Hurin and despair

[Kuruharan]

The trouble for Hurin [and thus his family] began when instead of holding his tounge against Morgoth he 'dares to mock him'.

Hurin spoke to Morgoth with pride and understandably defiance, but silence would have seved him better even though ti would have been less 'emotionally satisfying'.

Beggin' your pardon, but it seems likely that Morgoth would have cursed Hurin and company no matter what he did. Hurin was an important individual who had (or Morgoth thought he had) something that he wanted (the location of Gondolin). Silence on this matter would probably have infuriated the already venomous Morgoth just as much as taunting. The results could possibly have been the same. Hurin's troubles really started when he was taken alive in the first place.