Mount doom11/10/2023 ![]() I am not a Tolkien expert, but my understanding of Tolkien's use of magic, I believe described in his "On Fairy Stories", distinguishes between a more mechanical kind of magic and a more spiritual "enchantment".įorgive/Correct me if I'm misusing his use of the words. ![]() One does not simply fly directly into the gaze of the Lidless Eye. I'm answering because I think there is an aspect of the use of magic in The Lord of the Rings that I commonly see ignored and is ignored in many of the answers. That would be direct involvement and solving the one problem that those of Middle-earth need to solve themselves - their lust for power at the expense of Middle-earth itself. However, flying the ring bearer to Mordor is not consistent with them. The Eagles aid them by providing some mobility and countering forces of the enemy when they take to the air, the realm of Manwë, which mortals are not truly supposed to enter.Īll of these actions are consistent with the way the Valar are willing to aid those of Middle-earth. Gandalf aids them by defeating a peer who had fallen, against which none of them could stand (the Balrog) and by helping to counter the movements of one of the Istari who had fallen. Gandalf guides them to this realization and helps them figure out the "how". And in a way, it is the one foe they must overcome on their own. The ring is a foe that the mortals of Middle-earth could overcome. But only where the mortals of Middle-earth could not over come the foe on their own. Both are forces of the Valar - who, after the first age that destroyed vast swaths of Middle-earth, vowed never again to interfere directly in the affairs of the mortals of Middle-earth - and both aid those fighting Sauron. They are not allowed to solve the problems of Middle-earth, only to guide and aid those who are solving those problems. The Istari are Maia sent to Middle-earth as guides and to provide some help in countering the great powers of those who had fallen. If you look at the involvement of the Eagles it is very similar to the involvement of the Istari. Valinor long ago rather than remain in Middle-Earth. If theĮagles were prohibited from being involved directly in the struggleĪgainst Sauron, we might expect that they would have withdrawn to Indication that they were under some restriction in this case. Often intervene in the struggles of Middle-Earth, and there's no Intervening directly in the affairs of Middle-Earth. The Third Age, Manwë is maintaining a policy of the Valar not That the eagles are said to be the representatives of Manwë, and in The only support I can see for this argument is very indirect: namely, Given all this heavy involvement, it would beĮxtremely surprising if the Valar specifically prohibited the eaglesįrom flying the Ringbearer into Mordor. They directlyĪttack the flying Nazgûl during the last battle. They rescue Gandalf again from Zirak-Zigil. Participate in the Battle of Five Armies. Quite frequently involve themselves in the fight against Sauron (or I am surprised that this argument comes up as often as it does,īecause I am aware of no textual support for this idea. As mentioned in the link in the accepted answer. ![]() The Eagles are the representatives of Manwë in Middle-earth. To sum up: The ring had to stay hidden at all times from Sauron's eye, and on top of an eagle on board up in the air would ruin the cover and could endure death. They could only advise or otherwise get tangentially involved. It's also worth noting that the Giant Eagles, much like the Wizards of Middle Earth, were forbidden in directly helping mortals overcoming problems they could solve themselves. The point of sending Hobbits on foot was that they had showed resilience to the Ring's corrupting influence, but also that they would be unsuspected, as Hobbits were considered rather unimportant folk. ![]() With Sauron's combined forces being so strong by the time the Ring was discovered, it meant a full-on attack would be highly unlikely to succeed, and so only a covert mission would do. In terms of military strategy, it would be more of a "Hail Mary" than a solid plan, with a high risk of catastrophic failure. Not to mention the fact that they would have been extremely vulnerable in such a position, and likely to be brought down, and if that happened over Mordor, it would have guaranteed that Sauron got his ring back. Sauron also had the Nazgûl air force after all, and maybe others too :) Even a normal Elf like Legolas could spot small flying birds at some distance, the Eye of Sauron would be looking to keep his borders safe, from above and below. Giant Eagles with Wizards on their back would have been seen for miles. ![]()
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