Forget the tales of Sauron and the Witch-king of Angmar.
Much darker stories await in Tolkien’s Middle-earth.
This sub-genre is often referred to as anti-Tolkien, and we can see why.J.R.R.
But he comes under the category of grimdark for the sheer amount of suffering he was forced to endure.
Clearly having had enough of all this nonsense, Maedhros turned over the kingship to his uncle.
He captured her sons Elrond (yes, that Elrond) and Elros, but another brother died.
As a result, Elwing jumped off a cliff and into the sea, the Silmaril with her.
But she got better and the Silmaril became a star.
On the other hand, Maedhros did not do so well.
Unable to bear the pain, Maedhros threw himself, along with the Silmaril, into a volcano.
Turin and Nienor
Turin and Nienors cursed lives were not their own fault they were literally cursed.
And boy, was it effective.
He nearly died on the way, but was rescued by an Elf called Beleg.
He was adopted by King Thingol but accidentally killed one of Thingols counselors and ran away.
Turin ended up living in Nargothrond where the Elf Finduilas fell in love with him.
It got even worse.
And Thorins father Thrain II has an even worse time of it.
But by far the most complex in terms of darkness is of course Smeagol.
But theres something not entirely evil about Smeagol.
And as Bilbo, Frodo, and eventually Sam all see, he is also pitiable in the extreme.
This, it seems, is where Tolkiens appetite for darker tropes ran out.
Dark cults and human plots, in the end, simply were not his thing.
