Part 2 Summary (¶4-8)
Sauron sought a power of the unseen world to heal Middle-earth at the time he imprisoned Finrod.
Attempting to discover the purpose and identities of Finrod and his company, Sauron perceived him to be a Noldo of great might and wisdom. Finrod gave his life for Beren, foiling Sauron’s plans, and Sauron was then left to contemplate his next move. He corrupted the dagger, either as a small prototype for what he desired to accomplish in time, or as a foot in the door to the Noldor. He likely left the dagger on Finrod’s body, which he marked, knowing that his body would be recovered.
“Sauron stood in the high tower, wrapped in his black thought; but he smiled hearing [Lúthien’s] voice, for he knew that it was the daughter of Melian. […] and he thought to make her captive and hand her over to the power of Morgoth, for his reward would be great.”
Of Beren and Lúthien
Sauron fought Lúthien and Huan, but was incapacitated and went missing. As he wandered in the woods of Taur-nu-Fuin, wild and wary as a beast, Galadriel retrieved the dagger and claimed it for her own. Sauron was suddenly aware of her, and “his Eye piercing all shadows looked across the plain to the [mark] that he had made,” and his target was acquired. He began drawing her to himself, resulting in Galadriel being obsessed with finding him.
Meanwhile, Beren and Lúthien successfully entered Angband, laid hold of a Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown, and escaped. Despite Sauron being Morgoth’s greatest and most powerful servant, he was punished for his failure that led directly to Morgoth’s defeat.
When the Great War ended, Sauron reappeared in the exact manner of Morgoth’s imprisoned slaves, suggesting that he was among them, and he was finally free from the chain upon his limbs.
For centuries, Sauron was aware of Galadriel, and he saw her afar, but the time had not yet come for them to meet. Many more things occurred, including another incapacitation by Adar, which extended Sauron’s journey to power.
During this time, when he traveled through Elven territory and sowed lies, he told a story of Morgoth’s near change of heart. This story was a corruption of Beren and Lúthien’s meeting, as well as an account or prophecy of Sauron’s own dynamic with Galadriel, for the purpose of convincing the Elves that an evil being such as Morgoth was capable of becoming good.
An unknown amount of time passed with Sauron in the Southlands. He sailed from Harad with a company of lowmen who were not privy to Sauron’s object of meeting the current possessor of the dagger, who was swimming away from Valinor. After meeting her, he separated himself from his companions and use Galadriel as a shield against the Valar (specifically Ulmo) and the Númenóreans, and as a key to open doors.
As Galadriel approached the gates of Valinor, the silence finally fell from Sauron, and he called to her. She chose to flee no more and leapt from the ship to accomplish the mission she put upon herself: to find Sauron. But Sauron came to her, and they met on a raft.
After Sauron isolated himself and Galadriel, they were caught in a storm, and Galadriel looked upon Sauron and cried, “Give me your hand! Bind yourself to me!” Doom fell upon her, and a cosmic connection was formed.
From that time forth, Sauron ceaselessly groped ever to see Galadriel and her thought. In the Hidden Kingdom, she laid her hand in his to forge an alliance and friendship; and though the time was brief, it almost seemed to Galadriel that she could be free from the burden she had carried for centuries. Yet, Sauron was aware that had she accepted his offer in episode 8, she would have been caught in his fate, and being free would have received his chain. Her anguish would be greater than any other of the Eldalië has known.
Oh, and two more things:
Who is your favorite Tolkien character?
Charlie: “I think mine, if we want to get into it, is probably Beren. I love Beren’s story, or Lúthien.”
Morfydd: “Yeah, I think I was going to say Lúthien.”
Charlie: “We’re Beren and Lúthien.”
THE END