Another take, not mutually exclusive, is Saruman is again (unwittingly or otherwise) being an understudy to Sauron. It was Sauron, after all, who 'bred' the original Uruk-hai and indeed, the Olog-hai.

...so that what he made was naught, only a little copy, a child's model...

‘This is worse than Mordor!’ said Sam. ‘Much worse in a way. It comes home to you, as they say; because it is home, and you remember it before it was all ruined.’

‘Yes, this is Mordor,’ said Frodo. ‘Just one of its works. Saruman was doing its work all the time, even when he thought he was working for himself. And the same with those that Saruman tricked, like Lotho.’

It’s important to give these Orcs some character because “The Uruk-Hai” revolves around an internal power struggle sub-plot between Ugluk and Grishnakh, Mordor and Isengard. It’s an excellent little sub-plot, done extremely well over the course of only a dozen or so pages, and remains one of my favourite sequences in the entire epic.


Ugluk is the show-off and takes on the persona of a junior officer on his first command, barking orders, making stupid speeches, puffing out the chest as far as possible and generally acting far bigger than he is, clearly compensating for a lack of actual experience. Grishnakh on the other hand is the grizzled, bitter veteran, the kind of guy, a long serving Sergeant maybe, who has seen and done it all in his time. He has far more experience then Ugluk and knows it, dismissive of his erstwhile “ally” and with that comes the knowledge of when it is good to stand and fight, and good to run away. He’s a sneering, sarcastic villain, the rebellious enlisted, who has been around long enough to have an in with certain powerful figures, and is not afraid to throw that bit of influence around. And there are the more mindless northern orcs too, lacking a clear leader but just as likely to kick things all off.


The struggle between these three factions is our sub-plot, brought on by secrecy in the ranks, the kind of “need to know” stuff that always produces resentment within any army. In that, the Uruks/orcs don’t act unlike any normal military unit, or the forces of two allies that are required by circumstance to work together. They’re the bad guys, but seeing three groups of soldiers like this, flung together on a common objective, the results are hardly surprising. These guys are a bit more vicious, but it is realistic behaviour. The rest of the bad guys, on either side, act like little more than football hooligans, with slightly more fatal results. It’s also interesting seeing the contrast between them all: the northern orcs seem more animalistic, the Mordor veterans are a bit more divided and prone to backstabbing, while the Isengard Uruk-Hai are united but rather limited in intelligence. It’s good to see a complex enemy, even if Tolkien is at pains to showcase them as crude and simple-minded in their choice of language, in their basic insults to each other and in their willingness to turn to fighting each other at the drop of a hat. The orc culture is one of bravado and violent demonstrations of power: when Ugluk is challenged, he is obliged to kill a few of the rebels to cement his place at the top, and it seems to be a standard thing, creating more animalistic impressions with the sense of an “alpha-male” having to keep everyone else in line. The orc, or uruk, always seems to be looking for some form of advantage, as an individual and for their specific tribe, and will happily kill other orcs to get that advantage.


The Uruk-hai chapter of LOTR, reviewed by 'Never Felt Better'

Is that if Orcs are descended from Elves and therefore immortal, it must have been difficult to blend them with mortal man. And would a man/orc be immortal or not, a possible weakness with the Saruman orcs. And one thing I have wondered is could these man/orc ride wrags? I'm not sure that they could which would have been a weakness compared to orcs.

‘Yes, I am white now,’ said Gandalf. ‘Indeed I am Saruman, one might almost say, Saruman as he should have been.

Gandalf: 'But will you scorn our help? For we offer it to you.’

‘To me?’ said Saruman. ‘Nay, pray do not smile at me! I prefer your frowns. And as for the Lady here, I do not trust her: she always hated me, and schemed for your part.

1. Galadriel makes it clear that she did not want Saruman the lead the White Council. Why? What did she know, or suspect? Would Galadriel have seen somewhat of Saruman in the Mirror?

2. Saruman was the most learned in the White Council about Sauron, and was proud of himself. Sounds a bit like another character who was also smart and learned and proud of himself. His name begins with a "D" and he thought he could take on Sauron mentally. Any ideas?

3. Saruman has a hand (white on a black field) in Aragorn's decision. Previously Aragorn was torn about what to do. Aragorn makes his decision based on compassion for Merry and Pippin, not because he believes it's the best way forward to destroy the Ring or defeat Sauron. Did Saruman inadvertently do him a favor?

4. Are they "very like", or is Saruman choosing to mimic Gandalf as one of his "many guises"? Why? Is imitation unwitting flattery?

5. Is Saruman's ability to use birds as spies a similar skill, but corrupted? Are the Crebain themselves evil, or were they neutral and being used by Saruman? What about Saruman's other "friends"? Clearly Eomer is using the word "friends" ironically. Are the "friends" all evil or are they being controlled by Saruman (or a combination?)

6. Galadriel didn't think Saruman the wisest of the wizards, but he's getting plenty of confirmation from the Uruk-hai. Did Saruman crave praise that much?

7. How did the Isengard orcs get north to Parth Galen without being noticed in Rohan? Eomer found them pretty fast when they came back south.

8. Did tension between the Isengard/Mordor orcs serve to help the hobbits escape? Is Grishnakh's opinion likely widely held in Lugberz? Did Sauron overestimate his control over Saruman?

8b.In our discussion last week, NoWiz included a excerpt from "John Brown's Body" that pointed out how military planning fails when it does not account for the behaviour of soldiers. Did Saruman failure to understand the motivation and actions of orcs?

9. Apparently Treebeard sees in hindsight the same thing as Galadriel. Did Saruman begin to turn when "He gave up wandering about and minding the affairs of Men and Elves" or when "his fame began to grow", or both, or something else? What does "plotting to become a Power" mean? He's already a Maiar, does it mean he wants to be something more?

10. Was Saruman's politeness real or feigned when he had a cordial relationship with Treebeard? Is Treebeards use of "neighbour" important? Does Treebeard only care about what happens within a certain geographic distance? Is Treebeard speaking for the author when he says "a mind of metal and wheels; and he does not care for growing things"?

11. Why is Saruman's genetic engineering worse that just associating with Orcs? Is is because he is tampering with the created order? Is that the sort of thing that Tolk, er, Treebeard would have found revolting?

12. Is Saruman "inadvertently helping" a theme? Is there a higher power involved in making that happen? Did Saruman underestimate the Ents or overestimate his own powers?

13. Can we add human trafficking to Saruman's many offenses?

14. Gandalf also knows how to make gunpowder, but appears to only use it to entertain hobbits on summer evenings. Does this mean it is the use, not the tool, that is wrong?

15. How good/bad were Saruman's military expertise and decisions? If he and Sauron had been "working together" instead of Saruman trying to get the Ring for himself would the outcome have been different? How useful was the Palantir to Saruman?

16. Were the Dunlendings,a bit like the birds, less culpable since they were swayed by Saruman's powers? Would it be easier to control birds or men? Is Erkenbrand's compassion and mercy, not unlike Aragorn's in deciding to track the orcs who captured Merry and Pippin, another enduring theme in LOTR?

17. Was Saruman's interest in the Shire due to Gandalf's interest in the Shire? Is he covering all angles, or does he realize that Gandalf knows something that Saruman doesn't?

18. Why did Saruman take up smoking a pipe? Was this "a little copy" of Gandalf? Does he ever have an original idea?

19. Did he had greater responsibility as he came from a higher place, with more'gifts'?

20. How about readers? Without the backstory of the Maiar, one might think of Saruman (and Gandalf) as rather clever Men. We know they are "more", but does, or should, that change the prism for viewing wizards? Gandalf talks about his responsibilities and obligations. Did Saruman ever think of himself in that way?

21. Would you say that Saruman's treachery is as bad, if less effective, and more recent, than Sauron's?

22. Was Saruman's wizardry "falling off"? Is the "wizardry" of Orthanc stronger than Saruman's? Were wizards less powerful in ME than they were before incarnation?

23. Gandalf's power certainly increased, if you compare his difficulty in opening Moria gate to his mastery at Helm's Deep. Was the title "The White" available after Saruman rejected whiteness for "Many Colours"? Or would Gandalf have become "The White" regardless?

24. It's common in Tolkien analysis to see the Maiar likened to angels. Is this a good way to describe the wizards or don't they equate to angels? How about demi-gods? Or a mash-up?

25. Saruman is associated with machinery in a very negative way. In LOTR is technology a kind of magic? Can it be used for good as well as evil? Saruman studied the Rings and the Palantiri. Are Palantiri and Rings of Power a kind of technology?