The Sound of Being

The Sound of Being

Throughout the world there are many different stories of how the universe came to be. These various creation accounts span all types of works including cultural mythology, historical theory, and fiction, and each brings a unique perspective of the key forces involved in the formation of the earth. Many cultures of old passed down tales of creation stories, and these tales often had common themes, but there were also many unique ideas in each, and each perspective highlights different attributes of the powers involved in creation. These different attributes, through examination, can often add to our understanding to give us a wider and fuller appreciation of nature and the less noticed qualities within it. J.R.R. Tolkien, in his creation myth for his fictional world Middle-earth, “Ainulindale”, highlights certain aspects of creation, and uses colorful and creative images in his writing to describe these different aspects in new and unique ways. While his creation account is not meant as an allegory, there are some similarities between it and the biblical creation account, as well as some special differences and emphases of his own. One of the most important aspects of his creation story is the use of song as a mode of creation for the world and a vision of its creation. His comparison of creation with song provides a fresh and unique perspective of the creation of the world, and it provides a new way of viewing and appreciating the nature of initial creation itself and its implications on life. Tolkien’s myth sets up a sovereign God figure called Iluvatar and a satan-like figure named Melkor, it provides a potent look at the dynamic between good and evil in the context of a musical battle, and it renews the idea of the created world as a masterpiece full of beauty and power, despite the gloom of discord evident in it.

“Ainulindale” opens with a character called Iluvatar in the act of creation (Tolkien 3). This character is set up by Tolkien from the beginning as a God figure, and his identity as the sovereign God of this universe is quickly gleaned from his introduction as “the One” and his ability to create “of his thought” and by speaking (Tolkien 3). Iluvatar first creates spiritual beings known as the Ainur, the “Holy Ones” (Tolkien 3). These entities are given power and form by Iluvatar and he speaks to them, teaching them to sing. Each is given his or her own part, and they sing their part before Iluvatar individually and together, and he is glad (Tolkien 3). Eventually the Ainur begin growing in their understanding, and as he teaches them, they become more unified and harmonious. Iluvatar as the God figure possesses parallels to the God of the Bible in his title as “the One”--a name reserved for God in the Bible, in his holiness and power, in his love of unity, and in his creation itself. His name itself is reminiscent of light and illumination.

A contrast to his character in the story is one of his created Ainur, Melkor. Melkor is full of pride and greed and would often go into the void alone outside of Iluvatar’s halls to seek a means of power and creation because “desire grew hot within him to bring into Being things of his own” (Tolkien 4), but he is unable to create without Iluvatar. Nevertheless, his solitude began to change him, and he began to think thoughts “unlike those of his brethren” (Tolkien 4). His perversion continues to grow and comes to a climax when, as Iluvatar begins to direct the Ainur in a “mighty theme” (Tolkien 3) more glorious than any they had yet sung, as Melkor sings, he starts to sing louder than the rest of the Ainur and to “interweave matters of his own imagining that were not in accord with the theme of Iluvatar” because he “sought therein to increase the power and glory of the part assigned to himself” (Tolkien 4). This disruption throws off the whole piece and creates discord, and were it not for the wisdom of Iluvatar in his accomodation of the disharmony (Tolkien 5), the entire piece would have been ruined. Melkor bears a resemblance to satan of the Bible in several ways: he is created by the very one he strives against, he grows full of pride and seeks to increase his own glory, and by doing so he brings discord and evil into the pure, harmonious creation of “the One.” The characterizations of Iluvatar and Melkor as God and satan figures can help the reader to gain a fresh and different perspective of the qualities of these two personas in reality.

After the characterizations the story gives of Iluvatar and Melkor, another one of the most fascinating characterizations in the story is the vision in which it portrays the struggle of good and evil. Returning to the “mighty theme” mentioned above, Iluvatar reveals to his Ainur a grand music for them to partake in, they sing it harmoniously, “and for a great while it seemed good to him, for in the music there were no flaws” (Tolkien 4). This music is full of the creative power of Iluvatar, and as it is generated, “the music and the echo of the music went out into the Void, and it was not void” (Tolkien 4). After the entire theme is over, Iluvatar declares to the Ainur, “Behold your music!” (Tolkien 6) and reveals that the song they created actually wrought about real changes in the formless scape of the void to create and unfold “a new World” (Tolkien 6). This vision is described as “giving to them sight where before there was only hearing,” and Iluvatar declares that this world is their “minseltry” and that each of them could find in the world all the things that they had devised and added in accordance with his design (Tolkien 6). As they watch the history of the world unfold in the vision, Melkor’s discord enters in, and all that is evil and perverted from the original design in the world is revealed to be a result of his pride and rebellious activity. However, no matter how discordant his tones were, they were not enough to overcome Iluvatar’s artistry. Returning to the actual creation song again, each time Melkor tries harder and harder to increase his part’s glory in the music, Iluvatar simply raises his hands and adds more complexity to his theme, giving it more “power and new beauty,” and his music becomes so masterful that it takes Melkor’s “most triumphant notes” and weaves them “into its own solemn pattern” (Tolkien 5). This characterization of good and evil displays the dynamic of its struggle in a new light, simplifying evil to a straying from the harmony of the original design, and it perceives a beauty in the struggle that is not usually focused on in its portrayal of it as harmonies, melodies, and counter-melodies. This viewpoint adds depth, majesty, and a new appreciation to the constant struggle between good and evil, and it provides reassurance that, just like a piece of music, the struggle will resolve itself harmoniously in the end.

Tolkien’s “Ainulindale” provides a unique and vibrant characterization of the initial act of creation in the formation of his world, as well as an insightful personation of a God and satan figure in Iluvatar and Melkor, respectively. His myth, while not symbolism, bears significance and some similarities to the creation account recorded in Genesis, and it provides a novel and refreshing lens through which to view the idea of initial creation. Its portrayal of creation as well as the struggle between good and evil as a musical theme conveys a tone of beauty and artistry even in the dark sides of life, and it provides a new level of appreciation for the entire work as a whole, as well as a hope that all things will be resolved euphoniously in the end.