Morality of the act of creation in J.R.R. Tolkien’s 'The Silmarillion'

Abstract

This dissertation attempts to read The Silmarillion as a representation in narrative of J.R.R. Tolkien’s notion of Sub-Creation. Specifically, how Tolkien’s notion of Sub-Creation, as he explains in On-Fairy Stories, is connected to his understanding of: Fantasy; Myth; Religion; Language; and his definition of Art and Magic, and their distinction. Additionally, how these elements can be read as part of the narrative of The Silmarillion, influencing moral distinctions between characters who perform acts of Sub-Creation. Furthermore, the dissertation also explores how this framework for moral distinction between characters is eventually sidelined for another framework which functions on the interactions between characters and a created object. This dissertation argues that the new framework is also present in a number of Tolkien’s influences, such as The Kalevala, Beowulf, and the Icelandic Volsunga Saga.

The introductory chapter consists of an exploration of a number of themes which recur in criticism of Tolkien’s work. The introduction continues to show how these themes lead to the decision to read The Silmarillion through On Fairy-Stories, and develops a number of questions to be answered in the reading.

The first chapter consists of a reading of On Fairy-Stories and a demonstration of how the concepts Tolkien explores in this essay, can be read as part of the narrative of The Silmarillion. The chapter also explores how the mentioned concepts may be found in Tolkien’s Mythopoeia, as well as in a number of his influences such as The Kalevala, and the work of William Morris.

The second chapter focuses on how Sub-creation and its related concepts can be used to distinguish, on a moral basis, between characters in The Silmarillion. The first half of the chapter focuses on the fall from grace of the character Melkor in comparison to the character Aulë’s sin and subsequent pardoning. Showing how differences in their attitudes towards Sub-Creation lead to the distinction between fall and pardon. The second half of the chapter turns to the fall from grace of the character Fëanor, showing that his attitude towards Sub-Creation does not directly lead to his fall. Arguing that it is his attitude towards objects which he himself has sub-created that doom him. The chapter also notes how the notion of prophecy and predestination affect these events.

The third chapter discusses how, following Fëanor’s fall from grace, The Silmarillion adopts a framework of various characters who lust for an object. This inevitably leads to their often foretold death. This new pattern is then compared to similar patterns exhibited in Beowulf, The Kalevala, and Tolkien’s adaption of the Volsunga Saga: The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun. The chapter also explores how despite this new pattern, elements of Sub-Creation are still key to the narrative.

The conclusion summarises what has been explored in the three main chapters and demonstrates how they answer the questions set up in the introduction.