61 pages • 2 hours read
J. R. R. TolkienThe Children of Húrin
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2007A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Fate Versus Free Will
Content Warning: The source material features depictions of violence, unintended incest, and of death by suicide during a period of grief.
The conflict in The Children of Húrin represents the struggle between fate and free will, probing whether humans are destined to suffer predetermined outcomes or are free to decide the direction of their lives. As a form of torture and retribution, Morgoth, who styles himself “Master of the fates of Arda” (65), curses Húrin’s family to a lifetime of ruin and suffering, which he allows Húrin to see through Morgoth’s eyes. This curse becomes the dominant form of fate within the novel, though there are hints of other kinds of determinism as well (e.g., Túrin’s inherited tendency toward pride).
While Morgoth implies that there is no escape from the curse, the narrative presents each of its protagonists actively working to elude their destiny. Túrin, for instance, is forced to leave his home in Dor-lómin for fear of his death at the Orcs’ or the Easterlings’ hands. Had he or his mother been resigned to the fate that Morgoth designed for them, they would not have exerted the effort to ensure Túrin’s protection. It is worth noting that though the plague Morgoth sends early in the novel kills Urwen Lalaith, Túrin falls sick but recovers. Morgoth himself admits the possibility that Túrin could one day become strong enough to negate the power of his curse.
The desire to elude the curse also motivates Túrin to travel and assume new identities at every turn. Yet the relative peace he enjoys in each new home is cyclical, as the people and places surrounding them ultimately fall victim to bad fortune. Sador, for instance, lives a long life past Túrin’s departure from Dor-lómin, even managing to survive the wrath of the Easterlings who claim the country for themselves. It is only when Túrin returns to his native country that Sador is finally struck and killed. Even less lucky is Beleg Strongbow, who dies at Túrin’s own hands as a result of mistaken identity. Gwindor later reminds Túrin that the curse has less to do with the name he gives people than with who he is.
This is a warning Túrin never fully heeds, though there is some ambiguity as to whether Túrin’s true “curse” is the one Morgoth lays on him or simply his own poor decisions. Ultimately, the two may be one and the same, as characters’ attempts to resist their destiny repeatedly and ironically end up fulfilling it. In sending Túrin to Doriath, for example, Morwen separates him from his as-yet unborn sister, laying the groundwork for their eventual marriage. Later, Túrin renames himself Turambar, which means “Master of Doom”—a deliberate allusion to his attempt to define his own life. Though Niënor is unable to remember her identity, it is clear that she holds on to some impression of her former life, pausing when Turambar says his name “as if listening for some echo” (217). This suggests that the knowledge of Turambar’s true identity could have jogged her memory sufficiently to prevent their marriage. The nature of the characters’ resistance to fate, like the nature of fate itself, is thus ambiguous. If on the one hand their efforts become acts of defiance that echo Húrin’s actions in the face of Morgoth, they also embody a pride and recklessness that can prove disastrous in and of themselves.
The Frail Nature of Humanity
The frail nature of humanity is a recurring theme across much of Tolkien’s work. In The Children of Húrin, the theme is broached as early as the death of Túrin’s first sister, Urwen Lalaith, when Túrin asks Sador about fate. Sador explains that what sets Elves and Men apart is that Men live so briefly. In the context of fantasy, this comparison is helpful for enriching the world of Middle-earth, making the races of Elves and Men clear and distinct from one another. However, this contrast is not merely a matter of worldbuilding; rather, it establishes mortality as a central feature of what it means to be human, shaping human perspectives and concerns.
Within the text, human frailty is seen by some as something contemptible. Túrin, who is frequently in the company of Elves, finds a tormentor in Saeros, Thingol’s counselor, who feels that Túrin does not belong in Doriath. He calls Men the unhappy (i.e., unlucky) race and often opposes Túrin’s intentions with scorn, which mirrors Húrin’s encounter with Maeglin of Gondolin during his youth. Túrin tries to resist Saeros’s contempt for him but cannot help bowing to it when his final ruin is revealed: As the curse of Morgoth is fulfilled, Túrin ventures into the woods, cursing “all the life of Men” (253). The novel thus suggests a parallel between Túrin’s tragic destiny and the ultimate fate of all humans. In fact, Túrin wonders early in the novel whether mortality is a “curse” laid on humans by Morgoth, linking Túrin’s fate and that of humanity more closely still.
Túrin’s question is one that Tolkien considers extensively in other writings, though The Children of Húrin does not answer it directly. The closest it comes is Húrin’s remark to Morgoth that his power over Men is limited because they will eventually go “Beyond the Circles of the World” (65), implying that humans have an afterlife—and a destiny—outside Middle-earth. Morgoth denies this, telling Húrin that Túrin’s fate will prove otherwise. The implication is that just as Túrin’s attempts to evade the curse will only fulfill it, so too will humans’ efforts to avoid death prove futile and even destructive.
However, if the knowledge of mortality influences characters’ worldview and actions, it does not always do so in negative ways. For example, it drives both Húrin and Túrin to take action while they can; Túrin’s valiant efforts even lead the Elves to hold him in high regard, counterbalancing their own tendency toward caution and inaction. In Nargothrond, Túrin is given the nickname Adanedhel, which means Elf-man and thus suggests that the Elves consider him their equal despite his status as an outsider. Many things in the world seem predisposed to destroy men, yet men also retain a steadfast spirit and meet their challenges with determination.
The Inescapability of the Past
Túrin’s reinvention as Turambar brings home a key thematic question, as it suggests the possibility of successfully escaping one’s past. His reinvention, after all, appears to be total, as his grief over the deaths of Finduilas and many others moves him to renounce his name and his family. It is telling that this act is private; he makes the pronouncement in his heart, never revealing to anyone why he might choose to abandon his lineage. As it turns out, however, the past catches up to Túrin, and he suffers greatly for it. In fact, the final act of pride that leads to his downfall—believing that he has truly escaped the curse of Morgoth—is directly tied to his rejection of the past, taking the form of his inability to recognize his own sister. This suggests that the past can never truly be escaped and that its acknowledgment can lead one to greater wisdom.
The end of the novel is not the only time the past catches up to Túrin. Reminders of his old adventures continually spring up, often in ironic ways. Soon after he learns about Niënor’s death, Túrin encounters Mablung, whom he last met during his escape from Doriath. During that previous encounter, Mablung gave him the option to enter his custody and stand trial for the death of Saeros. As it turns out, choosing to do so would not only have resulted in his pardon but would also have allowed him to reunite with his mother and meet his sister, averting the entire incestuous marriage that precipitates both his and Niënor’s deaths. Mablung’s reappearance therefore underscores how incomplete Túrin’s knowledge was when he was making crucial decisions—a familiar trope in tragedy, where the consequences of actions are often both unpredictable and far-reaching.
Likewise, Túrin’s quest to rescue Finduilas from the Orcs is interrupted by his unexpected return to Dor-lómin, where he stops to learn his family’s fate. This results in the liberation of his people from the Easterlings, but at the crossroads, he once again rejects the past, leaving the people of Dor-lómin to their own devices. Nothing more is said of Túrin’s native people, who still fervently wish for him to return. One might infer that because he renounces his name and kin, their search for freedom remains long and difficult.
A quieter but significant omen that shows the difficulty and undesirability of escaping the past comes after Túrin’s escape from Doriath. Beleg reaches Túrin to share news of his pardon and invites him to return to Thingol’s court. When Túrin asks how his pardon came about, Beleg reminds him of his old friend Nellas, who spoke in his defense. Túrin confesses that he no longer remembers this part of his childhood, which Beleg laments. Túrin has successfully escaped this aspect of his past, which fails to do anyone any good, only stressing the frail quality of human memory. To forget is to sever one’s ties to others, a curse as regrettable as any from the hands of Morgoth.
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By J. R. R. Tolkien
