In J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, you can see a repeating theme of the decay of civilization throughout Middle-Earth. For instance, in all of the Fellowship’s journeys through the land, you can see a numerous amount of once grand cities, reduced to marauding soldiers. Ornate and beautiful bastions of Man’s power on the world simply stones in the path of the Mordor war machine. A second example is the king of Rohan, a powerful and mighty leader of one of the biggest kingdoms of Man, becoming a mere puppet due to corruption from Wormtongue, ordering innocents to death, isolating the kingdom, and allowing soldiers to run rampant. The final example is the complete loss of unity. It is only through the Fellowship that Man bands together to fight the coming darkness of death and despair.
Gondor was the greatest powerhouse of Man in Middle-Earth. Minas Tirith is a gleaming white tower, a testament to the tenacity of the most easily corrupted race of the world.
“...I doubt not that the days of Gondor are numbered, and the walls of Minas Tirith are doomed, so great is His strength and malice.” (Tolkien 645)
When the evil of Mordor was unleashed, Gondor was the closest thing in reach of Sauron. Gondor knew this, and their withdrawal from the other countries is rivaled only by the Elves. Minas Tirith was the host of one of the greatest battles of the War, and also the most heavily affected. It is sad that such a great bulwark of human valor was taken down by fear of its own safety.
Rohan is one of the great cities that fell to the darkness of Mordor. The King was directly influenced by an agent of the Ring.
“...There is trouble now on all of our borders, and we are threatened; but we desire only to be free, and to live as we have lived, keeping our own, and serving no foreign lord, good or evil. We welcomed guests kindly in the better days, but in these times the unbidden stranger finds us swift and hard...” (Tolkein 423)
Rohan was one of the finest seats of power in Middle-Earth. Known for their cunning cavalry and horses, and an absolute monarchy, the country was an ally of Gondor, and like Gondor, produced Dunedain, Rangers of the North. Once Sauron set out on his campaign for the Ring and the hobbit who carried it, Rohan became isolated. Patrols were frequently sent out and found suspicious activity, most of which was normal travellers mistaken for minions of the Dark Lord. However, when the orcish horde captured Merry and Pippin, they made a bloody warpath through Rohan, further disrupting the former trust the country held. The Fellowship had almost been struck down trying to track the hobbits. Men couldn’t even be trusted in this dark age. Once Gandalf struck down Wormtongue and freed the mind of the King, they departed the country, the King giving them parting gifts of new weapons, mail, and to Gandalf, Shadowfax.
The final example is the state of Middle-Earth as a whole. Throughout the Fellowships travels through the world, they encounter many broken alliances and wary people.
“When you know more you will understand why you have angered my companions. We intend no evil to Rohan, nor to any of its folk, neither to man nor to horse. Will you not hear our tale before you strike?” (Tolkien 422)
In conclusion, you can see clearly now how the state of Middle Earth is torn apart into incivility. Gondor had fallen to Mordor, Rohan was veiled in corruption, and the peoples themselves fought against the very thing trying to save them.
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