[Urwen]

Originally Posted by Huinesoron

Except that Maeglin had every chance to turn over a new leaf, and didn't. Even if he didn't want to confess his treason (reasonable), or turn directly against Morgoth during the battle - all he had to do was accept that Idril wasn't his. To walk away from the city, flash his hypothetical credentials to the nearest Balrog, and sit back to watch it all burn.

He didn't. He went after her - despite her being married to someone else - and while trying to abduct her, also did his best to kill her son and erase the tangible evidence of that marriage.



M[a]eglin's response to the person he hates coming at him with a sword... is to try and murder a seven-year-old child before Tuor can stop him. At that point, even if you can somehow justify 'drag Idril to the wall to watch him throw her son over', he was irredeemable. There's no way he could tell himself he was really doing a good thing, or just misunderstood, or just protecting himself - he'd crossed the line into outright evil.

And that's okay! Evil characters can be fun (evil people, not so much). They can be tragic. Gollum proves that we can very much like reading them. But in Middle-earth, with Tolkien writing it, they also eventually - sometimes very eventually - either are redeemed, or get their comeuppance.

Maeglin made the choice to be irredeemable. His death was a direct result of that.

(Also, practically: what else could Tuor have done? They could hardly drag him with them through the secret tunnel and up the mountains, and letting an enemy go free during a battle is a great way to get stabbed in the back. I suppose he could have crippled him and left him to burn with the city - but would that really be better?)

hS

They could have chained him or something.


P.S: You up for making a new riddle?