For the few hours of daylight that
were left they rested, shifting into the shade as the sun moved, until at last
the shadow of the western rim of their dell grew long, and darkness filled all
the hollow.
Nothing distinguishes Tolkien’s world more than the attention he pays to light
and darkness and their effects on the landscape—and the spirit. Likewise he is
a master at using the sun and the moon in the sky to communicate the time of
day and time of month. Here I want to focus on the intersection of Time and
Light in our two days in Ithilien.
Two nights under the Moon
Moonrise over Swannanoa Mountains, by Donald
Collins
First Night journey
The dusk was deep when at length
they set out, creeping over the westward rim of the dell, and fading like
ghosts into the broken country on the borders of the road: The moon was now
three nights from the full, but it did not climb over the mountains until
nearly midnight, and the early night was very dark….At last, when night was
growing old and they were already weary,….So soon they struggled on once more,
until the dawn began to spread slowly in the wide grey solitude.
First Day
The growing light revealed to them
a land already less barren and ruinous. The day passed uneasily. They lay deep
in the heather and counted out the slow hours, in which there seemed little
change; for they were still under the shadows of the Ephel Dœath, and the sun
was veiled.
Second Night journey
As soon as the land faded into a
formless grey under coming night, they started out again….The night became fine
under star and round moon,
A. When does the Moon rise? Why does Tolkien tell us literally which
day of its phase the Moon is at?
B. What is the quality of the light and of the passage of time, during their
day-rest? Why is it this way?
C. How does the changing light contribute to the sense that they are coming
into a better land? Do you associate “the Moon” in these scenes with “Ithilien”
(Land of the Rising Moon)?
One day under the Sun
Midday in Sardinia, by John Ferro Sims
In the following passages, which span most of the chapter, notice how Light
equals Time:
At the first signs of day they
halted again….Day was opening in the sky,
Gollum, in any case, would not move under the Yellow Face. Soon it would look
over the dark ridges of the Ephel Dúath, and he would faint and cower in the
light and heat.
The early daylight was only just creeping down into the shadows under the
trees, but he saw his master's face very clearly,
The daylight grew and the air became warm; the dew faded off turf and leaf. …
Almost Sam fell asleep as the time went by. He let them stew for close on an
hour, testing them now and again with his fork, and tasting the broth.
‘What is the time?’
‘About a couple of hours after daybreak,’ said Sam, ‘and
nigh on half past eight by Shire clocks, maybe.’
As he stood up to return, he looked back up the slope. At that moment he saw
the sun rise out of the reek, or haze, or dark shadow, or whatever it was, that
lay ever to the east, and it sent its golden beams down upon the trees and
glades about him. Then he noticed a thin spiral of blue-grey, smoke, plain to
see as it caught the sunlight, rising from a thicket above him.
‘Who are you then, and what had you to do with him? Be swift, for the Sun is
climbing!’
Close by, just under the dappling shadow of the dark bay-trees, two men
remained on guard. They took off their masks now and again to cool them, as the
day-heat grew,
‘One of their regiments is due by our reckoning to pass by, some time ere
noon—up on the road above…’
He could see them stealing up the slopes, singly or in long files, keeping
always to the shade of grove or thicket, or crawling, hardly visible in their
brown and green raiment, through grass and brake. … The sun rose till it neared
the South. The shadows shrank.
‘He stands a fair chance of being spitted for an Orc, or of being roasted by
the Yellow Face.’
[Sam] woke, thinking that he had heard horns blowing. He sat up. It was now
high noon. The guards stood alert and tense in the shadow of the trees.
D. Where else does Tolkien spend so much energy on reminding the reader of
the passage of time? Why is this important to him here?
E. What is the effect of the constant reference to the shadows?
F. Is the heat of the Sun a good thing in Tolkien?
G. What is the meaning of noon in Tolkien’s works? How does it apply here?
The Sun rises above the Mountains by 9:00 or 9:30 in the morning, it seems; yet
two nights before, the nearly full Moon did not rise above the Mountains until
nearly midnight.
H. How can that be?
The Light Within
It’s time for your closeup, Ms. Flieger.
He set his two large flat hands on
his shrunken belly, and a pale green light came into his eyes.
…in the house of Elrond, after his deadly wound. Then as he had kept watch Sam
had noticed that at times a light seemed to be shining faintly within; but now
the light was even clearer and stronger.
Green gauntlets covered their hands, and their faces were hooded and masked
with green, except for their eyes, which were very keen and bright.
‘May the light shine on your swords!’
I. Am I right in identifying these moments as not being about good old
ordinary light? What are they about? Is all not-so-ordinary-light the same, or
are there different not-so-ordinary-lights?
Text of this
chapter
Everyone is laughing for heart's ease, now that they're in Ithilien! Join me in the Reading Room this week for a squireific topic-oriented discussion of Chapter 4, Book IV of The Two Towers: "Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit".
squire online:
Footerama: "Tolkien would have LOVED it!" (improved!)
The Valaquenta discussion
A Shortcut to Mushrooms discussion
