[Lalwendë]

Aragorn said naught in answer, but he took the other's eye and held it, and for a moment they strove thus; but soon, though Aragorn did not stir nor move hand to weapon, the other quailed and gave back as if menaced with a blow. 'I am a herald and ambassador, and may not be assailed!' he cried.

What happens when Aragorn does this works on two levels. It can simply be seen that Aragorn's presence or hard stare is the thing which makes the Mouth of Sauron quail, but it could also be that Aragorn is using (my old favourite ) osanwe. This 'mental strife' happens on several occasions in LotR, and to view it as osanwe of course depends upon whether you know about/have read the Osanwe Kenta, which I am beginning to think was written by Tolkien to 'explain' these occurences to some extent.

At its head there rode a tall and evil shape, mounted upon a black horse, if horse it was; for it was huge and hideous, and its face was a frightful mask, more like a skull than a living head, and in the sockets of its eyes and in its nostrils there burned a flame. The rider was robed all in black, and black was his lofty helm; yet this was no Ringwraith but a living man. The Lieutenant of the Tower of Barad-dur he was, and his name is remembered in no tale; for he himself had forgotten it, and he said: 'I am the Mouth of Sauron.' But it is told that he was a renegade, who came of the race of those that are named the Black Numenoreans; for they established their dwellings in Middle-earth during the years of Sauron's domination, and they worshipped him, being enamoured of evil knowledge. And he entered the service of the Dark Tower when it first rose again, and because of his cunning he grew ever higher in the Lord's favour; and he learned great sorcery, and knew much of the mind of Sauron; and he was more cruel than any orc.

I wonder if the description of what the MoS wore reminded anyone else of the uniforms worn by the Guards in Minas Tirith? He wears a 'lofty helm' as they do, minus the wings. And he too is descended from Numenor. That he and Aragorn may share a common ancestry makes their 'struggle' more interesting.

The MoS is obviously a descendant of the Black Numenoreans ('who came of the race of those that are named the Black Numenoreans'), which hints that they, like the Gondorians, must have preserved their culture to a certain extent.

This culture 'worshipped' Sauron, rather than Eru which brings me to another thorny idea. It is not obvious that there is any organised religion in Middle-earth and it is not clear if anyone actually 'worshipped' Eru; there is the instance where Faramir's men 'look to the west', but this is not an overtly ritual moment and could easily be in remembrance of Numenor. Yet now we know that some people in Middle-earth do have some kind of religion, except it is of an evil bent, and they worship Sauron. Why do they do this? Because they are 'enamoured of evil knowledge'.

I'm not sure if there is some kind of message in this, but what it does show is how Sauron may have tempted followers to him, through his 'evil knowledge'.

And now he shall endure the slow torment of years, as long and slow as our arts in the Great Tower can contrive, and never be released, unless maybe when he is changed and broken, so that he may come to you, and you shall see what you have done.

I wonder if this type of torture is any different to what the WK threatens Eowyn with? The MoS seems to have been bestowed (cursed?) with unnatural long life, and though this cannot have been for the same length of time as those lives which the Nazgul have 'lived', I do wonder how this can be. Surely the MoS will lead a tortured existence if his life has been extended? When he says that Frodo 'shall endure the slow torment of years, as long and slow as our arts in the Great Tower can contrive', it is clear that Sauron knows how to extend life; but there must also be some kind of palliative which means they do not live a tortured existence.

I think one of Sauron's temptations for Men may be that he can extend life, and thus many will flock to his 'side'; perhaps he then keeps them in line with the promise of something which will also ease the suffering they would endure as they entered unnatural lifespans.