".

So this is perhaps the last word of Tolkien on this subject.

Conclusion

Many (if not all) of the myths from this chapter are at odds with all the other Tolkien's works, and forming a consistent narrative with the rest of the mythology is very difficult to say the least.

Still, this chapter gives us an interesting and sometimes confusing material considering the mythology of Tolkien.

Notes

There are allusions to the world being round from the beginning in the Volume IX of The History of Middle-earth.