Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Silmarillion, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Unity vs. Division
Fate, Doom, and Free Will
Pride and Arrogance
Greed, Jealousy, and Obsession
Inevitable Loss
Myth and Memory
Summary
Analysis
Though many men fall under the influence of Morgoth, the Edain aid the elves during the War of the Jewels. After Eärendil the Blessed brings the Valar to Middle-earth, the evil men that fought for Morgoth flee east and become the kings of the men wandering there. Some of Morgoth’s monsters remain to torment the men and some of his servants still do his work in Middle-earth.
Once again, though Morgoth has been defeated and removed from the world, his influence and corruption remain. Many of Morgoth’s servants escape the Valar’s attack in the War of Wrath, and there will always be those willing to do evil in Arda, for their own gain or otherwise.
Themes
The elves that travel west with the Valar settle on the Isle of Eressëa and build a city called Avallónë. The three faithful houses of men are rewarded by the Valar, taught by Eönwë, and given longer life than other men. Ossë raises up a land near Valinor for them to live in. They sail from Middle-earth, following Eärendil’s star to reach it, and call it Númenor. They rename themselves the Númenóreans, or the Dúnedain, and Elros is their first king.
Despite the pollution of evil remaining in the world, the survivors of Beleriand thrive in a united world and in friendship with the Valar. The faithful elves and men are permitted new opportunities to rebuild after the destruction of their kingdoms in Beleriand—the elves close to the Valar, and men in the sea between the two continents.
Themes
While “light and wisdom” fade from Middle-earth because of Morgoth’s servants, the Dúnedain thrive in friendship with the Valar and the elves. They build ships and enjoy sea-faring, but the Valar forbid them from sailing west out of sight of Númenor so they aren’t tempted to find Valinor or covet immortality. At that time, the Valar remain visible and active in the world, and the elves of Tol Eressëa visit Númenor frequently, bringing them Celeborn, the White Tree descended from Telperion, as a gift. Because of the ban on traveling west, some of the Númenoreans sail east and return to Middle-earth to lead and teach the men there.
The Valar may remain active in the world, but by removing most of the elves and the three Houses of men from Beleriand, they once again leave Middle-earth to descend into corruption. The Númenoreans, caught in the middle and not permitted to sail to the righteousness of Valinor, take it upon themselves to tend to Middle-earth, sailing there instead to spread their wisdom. The elves, with the freedom to sail wherever they choose, act as a link between Valinor and Númenor.
Themes
Under Númenor’s guidance, Middle-earth heals and grows more righteous. But, as their power grows, the Númenoreans begin to want to go west and be immortal like the elves and the Valar. Manwë sends messengers to the Dúnedain to explain that Ilúvatar decided the fate of men and intended for it to be a gift. It isn’t a worse fate than the fate of the elves, just different, and only the shadow of Morgoth makes men fear the uncertainty of death. The Valar warn them that it’s impossible to change their fate.
Now that the Silmarils are gone, men find new obsessions: death and how to avoid it. Morgoth ensured that men feared the unknown, and such fear is difficult to eradicate. It spreads quickly into the new kingdom of Númenor, and with fear comes greed. The elves and the Valar have what the Númenoreans want—immortality and no reason to fear death.
Themes
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The king, Tar-Atanamir, doesn’t like the Valar’s message and clings to life and kingship for as long as he can. The people of Númenor become divided—some grow proud and estranged from the Valar and elves, but others, the Elf-friends, still listen to the Valar’s advice. Númenor declines in virtue but grows in power, and its people become obsessed with finding ways to extend their lives and building “great houses for their dead.”
Morgoth’s influence in the world is self-sustaining—it divides the Númenoreans and creates new problems for the Valar. Without Morgoth in Beleriand as an imminent threat to men, some people seek out the power and longevity that they previously had no opportunity to want.
Themes
The Númenoreans begin to build settlements on Middle-earth and become masters of the men there rather than teachers. The Elf-friends only come to Middle-earth to aid Gil-galad in his conflict with Sauron, who takes over the land of Mordor and seeks absolute power over Middle-earth. He hates and fears the Númenoreans and ensnares three Númenorean lords with the Nine Rings of power he gives to mortal men. When those men become the Ring-Wraiths, he uses them to attack the Númenorean settlements on the coast of Middle-earth.
Though Númenor begins as a paragon of virtue, it declines into the corruption and power-seeking seen in the men that served Morgoth. Ironically, the Númenoreans begin to conquer the lands of Middle-earth exactly as Sauron (who follows in the footsteps of his master Morgoth) does. Númenor and Sauron become competitors for dominion over the western coast of Beleriand.
Themes
The twentieth king of the house of Elros takes the name Adûnakhôr, meaning Lord of the West—stealing the title of the Valar. The twenty-third king forbids elven languages and leaves the White Tree untended. He forces the Elf-friends to move to Rómenna in the east to be watched, though they still sail to Middle-earth to speak to the elves of Gil-galad’s kingdom. The Valar, angry with the kings of Númenor, stop offering them advice and protection, and the elves of Eressëa also stop visiting.
The kings of Númenor are not representative of the kingdom’s entire population—the Elf-friends remain loyal to the Valar and are persecuted for it—but they exemplify the ways in which Númenor declines into irreverence, selfishness, and suspicion. History begins to repeat itself. The last time a group (the Noldor) rebelled against the Valar, years of war and suffering resulted.
Themes
The lords of the royal house of Andúnië (descended from the line of Elros) are quietly loyal to the Valar and try to change their kings’ minds about them. A king of Númenor marries a daughter of the house of Adúnië, and their older son takes an elvish name, Tar-Palantir, when he ascends the throne. He is kind to the Elf-friends, makes offerings to Ilúvatar, and tends the White Tree. His younger brother Gimilkhâd leads a group called the King’s Men and opposes his brother. After the brothers die, Gimilkhâd’s son Pharazôn marries Tar-Palantir’s daughter Tar-Míriel against her will and becomes king, despite the fact that the marriage is illegal.
Tar-Palantir changes policies in Númenor for the better, but he faces opposition from his own brother, whose followers nearly outnumber his own. Not even an Elf-friend on the throne is enough to change the hearts and minds of all of Númenor. It takes a united effort to create a real chance, and Númenor is too divided. With Tar-Palantir’s death and Pharazôn’s seizure of the throne, the island reverts to its previous irreverence and immorality.
Themes
Pharazôn takes the name Ar-Pharazôn and learns that Sauron is attacking Númenor’s settlements in Middle-earth. Gathering weapons and preparing for war, he decides to claim the title King of Men and make Sauron his servant. He sails his fleet to Middle-earth and sends out heralds demanding that Sauron swear to serve him.
It is the height of arrogance to think that Númenor is both stronger than and morally superior to Sauron, who seeks to conquer Middle-earth exactly as they do. The lives and memories of men are short—they’ve forgotten what Morgoth’s rule was like and that Sauron was his most trusted servant.
Themes
Both crafty and unprepared for Númenor’s power, Sauron bows to Ar-Pharazôn and swears loyalty. He seems reasonable to the other men, but Ar-Pharazôn doesn’t believe his act and decides to bring Sauron to Númenor to live as a hostage. Sauron agrees, secretly pleased. Within three years, he uses “the cunning of his mind and mouth, and the strength of his hidden will” to become Ar-Pharazôn’s closest advisor. His flattery endears him to everyone but Amandil, the lord of Andúnië. Many of the Elf-friends leave Númenor in fear, and their enemies call them rebels.
In his pride, Ar-Pharazôn underestimates Sauron’s malice and cunning. By feigning humility and calling himself a servant, Sauron is able to take control of Númenor, manipulating Ar-Pharazôn and using him as a figurehead. Still, the Elf-friends, in contact with the elves who lived through the Wars of Beleriand, remember Sauron’s previous crimes and recognize his evil now.
Themes
Sauron teaches the Númenoreans to worship Morgoth as the Lord of Darkness and convinces them that Ilúvatar is only an invention of the Valar meant to control them. The Elf-friends, who remain faithful to Ilúvatar, are led by Amandil, a counselor of the king, and his son Elendil, whose sons are Isildur and Anárion. Sauron hates Amandil and convinces Ar-Pharazôn to dismiss him as a counselor, then begins to persuade Ar-Pharazôn to cut down the White Tree.
By convincing the Númenoreans to worship Morgoth, Sauron attempts to divide them fundamentally not only from the Valar, but also from Ilúvatar. He seeks also to remove the Elf-friends, if not from Númenor entirely, then at least from Ar-Pharazôn’s presence, where they might have the chance to influence his decisions and prevent Sauron from using him to destroy Númenor.
Themes
When Elendil and his sons hear a rumor about it, Isildur travels in disguise to Ar-Pharazôn’s court and steals a fruit from the White Tree, then fights his way out again. He’s gravely wounded in the fight but returns to Rómenna and gives the fruit to Amandil, who plants it in secret. A tree sprouts, and when the first leaf grows, Isildur’s wounds heal. After the theft, Ar-Pharazôn cuts down the White Tree and Sauron uses it to fuel the altar of fire in a new temple where men make blood sacrifices to Melkor. They often use the Elf-friends as their victims.
This new seedling from the White Tree is another descendant of the tree Yavanna gave to the elves of Tirion, modeled after Telperion. Though the old tree dies, a new one is born, holding the same significance for its people and mirroring the cycles of loss and renewal in the world at large. Though Sauron may succeed and Númenor may fall, the Elf-friends have hope of growing something new.
Themes
Though the men of Númenor were blessed with health and long lives, they’re now plagued by illness and madness. Through Sauron’s influence they become violent and quick to anger, enslaving the men of Middle-earth and killing them on their altars. When Ar-Pharazôn grows old and fears his impending death, Sauron convinces him that he could become immortal if he takes Valinor from the tyrant Valar.
Ironically, the Númenoreans who fear death more than anything else die more quickly when they seek a way to avoid death than they did when they simply accepted death as the fate of men. Sauron exploits their fears, especially Ar-Pharazôn’s, using them as an excuse to declare war on the Valar, creating chaos and violence between two of Sauron’s great enemies.
Themes
Amandil hears about Ar-Pharazôn’s plan and tells Elendil that he’ll try to sail secretly to Valinor to ask Manwë for mercy and aid. Elendil worries what will happen to the house of Andúnië if Ar-Pharazôn finds out what Amandil’s doing, so they prepare ships to flee. Amandil instructs him not to interfere in the war and to find a place to lead the Elf-friends in their exile. Amandil sails west with three servants that night and is never heard from again; men won’t be saved a second time by a petitioner of the Valar.
Ar-Pharazôn’s plan to attack the Valar is the final act that will divide the Elf-friends from the rest of Númenor forever. They won’t involve themselves in the fight—they’ll abandon the enemies of the Valar to their fates. Amandil, though, still has pity on Númenor, corrupted by Morgoth’s residual influence and Sauron’s control, and tries to beg for mercy for them. Eärendil is the only one to successfully petition the Valar and reunite them with the world, however, and Amandil won’t manage it a second time.
Themes
Elendil and the Elf-friends prepare to leave, filling their ships with supplies, treasures from Númenor, and the tree grown from the fruit of the White Tree. The climate of Númenor has changed, growing dark and stormy. Sometimes Manwë’s giant eagles approach from the west, carrying lightning that strikes Melkor’s temple, and Sauron spreads the rumor that they’re part of a plot against the Númenoreans. Rather than recognizing the lightning as a sign of Melkor’s evil, the men of Númenor see that Sauron is unharmed by the blast and call him a god.
As Morgoth’s evil physically polluted the land around his fortress, the natural landscape of Númenor is changed as a result of the evil that lives there. The lightning proves that the people of Númenor are too corrupted to be saved. Even when given a sign from the Valar themselves, they twist it to fit their own narratives and persist in their blasphemy and greed.
Themes
Ar-Pharazôn’s fleet rows towards Valinor, breaking the Valar’s ban. The fleet surrounds Eresseä, and Ar-Pharazôn, reaching the coast of Aman, almost turns back. But, driven by his pride, he goes ashore, and his armies camp near Tirion for the night in the cleft of the mountains.
Ar-Pharazôn and his men are the first mortals besides Eärendil to set foot in Valinor, but they do so without the Valar’s permission, planning not only to invade the land but to conquer it for themselves.
Themes
Meanwhile, Manwë calls on Ilúvatar, who uses his power to change the shape of the world. A chasm opens in the sea between Valinor and Númenor; the earth shakes and Númenor’s fleets are sucked into the abyss. Ar-Pharazôn and his men, already in Valinor, are buried in falling rock. Ilúvatar sends the western seas further west and the empty eastern lands further east, drowning islands and raising new ones on the coasts of Middle-earth. Valinor and Tol Eressëa are removed from the reach of the men of Middle-earth into “the realm of hidden things.”
This is the first time Ilúvatar has directly intervened in the world without using the Valar as intermediaries since the awakening of elves and men. The result of Númenor’s arrogance is the most fundamental division the world has seen yet—the removal of the entire land of Valinor from the world. This separation, however, is only the physical realization of an already existing moral separation between men and the inhabitants of Valinor. The splitting of the world ends conflict between the two continents, though it means the world that remains loses the wisdom and guidance of the Valar and most of the elves.
Themes
The foundations of Númenor are completely destroyed, and the land and everyone on it fall into the sea. A huge wave covers Númenor, sweeping Tar-Míriel away as she tries to climb Ilúvatar’s sacred mountain. Whether or not Amandil ever reaches Valinor, Manwë hears his prayer and spares Elendil and his people on their nine ships, sheltering them from the abyss and the giant wave. They reach Middle-earth and found new kingdoms there, though their knowledge and craft are only an “echo” of what they were before Sauron came to Númenor.
Númenor is destroyed, and new nations grow from its remnants. Though the Elf-friends can’t recreate Númenor as it was during the height of its righteousness, since much of its knowledge and philosophy is long gone, they can create new kingdoms in the image of that righteousness. The world is declining, marred by Morgoth’s rebellion during the Music of the Ainur, and what has been lost can only be reclaimed in part until the world is remade.
Themes
Sauron sits in the temple and laughs when Ar-Pharazôn leaves to fight the Valar, when he hears the storm, and when he considers what he’ll do next. As he laughs, the temple falls into the sea. Though he’s robbed of his physical form and can’t ever take another “fair” shape, his spirit escapes and returns to Mordor, where he makes himself a new hideous disguise.
As Morgoth did, Sauron assumes a beautiful physical form while feigning goodness and trying to seduce men into following him. The destruction of that form during the fall of Númenor leaves him unable to take on another form of beauty and forces his external appearance to reflect his evil and internal ugliness.
Themes
After Númenor’s destruction, men call it Akallabêth the Downfallen, or Atalantë. Legend says that Númenor’s sacred mountain rose again out of the sea, and many of the Dúnedain search for it, hoping to see Valinor from its top. The Dúnedain know Valinor departed from the world, but still believe they would be able to look into the past and see a vision of it from the top of the mountain. Mariners don’t find it, however, and only discover new lands or sail completely around the earth back to where they began. They realize that “All roads are now bent”—the earth has become round.
Ilúvatar’s altering of the world reveals that the world, up until this point, has been flat. The search for Númenor’s mountain and the view of Valinor it would allegedly provide also indicates that men are aware of the significance of Valinor’s loss. As they longed to reach it from Númenor, they later long to catch just a glimpse. The elven narrator also records some of the traditions and legends of men. There is no evidence to support the return of Valinor’s mountain, but mariners have been searching for Valinor since the Wars of Beleriand, and evidently continue the tradition long after its disappearance.
Themes
However, the elves are still permitted to travel to Valinor and Tol Eressëa, leading men to believe that a Straight Road must still exist. They teach that “the old road and the path of the memory of the West” rises out of the world’s curvature like a bridge and breaks through the atmosphere to where the ancient elves live and the Valar still watch the earth. There are tales of lost sailors who accidentally discover the Straight Road and see the ancient west before they die.
Unlike Númenor’s mountain returning from the sea, there is real evidence for the myth of the Straight Road. Even if men never actually see it as the stories claim, there is a path out of the world that the elves use to reach Valinor, which exists as it used to—that is, flat. Valinor is still part of the world, but inaccessible to everyone caught in the new roundness of Arda. To reach it, the elves must return to the straight paths of the world before it was changed.
Themes
