Being the chief villain of the Second and Third Ages, Sauron sparks numerous questions concerning his motives. How did he become the evil figure we know him to be? Why did he run the risk of transferring a great amount of his inherent power into the One Ring knowing that it could lead to his destruction? Let us look at his downfall and motives through Tolkien’s own stories and letters.
…Barad-dûr, the Dark Tower, which suffered no rival,
and laughed at flattery, biding its time,
secure in its pride and its immeasurable strength.
(Two Towers, p. 192)
Just like Angband in the First Age became the citadel of Morgoth — the embodiment of evil and the Dark Lord’s tyranny in Middle-earth, so did Barad-dûr rise to fill its place in the Second and Third Ages as the fortress of Sauron. In many ways the Dark Tower of Mordor, built by once Morgoth’s most trusted lieutenant, became the descendant of Angband, sharing traits with it, but also being the reflection of Sauron’s own power, character, ambitions and evil. Read more
The fairest of all Children of Ilúvatar, Lúthien is not an ordinary character. Being the daughter of an Elf and a Maia, she inherited various traits of both kindreds. Among many of her gifts and skills singing was one of the most exceptional. However, when it comes to talking about Lúthien’s singing, we should bear in mind that hers was not renowned just for being done in a beautiful voice. Lúthien’s songs possessed special power.
The closing chapter of Roverandom is a good example of a happy turn of events when you least expect it. Moreover, it is where we can see the results of Rover’s moral journey and how he has changed over the course of the story.
Chapter 4 is the longest one in Roverandom. It takes our dog, as he becomes Rover for a while again, on the next leg of his journey and to an absolutely new place: down to the bottom of the ocean.
In chapter 3 Roverandom’s adventures take a new turn. He gets a chance to explore the place on the Moon none has seen before. As a final stage of his stay there, it gives him a very interesting perspective and shows the dark side of the Moon, in both meanings of the word “dark”.
In chapter 2 of Roverandom the enchanted Rover embarks on the first leg of his journey and travels to the Moon. The chapter is full of new experiences and meetings for Rover, as well as mythological and folkloric references.
It is interesting how a dwelling place often matches the personality of its dweller. It is very often that an inhabitant imparts their own character to the place they live in, so the place becomes very much like the person that inhabits it. Once we look at Farmer Maggot and his farm, we see how well the similarities between the house and the dweller show. The Farmer is as perfect for Bamfurlong as Bamfurlong is perfect for him.
Rover’s adventures begin one day when he plays with his yellow ball outside and bites a wizard for taking the ball, which is not to the dog’s liking. The animal’s misfortune is that he has not got the slightest idea that the man is a wizard because “if Rover had not been so busy barking at the ball, he might have noticed the blue feather stuck in the back of the green hat, and then he would have suspected that the man was a wizard, as any other sensible little dog would; but he never saw the feather at all” (Roverandom, p. 41-42). Being really annoyed, the wizard turns Rover into a toy dog and his life turns upside down.
