The Mouth of Sauron - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Nar · 04-28-2002, 08:53 AM

The 'black Numenoreans' were like a political group in Numenor devoted to evil, ambitious ways and tending to ally themselves with Sauron. They were not a race. They, (or Tolkien as the author) co-opted the color 'black' to refer to the goals of their sect, evil and domination of others, much as 'dark lord' or 'dark side' is used in LotR or Star Wars to indicate evil. The 'dark-light' analogy is very powerful for humans, because we are creatures of day and night, and from the dawn of our time have developed deeply rooted associations with these terms. Tolkien was using it in a mythic fairy-tale way, as many cultures do. However, as I know from my research into science education, analogies are dangerous to use: they can easily lead us astray just because they are so compelling. This analogy is particularly dangerous, as it can tap racism and lead to great evil. Always stay aware of the boundaries of the analogy, where all comparisons fail!

>>Argh! Now I'm feeling Poster's Remorse, have to go back and edit this message-- It's not that I in any way think any of you have strayed into these bad, dangerous areas-- please don't think I'm criticizing! It's just that I was reading over the 'Is Tolkien racististic?' thread before, and had an alarmed reaction to the words 'black' in this context. So I felt an ethical obligation to share my alarm, and clarify 'black Numenorean' --sorry if it's too heavy for the topic.

[ April 28, 2002: Message edited by: Nar ]

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04-28-2002, 08:53 AM	#1
Nar Wight Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 228	The 'black Numenoreans' were like a political group in Numenor devoted to evil, ambitious ways and tending to ally themselves with Sauron. They were not a race. They, (or Tolkien as the author) co-opted the color 'black' to refer to the goals of their sect, evil and domination of others, much as 'dark lord' or 'dark side' is used in LotR or Star Wars to indicate evil. The 'dark-light' analogy is very powerful for humans, because we are creatures of day and night, and from the dawn of our time have developed deeply rooted associations with these terms. Tolkien was using it in a mythic fairy-tale way, as many cultures do. However, as I know from my research into science education, analogies are dangerous to use: they can easily lead us astray just because they are so compelling. This analogy is particularly dangerous, as it can tap racism and lead to great evil. Always stay aware of the boundaries of the analogy, where all comparisons fail! >>Argh! Now I'm feeling Poster's Remorse, have to go back and edit this message-- It's not that I in any way think any of you have strayed into these bad, dangerous areas-- please don't think I'm criticizing! It's just that I was reading over the 'Is Tolkien racististic?' thread before, and had an alarmed reaction to the words 'black' in this context. So I felt an ethical obligation to share my alarm, and clarify 'black Numenorean' --sorry if it's too heavy for the topic. [ April 28, 2002: Message edited by: Nar ]