hi there Belegorn, Findegil and Galin
@Galin
I like the "deer in headlights" metaphor, and the other one upstream somewhere.
The Deer, tho, I'd argue is 'tightly' knit to sinew in fear. Rigid in fact. I've, of a night time, often watched lights approaching in the pitch, and where there is no sound, they are quite captivating. There's the sense of not knowing what it means and which way to move as there is the sense of both 'nothing' of body and yet 'growing light'.
I wonder if it 'tunes' us into the whole 'light at the end of the tunnel' journey, life, death and all those who died for a short while who speak of light and so on? Just a thought.
@all
......cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will.
It does seem as tho there is reference to the effect-metaphysical of the
...breaking... the initial influence
of the
Ring Spell, both in its line of 'sight'/'link' from The One to any/all of The Nine. And the Numenorean Blade fashioned in Arnor "...long..." by some Smith of Lore, who "wove about" or "wound about" (I forget which, see upstream), a
...spell... to allow the blade an effect. I assume a counter-spell of some nature? Could a Man of War, c.f. Hobbit or Woman have dealt the blow-equivalent? Was there something about Hobbit-ish or Woman-ish nature that augmented the Blade's 'purpose'. Tolkien did speak of Blades of Power having purpose. Beleg's blade, for example, forged of Meteorite.
I've never been quite sure about the nature of Numenorean blades. On the one hand, less 'something' than Sting (recall Shelob's web and Sting v Numenor to cut them). Yet, Tolkien states that 'no other blade' (upon the Nazgul) would have dealt a blow so
bitter.
As always with Tolkien
there's always an '...iest' that has a rival. Galadriel 'mightiest' then someone 'fairest' - ha? Luthien v Galadriel. Or s/he who wrought the '--iest' this or that