February 2, 2004

1 2 U Bob
Brett C.

A tip of my pointy blue hat to Bob regarding the messenger to Erebor - I had forgotten in writing my last article about the Nazgul joining the WitchKing and his company from Dol Guldur during the Hunt for the Ring. Taken in that context it now does seem more possible that the messenger may have ben a Nazgul, perhaps Khamul. It is an often overlooked fact that all the Wraiths can communicate orally, probably the case becuase the only one who ever does to the main characters is Angmar at the siege of Gondor; but the recounts of the Gaffer and Farmer Maggot, and the info from Aragorn at Bree that they had words with the Gatekeeper and their discourse with Saruman and Wormtongue in Unfinished Tales, show that they do have the power to communicate by speech to the living.

I also agree with Bob about the Orcs being ageless [though not immortal, given the violent nature of their society]. Elendur wrote that the Elves immortality comes from outside their being, but I was always under the thought that it was their bodies that conveyed their immortality. The Simarillion states that their bodies 'indeed were of the stuff of Earth', meaning I beleive they are physically real, but it also says that they are more difficult to hurt and quicker to heal, which seems to indicate a genetic superiority. Also, physical traits such as their superior vision and reduced need for sleep suggest their immortaltiy is genetic. Finally, in Akallabeth the Dunedain are warned that in Aman they would age quicker, not slower, '...as moths in a light too strong and steadfast.' This wihtering is of men's bodies, since their spirits are as eternal as the Elves, though not bound to stay within the Circles of the World as the Elves are.

But gettting back to the Orcs, there is in the talk between Shagrat and Gorbag in TTT [book] hints as to how long they live. In an article I posted so long ago I can't even remember the name of it I mentioned the two orcs discussing the Great Siege, meaning the siege of Barad dur during the second age, and also their longing for the old days before there were bosses, which would be at least 70 years earlier, the time of Sauron's return to Mordor. But they also talk of having 'more room' which may mean before the Dark Years before the founding of Gondor and Arnor. Also Gorbag refers to the Nazgul being Sauron's favourites 'nowadays', but surely the Wraiths have been in that position for milennia. Does this mean Gorbag is remebering back to a time before the rise of the Nazgul? We cannot be certain, but it seems clear that the orcs are indeed a long lived race, at least.