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Silmarils and Obsession: The Undoing of Fëanor

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Tolkien and Alterity

Part of the book series: The New Middle Ages ((TNMA))

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Abstract

It is said that of all the Noldor, “fiercest burned the flame of desire for freedom and wider realms” in the heart of Fëanor. Fëanor, who “became of the Noldor, then or after, the most subtle in mind and the most skilled in hand,” was renowned for his creation of three incomparable jewels, the Silmarils. For it was the doom of the Elves “to love the beauty of the world, to bring it to full flower with their gifts of delicacy and perfection.” And Art, especially Elvish Art, Tolkien explains, is supposed to be “subcreation, not domination and tyrannous reforming of Creation.” The Art of the Elves was to further engender beauty and creation. Yet, in creating the Silmarils, Fëanor created his downfall. His love for the jewels would soon become an obsession.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Melissa Ruth Arul

Authors
  1. Melissa Ruth Arul
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Arts and Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, USA

    Christopher Vaccaro

  2. Ramapo College of New Jersey, Mahwah, New Jersey, USA

    Yvette Kisor

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Arul, M.R. (2017). Silmarils and Obsession: The Undoing of Fëanor. In: Vaccaro, C., Kisor, Y. (eds) Tolkien and Alterity. The New Middle Ages. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61018-4_11

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