Written by Gabrielle Rashkovan

for Prof. Rebecca Million

In The Lord of the Rings trilogy there are several strong male characters that are portrayed as great leaders and heroes. Although the series is lacking a range of female characters, Tolkien chooses to make every female role count. Each one has great power and presence, which cannot go unaccounted for. This is demonstrated by the Lady Galadriel in Lothlorien, the evil spider Shelob in her lair, and Eowyn the Lady of Rohan. Each one of these characters exemplifies female power and independence, and is constructed to be superior to all male characters in the trilogy.

Galadriel is a great female leader to the elves, and lives in Lothlorien. She is the bearer of one of the three elvish Rings and is a member of the White Council, given that she is one of Sauron’s wisest and greatest threats. She has encountered many battles in her early life and she was eager to one day rule a realm of her own, which she successfully accomplished. Not only is she powerful enough to read the minds and hearts of others, but she is also capable of blocking Sauron from reading her mind. In Lothlorien, Galadriel holds a great Mirror, which allows its viewers an interpretation of the past, present and future. Most cannot understand what they are seeing, but Galadriel can. She uses it to protect her elvish people by looking into Sauron’s evil mind, while he is unaware of what she is thinking: “I perceive the Dark Lord and know his mind, or all his mind that concerns the Elves. And he gropes ever to see me and my thought. But still the door is closed!” (Tolkien 364-365). Galadriel’s strength is also demonstrated in Shelob’s lair when Frodo chants her name to gain courage and an upper hand on his opponent: “‘Galadriel!’ he called, and gathering his courage he lifted up the Phial once more. They eyes halted. For a moment their regard relaxed, as if some hint of doubt troubled them” (721).  The evil Shelob is startled by the mere of sound of Galadriel’s name. Her name brings power to its chanter and fear to evil, demonstrating Galadriel’s pure power and strength.

Eowyn, like Galadriel, has a title as the Lady of Rohan. She has such a commanding presence that, even at first sight, Aragorn is struck by her: “Slender and tall she was in her white robe girt with silver; but strong she seemed and stern as steel, a daughter of kings” (515). This description proves that she is not merely a beautiful woman, as many fairy-tales often construct their princesses as a damsel in distress, but instead she is a fierce character who can stand on her own without needing to lean on any man. This is why she is chosen by Théoden the King of Rohan to watch over his Kingdom while he is off at war in Helm’s Deep: “She is fearless and high-hearted. All love her. Let her be as lord to the Eorlingas, while we are gone” (523). This quote proves that the men in charge agree that Eowyn is a powerful leader, regardless of her gender. This is not enough for Eowyn; when the time comes and the men set out for another war, Eowyn does not want to be left behind again, she wants to ride alongside them in battle. She is a character who refuses to succumb to normalized gender roles, and strives to be treated equally: “All your words are but to say: you are a woman, and your part is in the house. But when the men have died in battle and honour, you have leave to be burned in the house, for the men will need it no more. But I am of the House of Eorl and not a serving-woman. I can ride and wield blade, and I do not fear either pain or death” (784). And so, she rides with the men, dressed in armor to hide her identity. Given her great skills in battle there is no reason to suspect that she is a woman, especially when she saves King Théoden’s life by killing the Witch-king, who, prior to his demise, claims that, “No living man may hinder me!” (841). Eowyn responds before she kills him, “But no living man am I! You look upon a woman” (841). This reinforces the fact that Eowyn is just as useful as any man on the battlefield. In this case, she was even more valuable due to her gender.

Shelob is “an evil thing in spider-form” (723) and even though she does not exhibit an uncorrupted power like Galadriel and Eowyn, she is still very strong and powerful in her own evil ways. There were once many spiders like Shelob who lived in the Land of Elves in the West, “But none could rival her, Shelob the Great, last child of Ungoliant to trouble the unhappy world” (723). The fact that she is the last of her kind is a real testament to her great strength and will to survive. Not only does Shelob have an endless amount of perseverance, which has kept her alive all this time, but she is also a dangerous predator to all who cross her path; according the orcs, “Nothing gets by Shelob when she’s on the hunt” (739). She does not fear any creature: “She served none but herself, drinking the blood of Elves and Men, bloated and grown fat with endless brooding on her feasts, weaving webs of shadow; for all living things were her food, and her vomit darkness” (723). Shelob’s extensive determination and fearlessness make her a character whose impact cannot be denied.

To conclude, there are very few female characters in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, yet Tolkien’s choice to construct strong female characters proves to be an empowering tool for his story. Galadriel, a great wise and firm power, Eowyn, the Lady of Rohan and a warrior of the House of Eorl, and Shelob, the sole survivor of her kind and vicious predator to all, are all characters that refuse to go unnoticed and prove on multiple occasions that the male roles in the novels are inferior to these invulnerable, fearless and respectable female characters.

 

 Works Cited

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring. New York: Houghton, 1994. Print.

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Two Towers. New York: Houghton, 1994. Print.

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Return of the King. New York: Houghton, 1994. Print.