Théoden is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel, The Lord of the Rings. Stephen is an avid Nintendo, Indie, and retro gamer who dabbles in Xbox on occasion, mainly in the form of binge sessions of Overwatch. Theoden isn't just a king, he's also quite the military tactician. Military strategy is one thing, but if one doesn't possess the courage or skills that go with it, it tends to diminish the value of this somewhat. One benefit of Strider traveling the far reaches of Middle-earth is that he has a wisdom and knowledge that comes with soaking in the various landscapes and cultures. Tolkien had chosen to represent the Westron or Common Speech as modern English; the ancestral language of the Rohirrim could therefore be fitted neatly into his system of invented languages by adopting Old English. He was well loved and inspired his men to save middle earth. RELATED: Lord of the Rings 5 Best Friendships and Five Worst. still brings chills down the spines of viewers. [T 6][T 7] In that battle, he routed the Harad cavalry, personally killing their chieftain. Still, even with his extended life as a Dúnedain, Aragorn has spent much of his time as a ranger traveling about Middle-earth, meaning his wisdom of the region doesn't likely measure up to Theoden's knowledge of Rohan. Theoden and Aragorn are two great leaders in The Lord of the Rings. Ride to Gondor! The go-to source for comic book and superhero movie fans. [T 5], In The Return of the King, Théoden led the Rohirrim to the aid of Gondor at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Strategically, everyone, even Saruman, expected Theoden to retreat to Helm's Deep. [T 9], Théoden is transliterated directly from the Old English þēoden, "king, prince", in turn from þeod, "a people, a nation". He was the last of the Second Line of the kings, judging from direct descent from Eorl the Young. Aragorn, on the other hand, seems to have a pretty strong relationship with the men of other nations, in addition to Elves and Dwarves. At that sound the bent shape of [King Théoden] sprang suddenly erect. Jordanes reports that Theodoric was thrown off by his horse and trampled to death by his own men who charged forward. This list will cover 5 points that make the case for each. Theoden was merely an unwise king, allowing for a literal worm to influence his thoughts and actions even before Saruman curses him. This triumph over the forces of evil comes to pass largely thanks to the unlikely Hobbit hero Frodo Baggins. Théoden's strength here is superhuman. In effect they were able to brainwash him into a state of impotence. In the 1981 BBC Radio 4 version of The Lord of the Rings, Théoden's death is described in song rather than dramatized conventionally. Theoden makes cautious, correct choices. Ride to Gondor!" If there's one consistently-strong trait of Theoden's that stands out, it's his impressive ability to motivate and inspire the troops with his epic rallying cries. ', Fisher writes that Oromë found the Elves in the far East of Middle-earth, so is linked with sunrise in the East, heralding a new beginning, and the Rohirrim's name for Oromë was Bema ("horn, trumpet"), the Old Mercian form of the Old English, harvnb error: no target: CITEREFTolkien1954 (, harvnb error: no target: CITEREFTolkien1980 (, harvnb error: no target: CITEREFTolkien1955 (, sfn error: no target: CITEREFSolopova2009 (, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) Full Cast & Crew", The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, Tolkien: A Look Behind "The Lord of the Rings", Risk: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy Edition, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Théoden&oldid=974137957, Articles using Infobox character with multiple unlabeled fields, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Carried from battlefield by his knights, singing and weeping, This page was last edited on 21 August 2020, at 08:30. [T 1], When Gandalf the White and Aragorn, along with Legolas and Gimli, appeared before him in The Two Towers, Théoden initially rebuffed the wizard's advice to oppose Saruman. [8] Fleming Rutledge calls it imitative of the language of myth and saga, and an echo of the messianic prophecy in Malachi 4:1-3. And he had one of the most spine chilling prebattle speeches ever. His relative isolation and his scoffing at the idea of getting aid from Elves, Dwarves, or the men of Gondor tends to support this idea. The nail in the coffin is his fatal mistake. A one-stop shop for all things video games. Aragorn is a rash leader who gets bailed out every time he makes a bad decision which is a lot. [5], The Tolkien scholar Jane Chance contrasts Théoden with another "Germanic king", Denethor, the last Ruling Steward of Gondor. These would have been largely useless had the Rohirrim done as they were trained to do: Ride. This is a place for fans of various creative works to share theories, interpretations and speculation related to that particular creative work. This isn't really a theory, I would argue both Jackson and Tolkien wanted us to reach this conclusion. With decades of experience as king, and much of that time spent in Rohan, Theoden would seem to be better equipped to lead his people and deal with the issues of his realm. But. Yes, he's not completely at fault, Sauron did set about splintering the confidence and unity of Men, but a better leader would have a) gotten more men. [T 2] As Théoden sat powerless, Rohan was troubled by Orcs and Dunlendings, who operated under the will of Saruman, ruling from Isengard. And of course, diplomacy is crucial when it comes to leadership. When it comes to the fantasy epic that is The Lord of the Rings, fans tend to remember the rich, majestic environments and dynamic world-building above all else. However, you're theory kind of contradicts itself. Throughout this saga, Theoden and Aragorn particularly stand out and step up to lead this charge against Mordor and Isengard. When Saruman corrupts Theoden, he's already got a man on the inside. Later, in The Two Towers, he makes some fairly questionable decisions. Théoden also appears in Rankin/Bass's attempt to complete the story left unfinished by Bakshi in their television adaptation of The Return of the King, though he speaks little, and is voiced by Don Messick. Théoden is introduced in The Two Towers, the second volume of The Lord of the Rings, as King of Rohan. [12] However, unlike in the books, the Lord of the Mark is actually possessed and prematurely aged by Saruman (Christopher Lee). [4], According to the scholar Elizabeth Solopova, the character of Théoden was inspired by the concept of courage in Norse mythology, particularly in the Beowulf epos: the protagonist of a story shows perseverance while knowing that he is going to be defeated and killed. Press J to jump to the feed. The decision to hole up in Helms Deep and position the various units accordingly, as well as his stampede charges in the Pelennor Fields shows this is a man who has a sense of military strategy. In the Two Towers, you say he should charge instead of defend. When the Olifants arrive, instead of pausing for a more strategic attack, he blindly charges his entire force into a much stronger, advantageous enemy. Also, those two were absolute tanks in that fight. Once roused by Gandalf, however, he becomes an instrumental ally in the war against Saruman and Sauron. [T 1] In Unfinished Tales, it is implied that the failure of the king's health was "...induced or increased by subtle poisons, administered by Gríma". [9] Jason Fisher compares the passage, which links the blowing of all the horns of the host of Rohan, Oromë, dawn, and the Rohirrim, with Beowulf's pairing of aer daege ("before day", i.e. In this adaptation he is voiced by Jack May. Highly effective in his youth and early middle age, his mind and his spirit were corrupted by Saruman through the vehicle of his agent, Wormtongue. Let's face it, at least from what we see in the films, Aragorn is one of the strongest and most practiced living swordsmen in Middle-earth. He's essentially a one-man army, who seems to shrug off countless onslaughts throughout the films. That's why we say that Théoden's specific and unique character does not seem as important in The Return of the King. and b) allowed every fighting person, or Hobbit, join the fight as they so wished. Théoden is an important character in Peter Jackson's film adaptation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. [10][a] Peter Kreeft writes that "it is hard not to feel your heart leap with joy at Théoden's transformation into a warrior", however difficult people find the old Roman view that it is sweet to die for your country, dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.[11].

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