Saruman’s Most Powerful Weapon in ‘Lord of the Rings’ Isn’t What Fans Expect

One of the most terrifying antagonists in ‘The Lord of the Rings’, Saruman the White, commanded an army of Half-orcs, Dunlendings, and Uruk-hai that posed a menace to Rohan. He led the Istari, a band of wizards sent to help Middle-earth fight Sauron, and was a heavenly Maia spirit. But he was almost as dangerous as the Dark Lord himself because of his descent into evil. Saruman’s staff, the palantír for surveying Middle-earth, and the explosive devices employed at Helm’s Deep were among his outstanding weapons. His voice, however, was his most effective weapon; it was a subdued yet tremendous force in Tolkien’s narrative.

Saruman’s voice was used as a spell-casting device in Peter Jackson’s movies. Tolkien’s speech has an even more pernicious force in his books, though, as demonstrated in the chapter ‘The Voice of Saruman’ of ‘The Two Towers’. Before the company faced Saruman at Isengard, Gandalf forewarned them of its enchanted effect. Saruman’s voice sounded “low and melodious,” and it had a mesmerizing effect that made listeners excessively pleasant and frequently enraged with those who opposed him. Though King Théoden’s resistance was reinforced by his recollection of his son Théodred’s murder at Saruman’s hands, even Gandalf was somewhat impacted.

Image Courtesy: IMDb

Treebeard was convinced by Saruman’s voice and later released him from his captivity in Isengard. Treebeard believed that Saruman was innocuous without his abilities and sympathized with his request for freedom. However, Saruman later terrorized the Shire as a result of this voice, using intimidation to rule the hobbits until Frodo and his friends came back to overthrow him.

With his voice functioning as both a magical and rhetorical force, Saruman’s manipulation accentuates Tolkien’s complex and frequently ill-defined conception of magic. Saruman’s grasp of language was as deadly as any weapon, much like a dangerous leader. Tolkien emphasized the fact that, in a time of political unrest, words may be just as harmful as physical force when used by individuals with evil intentions.

–Farheen Ali