Mouth of Sauron: Difference between revisions
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{{quote|...he entered the service of the Dark Tower when it first rose again...|ibid}} | {{quote|...he entered the service of the Dark Tower when it first rose again...|ibid}} | ||
The Dark Tower rose again when rebuilding began in 2951 of the [[Third Age]], which means he entered Sauron's service shortly after that. [[Umbar]] had been defeated by [[Gondor]] under "[[Thorongil]]" (Aragorn's name in his youth) in 2980, so 'The Mouth' might have fled to Mordor then. | The Dark Tower rose again when rebuilding began in 2951 of the [[Third Age]], which means he entered Sauron's service shortly after that. The [[Haven of Umbar]] had been defeated by [[Gondor]] under "[[Thorongil]]" (Aragorn's name in his youth) in 2980, so 'The Mouth' might have fled to Mordor then. | ||
Some readers interpret the words 'arose again' to refer to the power of Sauron rather than the construction of his tower. In this case, the rise of the Dark Tower, [[Barad-dûr]] in 2951 was the second arising. It '''first''' rose again some time after 3220 of the [[Second Age]], which means that the Mouth of Sauron must have been at least 3200 years old at the time of the War of the Ring. Even for a Númenórean this was an exceptional age matched only by the [[Ringwraiths]], and he therefore may have been a [[Ring-bearer]], who by some magic of Sauron had not become a wraith himself. (He may have worn a lesser ring, and not one of the great [[Rings of Power]]. Alternatively, he may have been granted one of the ''Seven Rings of the [[Dwarves]]'', several of which Sauron had recaptured early.) | Some readers interpret the words 'arose again' to refer to the power of Sauron rather than the construction of his tower. In this case, the rise of the Dark Tower, [[Barad-dûr]] in 2951 was the second arising. It '''first''' rose again some time after 3220 of the [[Second Age]], which means that the Mouth of Sauron must have been at least 3200 years old at the time of the War of the Ring. Even for a Númenórean this was an exceptional age matched only by the [[Ringwraiths]], and he therefore may have been a [[Ring-bearer]], who by some magic of Sauron had not become a wraith himself. (He may have worn a lesser ring, and not one of the great [[Rings of Power]]. Alternatively, he may have been granted one of the ''Seven Rings of the [[Dwarves]]'', several of which Sauron had recaptured early.) | ||
Revision as of 05:07, 15 July 2006
The Mouth of Sauron was the Dark Lord Sauron's servant and representative.
He was one of the Black Númenóreans, and briefly appeared in person when he haggled with the army of the west in front of the Morannon, trying to convince Aragorn and Gandalf to give up and let Sauron win the battle for Middle-earth. When Gandalf turned his proposal down, the Mouth of Sauron set all the armies of Barad-dûr on to them.
Also known as the Lieutenant of Barad-dûr, he had served Sauron all his life, and had forgotten his own name. A man of great stature, he was potentially the equal of the Dúnedain, but had fallen into darkness.
- "A tall and evil shape, mounted upon a black horse... The rider was robed all in black, and black was his lofty helm; yet this was no Ringwraith but a living man."
- ― The Return of the King
As a Black Númenórean he probably came from Umbar, and it is stated that
- "...he entered the service of the Dark Tower when it first rose again..."
- ― ibid
The Dark Tower rose again when rebuilding began in 2951 of the Third Age, which means he entered Sauron's service shortly after that. The Haven of Umbar had been defeated by Gondor under "Thorongil" (Aragorn's name in his youth) in 2980, so 'The Mouth' might have fled to Mordor then.
Some readers interpret the words 'arose again' to refer to the power of Sauron rather than the construction of his tower. In this case, the rise of the Dark Tower, Barad-dûr in 2951 was the second arising. It first rose again some time after 3220 of the Second Age, which means that the Mouth of Sauron must have been at least 3200 years old at the time of the War of the Ring. Even for a Númenórean this was an exceptional age matched only by the Ringwraiths, and he therefore may have been a Ring-bearer, who by some magic of Sauron had not become a wraith himself. (He may have worn a lesser ring, and not one of the great Rings of Power. Alternatively, he may have been granted one of the Seven Rings of the Dwarves, several of which Sauron had recaptured early.) Support for this extreme old age is found in the quote:
- "His name is remembered in no tale, for he himself had forgotten it..."
- ― ibid
Even Gollum still remembered his old name after 500 years. (In the Middle-earth Role Playing games, the name of the Mouth of Sauron was Urzahil, but this name was not created by Tolkien.)
If however, this mention of the second arising of the Dark Tower is taken literally rather than taken to mean something else, then the Mouth Of Sauron has been in the service of his master for 68 years. If this service began as a youth (perhaps a child taken by Sauron as a promising student of sorcery from a "renegade" family, for example) who was subsequently cowed, bewitched and indoctrinated by his new master, then The Mouth of Sauron could quite feasibly have no memory of his birth name. Sauron enjoyed nurturing very powerful freaks from their infancy, as his personal rearing of the Nazguls' 'Fell Beasts' indicates.
The Mouth's fate is nowhere recorded, and it is probable he died in the assault before the Morannon. If he had survived, it is probable he would have been one of the leaders in the retreat of Sauron's evil servants after the fall of Barad-dûr.
Portrayal in Adaptations
In Peter Jackson's The Return of the King, the Mouth of Sauron does not appear in the theatrical cut of The Return of the King, but he does appear in the extended version, played by an unrecognisable Bruce Spence, with the words "LAMMEN GORTHAUR" (Sindarin for "Voice of (Sauron) The Abominable") in Cirth runes written on his helmet. His helmet covers his entire face except for his mouth, which is horribly diseased and disfigured by all the evil he has spoken, and disproportionately large, creating an unsettling effect (Jackson conceived of this idea long after the footage had been shot and asked his special effects team to create the effect digitally).
The extended DVD cast commentary mentions that Jackson considered different depictions of the character, such as having Kate Winslet (who starred in Heavenly Creatures, another Jackson film) play the role, partially to emphasize the temptations Aragorn was facing.
In the extended DVD version Aragorn decapitates the Mouth of Sauron using Andúril. This sequence is often criticized by purist and outsider alike, by purists because of the emphasis in the book against the inhumanity of assaulting a messenger or herald, and by outsiders for the inhumanity in itself.
