I always get a kick out of seeing the internal workings of the "evil" characters in books like this. I want to learn about their motivations, about their power structures, about just how and why their evil plans are carried out. But, sadly, getting up close and personal with the run-of-the-mill henchmen of Sauron and Saruman in these chapters makes me wonder how Sauron, especially, got as far as he did with mooks like these on his side.
As Jacob astutely points out, most of these moronic orcs are just in it for themselves -- the Mordor and Moria orcs in particular. Power is something they've seen wielded by their superiors (Grishnákh's comments about the Nazgûl come to mind in particular; on that note, I can't remember if we've ever heard of the Nine referred to by this name previously, so the first-time reader might just be in the dark about what exactly Grishnákh is referring to there) and something that has been exercised over them, and so they want what they can't have; what the system is designed in a way so that they can never have. (Sounds like a variant of capitalism, doesn't it? Work really hard at obtaining what your "superiors" and "betters" already have, even though based on your birth and circumstances, it's not something you'll ever be able to attain!)
The trouble with this system, of course, is that the evil overlord will be betrayed in the first instance by his underlings. What would have happened if Grishnákh had actually gotten his filthy mitts on the Ring? His comments to Merry and Pippin seem to indicate that he would have taken it for himself, admiring comments about the Nazgûl notwithstanding. Of course, a little orc could never have really challenged Sauron himself, but it likely would have thrown a wrench in Sauron's works nonetheless, if to a lesser degree than if someone like Saruman had managed to claim it. I guess the Nine are more like physical extensions of Sauron's will than independent entities, but I guess it's hard for an evil overlord to find good help. Orcs are effective in numbers but they will betray you or run away in fear at the earliest opportunity if given half the chance.
Saruman's orcs, or Uglúk at least, do seem to be motivated by a twisted sense of loyalty or duty to Saruman himself. Uglúk states that they are "servants of Saruman the Wise, the White Hand: the Hand that gives us man's-flesh to eat." He genuinely seems to want to return the halflings to Saruman because Saruman was the one who created (bred? spawned from a test tube?) him. The Jackson films make explicit that Saruman is "breeding" an army in Orthanc, while the books leave it more ambiguous as to where exactly these "fighting Uruk-hai" are coming from. I wonder if Saruman somehow managed to instill this loyalty in the creation process, or if he really just does treat his orcs far nicer than Sauron does his orcs (as we see in later chapters, the Mordor orcs kill one another with glee and wild abandon, while these "Uruk-hai" seem fiercely united from start to finish).
I honestly don't have too much more to say about this chapter. Pippin doesn't have too much more going on in his head than was displayed in "Fellowship" from others' observations of him; I think it's telling that he still refers to Aragorn as "Strider" rather than by his true name. He at least has the foresight to plan their escape, but of course any kind of competent captors would have checked and double-checked his bonds multiple times a day. Merry comes across as rather dull thanks to his wounds, but he certainly does not hesitate to reassert his authority of his nitwit cousin once they are freed from the circle of Riders and need a place to go. As far as the orcs' operational procedures go, it's interesting to note the orc-drink as a twisted counterpart to the lembas from Lórien and the inspiring drink that Elrond gave Gandalf to help the Fellowship, and that the Moria orcs were recruited by Saruman but don't seem to have any particular allegiance to any great power without, shall we say, harsh motivation.
I know Tolkien is trying to say something about how greed and cruelty are the architects of their own destruction, which is something that a lot of evil overlords seem to have problems with in fantasy novels. It's something of a tired trope by this point, however, and it didn't do a whole lot for me this re-read. In any case, this kind of infighting will lead in part to Sauron's destruction in Book VI. And of course, if Sauron and Saruman had really worked together, they might have had a chance to stop the forces of Good. But of course Saruman could never really commit to just being a stooge; as Gandalf told Saruman, "only one hand at a time can wield the One." Poor Saruman. His game is already up at the end of this chapter -- he just doesn't know it yet.
I guess I haven't read near enough Fantasy for it to be a tired trope for me at this point, I suppose. And here I thought I had been insightful!
ReplyDeleteOh, don't worry, I'm probably just being overly critical -- This is probably my least favorite book out all all 6. Did you see my email on places to stay at Yellowstone? Thoughts on that?
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