Ghosts
From Tolkien Gateway
Ron Spencer - Ghosts
- "...to them the Enemy had given rings of power, and he had devoured them: living ghosts they were become, terrible and evil.'"
- ― Faramir
Ghosts was a name commonly used to describe the undead, beings which did not perish after what would be a natural death, but which continued to haunt the living in their after-life. While likely often the product of a vivid imagination, the dealings of the Fellowship of the Ring with several types of undead testify that ghosts were a reality in Middle-earth.[2]
In the late Third Age, the ruined and deserted Osgiliath was known as "a city of ghosts."[3]
Other names[edit | edit source]
In Gnomish, one of Tolkien's early conceptions of an Elven language, the word for "a ghost" is ûl.[4]
Portrayal in adaptations[edit | edit source]
1982-97: Middle-earth Role Playing:
- Ghosts are one of the most powerful Undead beings. They are altogether incorporeal, and drain constitution points from player characters.[5]
2002-5: The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game:
- Ghosts come in three types: phantoms, wraiths and wights.[6]
2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Ghostly beings are referred to as Shades in the game and come in several varieties including Oath-breakers (similar to the Dead Men of Dunharrow), fell spirits (ghosts that animate the Barrow-wights), Corpse-candles (like those of the Dead Marshes), and evil river-spirits called Darkwaters.
See also[edit | edit source]
External links[edit | edit source]
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "The Forbidden Pool"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, passim
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "I-Lam na-Ngoldathon: The Grammar and Lexicon of the Gnomish Tongue", in Parma Eldalamberon XI (edited by Christopher Gilson, Arden R. Smith, and Patrick H. Wynne), pp. 62, 74
- ↑ Ruth Sochard Pitt, Jeff O'Hare, Peter C. Fenlon, Jr. (1994), Creatures of Middle-earth (2nd edition) (#2012)
- ↑ Scott Bennie, Mike Mearls, Steve Miller, Aaron Rosenberg, Chris Seeman, Owen Seyler, and George Strayton (2003), Fell Beasts and Wondrous Magic, pp. 25-27
