The Two Towers Power Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph).

Quote #4

A strong place and wonderful was Isengard, and long it had been beautiful; and there great lords had dwelt, the wardens of Gondor upon the West, and wise men that watched the stars. But Saruman had slowly shaped it to his shifting purposes, and made it better, as he thought, being deceived—for all those arts and subtle devices, for which he foresook his former wisdom, and which fondly imagined were his own, came but from Mordor, so that what he made was naught, only a little copy, a child's model or a slave's flattery, of that vast fortress, armoury, prison, furnace of great power, Barad-dûr, the dark Tower, which suffered no rival, and laughed at flattery, biding its time, secure in its pride and its immeasurable strength. (3.8.107)

While we've been busy with orcs, Ents, and Saruman in the adventures of The Two Towers, Tolkien doesn't want us to forget that the ultimate enemy and target of this trilogy is Sauron. He is the great enemy, and all of Saruman's strength is just "a little copy" of what is waiting in Mordor. The difficulties that Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli encounter in warring against Saruman only raises our suspense about how in the world they're going to beat Sauron in the last novel.

Quote #5

It was the Huorns, or so the Ents call them in 'short language.' Treebeard won't say much about them, but I think they are Ents that have become almost like trees, at least to look at. They stand here and there in the wood or under its eaves, silent, watching endlessly over the trees; but deep in the darkest dales there are hundreds and hundreds of them, I believe.

"There is a great power in them, and they seem able to wrap themselves in shadow: it is difficult to see them moving. But they do. They can move very quickly, if they are angry. You stand still looking at the weather, maybe, or listening to the rustling of the wind, and then suddenly you find that you are in the middle of a wood with great groping trees all around you. (3.9.62-3)

We know that Tolkien is a fan of forests, and not of fire. But just because these great forests, filled with Hourns and Ents, are relatively peaceful, doesn't mean they don't have power. And this description of their power reminds us that Tolkien personifies a lot of the natural landscape of Middle-earth—not just trees. When Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli enter Hollin, for example, Aragorn listens for signs of Merry and Pippin and comments, "The rumour of the earth is dim and confused" (3.2.62). Not only is Middle-earth populated with powerful peoples, but also the land itself, and the trees that grow out of it, have their own surprising power.

Quote #6

Suddenly another voice spoke, low and melodious, its very sound an enchantment. Those who listened unwarily to that voice could seldom report the words that they heard; and if they did, they wondered for little power remained in them. Mostly they remembered only that it was a delight to hear the voice speaking, all that it said seemed wise and reasonable, and desire awoke in them by swift agreement to seem wise themselves. When others spoke they seemed harsh and uncouth by contrast; and if they gainsaid the voice, anger was kindled in the hearts of those under the spell [...] But none were unmoved; none rejected its pleas and its commands without an effort of mind and will, so long as its master had control of it. (3.10.26)

Each of the wizards of the Council of the Wise have a special talent. Gandalf's power is over flame and light; Radagast's is over animals; and Saruman's is over men's hearts. While we are told that Saruman started out his wizarding career as a good and wise magician, we have to admit that his power seems a bit, well, morally questionable. Really, his main gift is manipulation, which means he can (and does) lead people to think harmful things.