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Originally Posted by Nogrod
And in all cases you can also see it as an incantation - in the supernatural sense, or just as giving a boost of morale to your troops, sharing the shared mission, or trying to weaken the opposition with a threat.
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Yes, ultimately it is Word of Command. It's not just Gandalf saying "Oi! Get lost!" It's Gandalf saying something very powerful. He's isn't just laying down the law to the Balrog, he is also making it so just by saying it and that's exactly how
No Pasaran! and
On ne passe pas! were used. There's no doubt that someone caught in a real world siege/fighting a terrible enemy and Gandalf would have the same determination.
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Originally Posted by Inziladun
I don't think there was any connection between Gandalf's words and generic partisan-speak, at least not in Tolkien's mind.
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He would have known the phrase. It appears it was incredibly well known in the 1930s to the extent that he wouldn't have been able
not to know it unless he lived in a cave - we know he was a voracious newspaper reader and events such as the Battle of Madrid were widely reported on in the British press. And I think it fits very well that someone who wrote about the ills of totalitarianism in Middle-earth chose to use that phrase. Tolkien even chooses to have Gandalf say it four times, and such phrases would be (and are) repeated in this way:
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'You cannot pass,' he said. The orcs stood still, and a dead silence fell. 'I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass.'
The Balrog made no answer. The fire in it seemed to die, but the darkness grew. It stepped forward slowly on to the bridge, and suddenly it drew itself up to a great height, and its wings were spread from wall to wall; but still Gandalf could be seen, glimmering in the gloom; he seemed small, and altogether alone: grey and bent, like a wizened tree before the onset of a storm.
From out of the shadow a red sword leaped flaming.
Glamdring glittered white in answer.
There was a ringing clash and a stab of white fire. The Balrog fell back and its sword flew up in molten fragments. The wizard swayed on the bridge, stepped back a pace, and then again stood still.
'You cannot pass!' he said.
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