I agree with the view skilfully argued by Mithadan and Bill that there is not a symbolic equivalent or allegory for the Christian concept of Original Sin.
Having said that, whilst the chronology and nature of the fall, from Melkor's discordant music onward, make parallels difficult, in the more general context of the sensibility behind the mythos, the way in which Original Sin arises in an apparently perfect world created by an omnipotent, omniscient (and ultimately Good) Divine Will can have some resonance in our reading of Tolkien.
The metaphysical paradox is something that has cropped up on various threads recently, but beyond the technical issues I would suggest that the parallel is more relevant to our intuitive understanding of how creation (and sub-creation) is not the same as control, and is perhaps necessarily subject to change and discord - apart from the eternal aspect of the Divine. It might be going out on a limb to say that change is necessary, or that discord serves a purpose, but for the reader familiar with the Christian cosmology the nature of creation, fall and redemption (such as it is) found in Tolkien would be familiar.
The aspect of eternal, ultimate Divinity, and the cosmological narrative, is far more of a relevant factor in The Silmarillion than LotR and in my view accounts for some of the critical differences between the works. I would argue that LotR is far more an artefact of storytelling within an admittedly highly developed context (and therefore with great 'continuity', structural integrity and depth of self-reference - quite modern literary elements), while The Sil is more of a (fictional) act of record.
Of course, the record contains stories, and the story reflects the record, and the author's hand is evident throughout, but I think the distinction, however subtle or incomplete, can be reasonably argued. But, as I have not read any contextual works (like all good dilettantes I prefer to purloin my academic understanding of Tolkien, from the many erudite posts of self-evident experts here at BD [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] ) I am sure there is much more to this!
Peace [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
Kalessin
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