Opening: An intense, powerful buzzing erupts from an array of trumpets, sounding the arrival of the King of Gondor. The cheers from the West armies of Mordor are matched with a sinister silence from Saron’s soldiers. Sitting, waiting, and watching as the Mordor army advances. On the sixth day of travel, the battle has finally begun. The opposers of Sauron assemble towards Maranon on horse, this includes a representative from each race from Middle- earth. All with one thing in common, a disliking towards Sauron. The representatives call out to Sauron demanding he submit himself to Gondor as a prisoner. Their demand is followed by a long pause of silence. Suddenly, a creature with a skull for a face, and eye sockets with burns emerges, it is the Lieutenant of the Dark Tower. The Lieutenant laughs at the group and mocks their efforts. He reveals the belongings of Frodo and aims to make a deal to save his life. The Lieutenant states that in order to save the hobbits life, Gondor must promise to never attack Mordor as well as Gondor must pay tribute to Mordor. Gandalf declines without a second thought. With the refusal of terms from Gandalf, the Mordor army ten times the size is sent retreating due to the turn of events. Never did Sauron or the Lieutenant think Gandalf would leave Frodo behind, but little did they know Gandalf was one step ahead of them, thinking like the enemy, aware of their lies. (talk about how this relates to good vs evil, tolkien alludes to the idea that evil has no imagination and can not put themselves in the shoes of those who are good because they can’t imagine being good while gandalf and the other good character can imagine being evil but choose to be good so they know what choices and decisions the evil side will make because they have more perspective)
Throughout the novel The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R Tolkien depicts the characters in a way that illustrates the struggles between deciding to be good or evil. Oftentimes, characters are faced with the temptation of power, or the corruption of evil and must fight to surpass the urge to give in. A similar theme can be seen in The Gulag Archipelago through Scholzitzen’s emphasis on the actions and treatment of the soldiers. Constantly in the gulag, prisoners must choose whether to help another prisoner in need or themselves. Additionally, the actions of the majority on the outside of the prisoner can also reflect the good vs evil struggle because many people watched the atrocities take place without saying anything because they feared they would be killed. Today the idea of good vs evil can be seen in everyday choices by any random individual. No one is innately evil or good, the choices we make on a day to day basis influence how we are viewed.
In the Lord of the Rings book 5 chapter 10, Gandalf and the other characters are faced with a battle against Sauron’s army. Denethor is seen as a power hungry character throughout the books, constantly looking for ways to gain more power over others any way he can. But, during the battle, when Denethor realizes Sauron’s soldiers may be more powerful and they may ultimately lose the one ring, he locks himself away and hides from the greater power. Pippin yells to Gandor, “‘Denethor has gone to the Tombs,’ said Pippin, ‘and he has taken Faramir, and he says we are all to burn, and he will not wait, and they are to make a pyre and burn him on it, and Faramir as well. And he has sent men to fetch wood and oil. And I have told Beregond, but I’m afraid he won’t dare the return of the king to leave his post: he is on guard. And what can he do any- way?’” (1114) During a battle Denethor complicates things by attempting to sacrifice him and Faramir’s life. Denethnor selfishly kills himself instead of staying to help fight because he used a palantír to see the unfortunate events that lie ahead in the future.
In The Lord of the Rings Book 3 and four begin to discuss the good and evil that surround them in Middle Earth as well as the One ring. Through the readings of book 3 and four the corruption that resides in all the characters is revealed and highlighted through their actions. All along during the books the symbol of power in Tolkien’s story was the One Ring. The lust for power is a dangerous temptation that every character struggles against. In chapter 11 Pippin who is seen to be the most pure and admirable falls to the temptation of power. Pippin puts the whole group in danger due to his lack of judgement when given the opportunity of wielding power. Another character, Gollum is seen in the third book acting very sneaky. Gollum is one of the numerous characters to fall under the influence of the ring and its corruption. “‘Where iss it, where iss it: my Precious, my Precious? It’s ours, it is, and we want it. The thieves, the thieves, the filthy little thieves. Where are they with my Precious? Curse them! We hates them.’” (612) Frodo is bombarded by Gollum who desperately wants to find the one ring. Gollum acted like a companion but soon betrayed his group by attempting to take power through persuasion and then force.
The theme of good and evil is developed throughout all the books of the Lord of the Rings by Tolkien which can also be seen in Solzhenitsyn’s The Gulag Archipelago. The Gulag Archipelago part four talks about Solzhenitsyn’s experience and what it took to survive in the prisons. For Solzhenitsyn the evil within himself came out not exactly for power but for survival. According to Solzhenitsyn, surviving came “‘at any price’ means: at the price of someone else” (Solzhenitsyn 302) Solzhenitsyn could only worry about himself and how he was going to survive. The soviets controlling the prisoners also demonstrates the internal struggle of evil vs good. It is possible that just like Solzhenitsyn, the Soviet soldiers were simply doing what needed to be done in order to survive even if it meant the expense of others. The soviet union soldiers become corrupted when given an opportunity to hold power over others. What they do with these powers shows just how harmful power can become in the wrong hands. The Gulag Archipelago highlights how corrupting evil can be. Ultimately in both books the internal human struggle of good vs evil is shown in the presence of power.
Totalitarianism elements / scenes to use
Solzhenitsyn reminds readers that these prisoners who are being tortured ultimately are innocent and have not committed any sort of crime at all. Similar to the Lord of the Rings, Frodo is seen as a criminal because he possesses the one ring. In the Lord of the Rings, Tolkien introduces the black riders, who are a group that seeks to please Sauron however they can. The black riders, “‘They come from Mordor,’ said Strider in a low voice. ‘From Mordor, Barliman, if that means anything to you.’‘Save us!’ cried Mr. Butterbur turning pale.” (224) This group is feared because of the horrors they inflict in the book, they have little care for things not related to Sauron, like a meaningless life. Because Frodo has the one ring and Sauron wants it, the black riders are quick to attack Frodo. Frodo must deal with traps like the monster spider, being captured, and other obstacles. Although Frodo does not have to deal with beheadings and gruesome torture like the prisoners of the Gulag, Frodo is a different kind of prisoner himself to the one ring. In both scenarios the people in power are feared because of the pain they inflict around them. The way both the leaders of the Gulag and the black riders harm others to gain access to information as well as reach their goals is through fear. This type of leadership style highlights the totalitarian mindset instilled in these people. Both are more concerned about their status, power, and high rankings to be worried about the well being of others around them.