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Old 07-04-2016, 11:48 AM   #3
Marwhini
Wight
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 144
Marwhini has just left Hobbiton.
I will need to dig through the HoM-e books dealing with the writing of the LotR, but I do recall a comment on the subject of the Balrog and its relationship to Sauron.

If I recall correctly, there were rather a lot of interrelated issues concerning the Balrog.

Foremost among them was that Gandalf knew that something must be done about the Balrog to prevent it from becoming an ally of Sauron. So this was one of Gandalf's motivations for the trip through Moria: To scout the Balrog, and ascertain its motivations and goals (and to "deal with it" should the opportunity arise).

I cannot recall Tolkien touching upon the Balrog gaining the One Ring, but I am certain that the thought crossed his mind.

The trick here is whether the Balrog would even have wanted the One Ring (at least for itself).

Most people do a spit-take on this, and exclaim "What-the-What???!!! Why would the Balrog NOT want the One Ring???"

And here you get tangled up in the origins of Balrogs, Sauron, and the corruption of Maia, and their individual goals and reasons for being corrupted.

Both Sauron and the Balrogs still serve Morgoth, even if they remain concerned for their own temporal power within Middle-earth.

And Sauron was, in the Hierarchy of "Middle-earth Hell" the remaining Authority for Morgoth.

In the Cosmology, Morgoth was supposed to eventually re-enter, bodily, Arda by crossing over the Walls of Night. And it could be that Tolkien imagined his Servants seeking to facilitate this.

To that end, Sauron having the One Ring would make that eventuality much more likely than the Balrog having it (and the Balrog would likely know this).

Like I said.... Here we get into a tangled web of the goals and intentions of "Evil" and "Corrupted" spirits/souls in Middle-earth, and things like allegiance, slavery (of the mind and/or body), the corrupted "nature" (psychology) of those fallen to Evil and "Morgothism," as well as to the Loyalty of Morgoth's Ainur Servants (It seems to be only his "Slaves" - Orcs, and Trolls, and other such corruptions or Life - that gave him problems of "rebellion" against his Will, in the same way that Morgoth rebelled against Eru Ilúvatar).

We have to remember that Sauron continued to Worship Morgoth as the Rightful Ruler of Arda. See his behavior at leading Númenóre into Morgothism, and his perverting Humanity after their awakening to the same thing as described in the Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth. Sauron also established such Worship of Morgoth among the Easterlings and Haradrim. Thus Sauron remained "Loyal" even though he sought to establish Temporal Dominion over the peoples of Middle-earth (recall from Morgoth's Ring that Morgoth's goal was dominion over the physical realm of Arda - the "stuff" out of which "creation" was made, rather than dominion over the people - he seems to have delegated this to Sauron, who was more focused upon the dominion over other's Will than was Morgoth).

The question would then be:

"How Loyal to Morgoth would the Balrog have remained?"

My personal feeling is that the Balrog would have little personal interest in the One Ring, as the Balrogs seemed to have cared more about chaotic violence and destruction than they did for dominating the wills of others.

And thus the Balrog would likely believe that delivering the One Ring to Sauron would best further the Balrog's personal goals of sowing chaos and destruction, and of seeking for the return of Morgoth from beyond the Walls of Night.

MB
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