As I was reading through The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the post-colonialist aspects of the books constantly popped out at me. One scene in particular interested me the most throughout the whole three novels. That scene is from the third book, The Return of the King and is in chapter five, “The Ride of the Rohirrim”. In this chapter, the riders of the country of Rohan, the Rohirrim, are rushing to the country of Gondor as a troop of Orcs are about to attack Gondor’s main city, Minas Tirith. As they are riding, Merry hears drums in the distance and asks if that is the enemy. Elfhelm responds in the negative and tells Merry, as well as the readers, of the Wild Men (Tolkien 102).
Elfhelm describes the Wild Men and their history, stating “They still haunt Druadan Forest, it is said. Remnants of an older time they be, living few and secretly, wild and wary as the beasts.” (102). The words Elfhelm uses to describe the Wild Men are strong and hold negative connotations. “Haunt” signifies a ghostly origin. A haunting is often unwanted, and something many try to get rid of. As well, if the Wild Men are supposedly “haunting” the forest, then that is not considered their home anymore. Think ghosts haunting the homes of where they once lived.
Continuing on, he claims that the Wild Men are “remnants of an older time…”, making it clear that they do not use modern technologies or languages and therefore do not fit into the modern world (102). They use drums to signify their presence, whereas most other people use a horn, a newer invention in the world of Middle-Earth. Lastly, and probably the most egregious thing that Elfhelm says is his comparison to beasts. He does not consider the Wild Men to be people, but rather another beastly race. It became clear to me through the way Elfhelm described the Wild Men and how the Wild Men spoke of their mistreatment by the Rohirrim (they ask to not be hunted “like beasts any more”), that the Wild Men were supposed to be a metaphor for Indigenous People (104). The Wild Men are only in the book for about 5 pages, 4 in “The Ride of the Rohirrim”, and on page 274.
Though they are barely in the trilogy, they play a pivotal role in the Rohirrim’s ride to Gondor, not only pointing them in the right and fastest direction, but also to a road that is not well known and therefore safe from the enemies. They are also mentioned in one of Aragorn’s first decree as the new king of Gondor, with him stating that “Behold, the King Elessar has come! The Forest of Drúadan he gives to Ghân-buri-ghân and to his folk, to be their own for ever; and hereafter let no man enter it without their leave!” (274). This all begs the question of, did Tolkien add the Wild Men in solely as a commentary on England’s colonization of indigenous land and subsequent murder of indigenous people?
This is so fascinating! I’m wondering about Tolkien’s language structures, and how “remnants of the old time” might be present in how he creates and establishes language norms between races. Especially when paired with other cultural forms of communication like music – are you going to write about other cultural aspects like these in your paper? I think the way you center indigenous identities is so smart and the way you’ve explored Tolkien’s construction with real-world examples is so helpful. I’m so excited to see how your project progresses!
This is a great point about the description of different groups in The Lord of the Rings trilogy! I think this is very interesting in relation to how the Hobbits were nonexistent to many others and had to repeatedly explain what they were. I am curious about what other critics have made of this, if any have thoroughly discussed it. Furthermore, you mention that the Wild Men are only featured in 5 pages, but are there any instances with other groups that could bolster this interpretation?
I think you are posing several interesting questions regarding displacement and modernization. I think it’s interesting to consider a race of people in Lord of the Rings that are supposed to be antiquated given that the fantastical world seems old-timey itself. I think your question surrounding authorial intent regarding commentary on colonization is interesting, and certainly valid, given that through imperialism, England manage to displace and colonize lots of people. To this, I think of how, just as Elfhelm called them “beasts”, the British used to depict groups such as the Irish this way in the press.