Post by Andorinha on Jan 30, 2009 5:52:55 GMT -6
Skin Changers and Shape Shifters
_____________________________________________
Reply
Message 1 of 10 in Discussion
From: Karo6
Sent: 7/20/2002 4:06 PM
"SKIN-CHANGING" in Tolkien's works:
This is another sidelight issue that needs some eventual re-working and systematization to find out just where Tolkien got his ideas on this topic and how he alters "normative" folk tale "shape-shifting" to fit his own mythology. A discussion with another Tolkien reader led us to attempt the isolation of as many incidents of "skin-changing" as we could and divide them into "types" according to the actual event (was it a mere "disguise" episode, where a hunter wears a deer skin with antlers; or a genuine transformation of the "normal" body to really become a new creature, etc.). Then we were going to see if certain "races" or orders of beings were more likely to be "skin-changers," than others, and what types of skin-changing they preferred. We never got around to fully working out these problems (does Morgoth ever shift his shape to appear as a flower; could Beorn change into a gigantic beaver rather than using the same old bear format? etc. *small grin here*). Then we got into a discussion of vampires and werewolves as they appear in the Silmarillion, and still have not come to any definite conclusions as to whether or not Tolkien's brand of vampire/ werewolf had the normative folk tale ability to "change skin."
Yeah... this is another troublesome point! Just trying to come to grips with Thuringwethil's own personal origins and her "nature" is a major problem. She could be a Vala, a Maia, a sorcerous and corrupted Elf maid, or a human woman of great witchery, or just about anything (except maybe a vicious hobbit!). Perhaps one way to narrow the available choices is look at just which (or what) creatures do have a definite ability to shift their shapes, and then try to figure out which of these shape-shifting, skin-changing categories best fits Thuringwethil. Although this presumes that Thuringwethil was a "skin-changer," something of which I am no longer certain! But before discussing the various types of "shape-shifters" I'd like to suggest one other possibility not yet mentioned, Thuringwethil could be one of the mysterious "spirits from afar."
1. Spirits from Afar:
There is one other source of "spirits," or non-fleshed beings from the creation period of Arda ( the physical world of Aman and Middle-earth) which might prove to be the origin of such creatures as Thuringwethil. On pages 44 - 45 of the Silmarillion the Vala Manwe consoles Yavanna who especially fears that her plant life will suffer from the as yet "unborn" Dwarves and Men:
"Behold! When the Children awake, then the thought of Yavanna will awake also, and it will summon spirits from afar, and they will go among the kelvar [animals] and the olvar [plants], and some will dwell therein and be held in reverence, and their just anger shall be feared. ... Then Manwe and Yavanna parted for that time, and Yavanna returned to Aule... 'Eru is bountiful,' she said. 'Now let thy children [the Dwarves] beware! For there shall walk a power in the forests whose wrath they will arouse at their peril.' "
From this I am speculating that there is "pool" of available "spirits" on hand early in the creation period of Middle-earth, spirits that can be used to enthuse certain plants and animals, maybe even inanimate things. These "spirits" would have a certain amount of power, but would not be as strong as the Valar and Maiar, and could become the spirits of the Ents, Entwives, the Huorns, possibly "Old Man Willow," and maybe even become the spirits trapped within the stone figures that stand as "Silent Watchers" beneath the gates of the Tower of Cirith Ungol. So if Thuringwethil is not a Maia (something not yet proven or disproven) might she not be one of these "spirits" gone over to Morgoth's side and "clad" in the hideous form of a great vampire bat?
Then there is the direct matter of "skin-changing," a separate topic in itself. LOL!
2. Skin-Changers:
So, just who can "change-skins" in Tolkien's mythology?
a. Elves:
The High Elves, at least those with great power as "nobles," and possibly as a function of their having lived some time in Valinor, could do a form of shape-shifting, or "disguising." There are several examples of "shape-shifting" Elves in the Silmarillion as when Finrod Felagund "alters by his own arts the faces and forms of his companions so that they are "changed into the likness of Orcs..." (Silmarillion, p. 206). The real problem here is determining if the changes were actual reformations of the flesh, true shape shifting, or just alterations in external appearance, "disguises." Elwing (Silmarillion: pp. 305 - 306) has a true bodily transformation when she becomes a white bird, but in this case the Elf maiden does not seem to have the power of "skin-changing" herself, as the act is accomplished by the power of the Vala Ulmo. Luthien has several instances of apparent "skin-changing" but even here there are problems in seeing her acts as Elven shape shifting:
1) She is part Maiar and so may have gotten her "shape-shifing" abilities from this inheritance and not as a part of her Elven nature.
2) Are the "transformations" of appearance she executes for Huan, Beren and herself "disguises" assisted (or even caused) by putting on the hides of the werewolf and the vampire, or do Huan, Bern and Luthien actually change their own physical natures to become, in the flesh, a werewolf and a vampire? At any rate the "disguises" of Finrod and Luthien seem so complete that it takes a higher power and a greater "magical" art to defeat and "uncloak" these Elven examples of shape-shifting. I am thinking here that Tolkien is trying to convey that the more powerful Elven Lords and Ladies did have more ability in shape shifting than just the creation of clever costuming disguises. This needs more research, but for the moment I am inclined to see Finrod and Luthien as being able to cause some fundamental and real alterations in the configurations of their forms.
b. Ainur:
In addition we know that the Ainur, both the Valar and the Maiar, could take on the appearance and the actual form of whatever creature they wished (Silmarillion, p. 11). This ability seems to be reduced according to the initial power and the behviours of the Vala or Maia in question. Morgoth has a wide variety of forms he can assume until his evil actions make it impossible for him to assume a "fair" shape, and Sauron likewise has his power to shift into a "fair" seeming form curtailed by continued evil actions and the lessening of his might after the catastrophe that sinks the Numenorean Atlantis.
c. Men:
Then finally, we know Beorn and his blood-line preserved the ability to "change skins" between a human and a bear form for generations (Hobbit, p. 278). But of course the argument here depends upon whether or not we accept Beorn and his family as "Men."*
d. Vampires and Werewolves:
Though he does not give us Thuringwethil's origins or "species," Tolkien does give us a very interesting fact about her nature: she is a vampire. She is also Sauron's messenger, her name translates as "Woman of Secret Shadow" and she "took the form of a great bat..." (Sil. pp. 437 - 438). We are further informed (Silmarillion: page 216) that the vampire Thuringwithil could fly in this bat form -- all well-and-good. But I have been unable yet to find a direct quote that allows us to say that she was unequivocally a shape-shifter, or a "skin-changer." In fact, and perhaps this is a gap in my reading knowledge, we are not told in the Silmarillion how Thuringwethil came to die (or has she?) and so left her "fell" (Anglo Saxon for "pelt", skin, or hide) to be found in the ruins of Sauron's island fortress. All we know for certain here is that Huan, the Hound of the Valar finds Thuringwithil's pelt (claws still attached!) and carries it off to Luthien (Sil. p. 216).**
In the same section of the Silmarillion, "Of Beren and Luthien," we learn also that the ranks of Morgoth included werewolves as well as these vampires. In this tale, Huan meets and kills in battle the great werewolf Draugluin. At the same moment he picks up the Thuringwethil's "fell" from the ruins of Sauron's fortress, Huan also takes the "hame" of this dead werewolf. The Anglo Saxon term "hame" means almost the same thing as "fell," both refer to the hide covering of an animal, its pelt or skin. But, although "skins" figure thus prominently in this episode, there still is no clear indication that either Thuringwethil or Draugluin could alter their forms from the vampire-bat or the wolf shape.
If we look at the two terms, vampire and werewolf, in their European-folkloric context, the most common 19th and 20th century stories concerning these creatures do make it plain that "shape-shifting" is an integral power of both. In these standardized folk tales, vampires and werewolves do "skin-changing" or shape-shifting -- hence Bela Lugosi, "Dracula," can appear as a "normal" human, an altered human (when the big fangs appear!) or even as a full vampire bat with no traces of its original "humanoid" form at all. Werewolves (Lon Chaney!) are similarly human at base, but under certain conditions can (voluntarily or not) shift their shapes, and change their skins, to become hairy humans (presumably with fleas) or even transform themselves totally into a pure wolf form. So, if Tolkien was basing his Middle-earth vampires and werewolves on common European literary models, then it is likely that "skin-changing" or "shape-shifting" would be part of their functional repertory.***
But, for now, we have no independent confirmation that either Draugluin or Thuringwethil ever "shifted" their shapes or "changed-skins." Indeed the "fell" or pelt of Draugulin is later used as a disguise by both Huan and Beren, who, under the glamours of Luthien (a half Maia), become the wolf Draugluin by wearing his skin -- at least to all outward appearances. Meanwhile, Luthien clothes herself in the hide of Thuringwethil and by wearing this ghastly raiment, and adding her own magical powers of tranformation or disguise, she becomes, outwardly, Thuringwethil. But these are acts of "skin-changing" for Huan, Beren, and Luthien, not for Draugluin and Thuringwethil! (Silmarillion: page 216)
e. Other instances of "skin-changing"
On pages 211 - 212 of the Silmarillion, JRRT does directly state that Sauron, being a Maia, was also a "skin-changer." In his battle with the Hound of Valinor (Huan), Sauron shifts his shape from wolf, to serpent, to monster, and then back to his humanoid appearance before a final skin-change to become a vampire bat (in which form he finally escapes Huan). The Balrog of Moria, likewise a Maia, has the ability to "change skins" becoming serpent-like in form as he falls into the deeps of the abyss during his fight with Gandalf.
3. Conclusions:
I am not really certain that I have any! But there are several avenues of further research lined out here that might eventually allow us to make a sure and valid assignment of such creatures as Thuringwethil to one of the orders of beings that Tolkien uses to populate his Middle-earth mythology.
1. There may yet be a direct and firm statement by Tolkien in one of his more obscure works, edited for publication by his son Christopher, that will plainly state her origins.
2. If we find more evidence from Tolkien's Letters, Biography, or notebooks we may be able to determine how much he meant his version of vampires and werewolves to resemble the stock characters of European folktales and films.
3. But, even if we are eventually able to "prove" that Thuringwethil did possess shape-changing abilities we may be no closer to assigning her a "species" designation: for now we know that Valar, Maiar, Elves, and Men (Beorn and descendants), all have some form of "skin-changing" power available to them.
So just "who" or "what" was Thuringwethil, and could she "change" her skin?
LOL - a nasty problem that will require further study!
_____________
* Shippey, Author of the Century: p. 32, expresses the opinion that Beorn was a "were-bear" a human being who could change into a bear.
**If Thuringwithil was a "skin-caster," not quite the same thing as a "skin-changer," then she would have a "normal" form, probably humanoid, and would be able to "wear" a bat-suit that she would don and then animate it through her magical powers. This might explain how Huan found Thuringwithil's "fell" and carried it to Luthien, apparenly the vampire had cast off her "bat guise" and left it laying on the bedroom floor just before the whole fortress was tumbled into a heap by Luthien. Consequently, as a "skin-caster" Thuringwethil could be alive even though her misplaced bat-form, her "fell," had now been otherwise appropriated.
***If, however, Tolkien was merely using these terms (vampire and werewolf) as the nearest literary "equivalent" for his Middle-earth creatures -- much as his "Elves" are not the pixie-elves of European folk tales despite the similarities of the name Elf -- then we have no assurance that the characteristics of the European vampire and werewolf have much in common with Tolkien's own version of these life-forms.
____________________________________________
Reply
Message 2 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/20/2002 5:58 PM
Karo6 wrote:
c. Men:
Then finally, we know Beorn and his blood-line preserved the ability to "change skins" between a human and a bear form for generations (Hobbit, p. 278). But of course the argument here depends upon whether or not we accept Beorn and his family as "Men."*
Karo, if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times...well, once anyway...Beorn WAS a man. Letter#144, pg 178: "Though a skin-changer and no doubt a bit of a magician, Beorn was a Man."
Robert Foster makes the claim in The Complete Guide to Middle-Earth that Thuringwethil's bat form was a "shaping-cloak". There is nothing that I can find in my books to say whether or not she had to give up her life with her bat-skin or if indeed it was just a cloak.
____________________________________________________
Reply
Message 3 of 10 in Discussion
From: Karo6
Sent: 7/20/2002 7:30 PM
DaleAnn:
AKKK! Yep! Thanks fer the "jog" to the brain!
LOL! Gasp! Those pesky "Letters!" If I had a nickle for each one I've been told about or even read myself, and then promptly forgot its contents... You are absolutly correct DA!
Letter 144: p. 178 - "Though a skin-changer and no doubt a bit of a magician, Beorn was a Man."
Sigh... wanna bet I forget this by next week?
DaleAnn, good citation on R. Foster! (Another book I need to buy.) I keep hoping that there is a "Letter" somewhere to confirm suspicions that Thuringwethil was a "skin-caster," or a brief note in the HOME series about her origin, still looking. Also I am trying to find the origins of shape-shifting itself, seems a very common item in the mythologies of people all over the globe and througout history. Perhaps a "pagan" element more than a Christian one?
___________________________________________________-
Reply
Message 4 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/20/2002 8:05 PM
Karo, I've got the newer "Letters" with the expanded index. I've looked up every possible word I can think of, including "Bela Lugosi" and "Bram Stoker" trying to come up for a reason for werewolves and vampires and shapeshifters, etc....I can't find anything. Hope you can find something in mythology.
_____________________________________________________
Reply
Message 5 of 10 in Discussion
Sent: 7/20/2002 8:55 PM
This message has been deleted by the author.
____________________________________________________-
Reply
Message 6 of 10 in Discussion
From: MSN NicknameIarwainBen-adar1
Sent: 7/26/2002 7:20 PM
DaleAnn and Karo,
I think Shippy touches on this subject a bit in his book "Author of the Century". He is explaining how Tolkien borrowed from Beowulf (which if I recall translates into "Honey wolf") and another Norse tale which included a skin changer of a similar name. As far as the Vampire side of the tale, I've always wondered the origins of that particular spieces within the context of Tolkien's world. As near as I can recall the only creratures even close to Thuringwithil would be the spiders, being they sucked the life out of other creatures to increase their power, not that they were shapeshifters. Which brings me to Vampire in general. I don't recall the book, but I do remeber reading that the festing upon blood is not true to the myth of vampires and it was the soul they consumed from the body. Darn, as if I already don't have too many things to research and here you guys suck me in again! Hey wait a minute.........LOL!
Namárië,
Iarwain
P.S. Have I mentioned how enjoyable it is reading both of your insights!
________________________________________________
Reply
Message 7 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/26/2002 7:37 PM
Iarwain, as you were posting, I was reading this. And like you, I am now off to find vampires:
However, it is most likely that the people most associated with wolves and werewolves in pre-Christian Europe were the Norse. The most famous wolf from Norse myth is almost certainly Fenris, the outcast son of Loki who will devour Odin the AllFather at Ragnaroc. Indeed, the war between the Norse gods and their subhuman enemies is called 'the war with the wolf'. Fenris is joined in myth by Skoll and Hati, a pair of shapeshifted giants who will devour the sun and the moon on the last day.
But, such supernatural shapeshifters and semi-divine monsters aside, the most famous shapeshifters in Norse myth and society were the berserkers, or more appropriately, the ulfhednar or 'wolfskins', special warriors consecrated to Odin as the War God. Historian, poet, and politician Snorri Sturlusson wrote that the chosen warriors of Odin fought in a state of inspired frenzy, in which they became invulnerable to harm and could change their shapes. The berserkers took the bear as their totem animal, while the ulfhednar followed the wolf. They wore its skin and howled like wolves as they entered battle. These superhuman warriors often formed the bodyguards of kings in pagan Scandinavia, almost always appearing in a group of twelve and the power of the frenzy was passed down through specific families. They appeared as brutish killers in the later, Christianized legends, but very likely were originally a privileged company of fighting men, devoted to Odin and war, and supported by the community as especially chosen divine champions. In the oldest stories they are harsh, ruthless figures, cruel and bloodthirsty yet brave and loyal. Unsurprisingly, they come across as unpopular, even in pagan days, but they received high respect for their skills.
But there was a darker side, too. Werewolves were often viewed as lawbreakers and vicious savages, even sorcerers. In Old Norse, the word for a wolf, vargr (also Old English Warg, which should be familiar to anyone who read Professor Tolkien's book The Hobbit) does double duty for magicians and outlaws. The story of the outlawry of Sigmund and Sinfjotli, listed in the Volsungasaga, is especially worthwhile, as it displays werewolves as both warriors and outlaws.
Early in the saga, Sigmund, and his son Sinfjotli are forced into outlawry as a result of a feud with an enemy. The two flee to the woods and live by banditry. They stumble across two men sleeping in a hut, who, unknown to them, can become werewolves with the aid of enchanted wolfskins. Sigmund and Sinfjotli steal the skins, put them on, and transform into wolves and use the speech of wolves. They then prowl through the woods for ten days, agreeing to fight and kill as many as seven men each unaided, but to howl for help if they should encounter more.
The complete article cornwuff.kittyfox.net/fuzzylogic/werewolf.html
_______________________________________________-
Reply
Message 8 of 10 in Discussion
From: MSN NicknameLord_Algamesh
Sent: 8/28/2002 11:31 PM
I may have a few bits of information to bring up on this one ...
If one looks in the HMCO First American Edition of The Silmarillion (1977) the following passage can be found on pg. 164:
... and Sauron brought werewolves, fell beasts inhabited by dreadful spirits that he had imprisoned in their bodies.
This seems to suggest that the Tolkien werewolf was not a shape-shifter at all, rather ... a possessed animal. There certainly seems to be nothing human about them according to this statement.
Thuringwethil is still a mystery. I am very curious concerning the events of her death. Surely, Tolkien didn't leave us to assume that she perished during Luthien's razing of Tol-in-Gaurhoth?
Algamesh
________________________________________________
Reply
Message 9 of 10 in Discussion
From: sparrow
Sent: 9/4/2002 7:00 PM
This is sort of an aside - there is an interesting story in a book by Peter Dickinson called Merlin Dreams about a girl who has the power to swap bodies with her dog by putting on the collar. Interesting twist on the skin changing/shape shifting theme.
__________________________________________________
Reply
Message 10 of 10 in Discussion
From: Kendal
Sent: 3/20/2004 10:54 PM
Just a quick addendum:
Elwing once wore the "shape" of a bird to fly to her lover Earendil. And later, when this couple became more settled she seems to have furthered her association with the featherd kindreds, learning their tongues, and flying now by "craft" rather than true shape-shifting, if I am reading p. 250 Silmarillion correctly.
_____________________________________________
Reply
Message 1 of 10 in Discussion
From: Karo6
Sent: 7/20/2002 4:06 PM
"SKIN-CHANGING" in Tolkien's works:
This is another sidelight issue that needs some eventual re-working and systematization to find out just where Tolkien got his ideas on this topic and how he alters "normative" folk tale "shape-shifting" to fit his own mythology. A discussion with another Tolkien reader led us to attempt the isolation of as many incidents of "skin-changing" as we could and divide them into "types" according to the actual event (was it a mere "disguise" episode, where a hunter wears a deer skin with antlers; or a genuine transformation of the "normal" body to really become a new creature, etc.). Then we were going to see if certain "races" or orders of beings were more likely to be "skin-changers," than others, and what types of skin-changing they preferred. We never got around to fully working out these problems (does Morgoth ever shift his shape to appear as a flower; could Beorn change into a gigantic beaver rather than using the same old bear format? etc. *small grin here*). Then we got into a discussion of vampires and werewolves as they appear in the Silmarillion, and still have not come to any definite conclusions as to whether or not Tolkien's brand of vampire/ werewolf had the normative folk tale ability to "change skin."
Yeah... this is another troublesome point! Just trying to come to grips with Thuringwethil's own personal origins and her "nature" is a major problem. She could be a Vala, a Maia, a sorcerous and corrupted Elf maid, or a human woman of great witchery, or just about anything (except maybe a vicious hobbit!). Perhaps one way to narrow the available choices is look at just which (or what) creatures do have a definite ability to shift their shapes, and then try to figure out which of these shape-shifting, skin-changing categories best fits Thuringwethil. Although this presumes that Thuringwethil was a "skin-changer," something of which I am no longer certain! But before discussing the various types of "shape-shifters" I'd like to suggest one other possibility not yet mentioned, Thuringwethil could be one of the mysterious "spirits from afar."
1. Spirits from Afar:
There is one other source of "spirits," or non-fleshed beings from the creation period of Arda ( the physical world of Aman and Middle-earth) which might prove to be the origin of such creatures as Thuringwethil. On pages 44 - 45 of the Silmarillion the Vala Manwe consoles Yavanna who especially fears that her plant life will suffer from the as yet "unborn" Dwarves and Men:
"Behold! When the Children awake, then the thought of Yavanna will awake also, and it will summon spirits from afar, and they will go among the kelvar [animals] and the olvar [plants], and some will dwell therein and be held in reverence, and their just anger shall be feared. ... Then Manwe and Yavanna parted for that time, and Yavanna returned to Aule... 'Eru is bountiful,' she said. 'Now let thy children [the Dwarves] beware! For there shall walk a power in the forests whose wrath they will arouse at their peril.' "
From this I am speculating that there is "pool" of available "spirits" on hand early in the creation period of Middle-earth, spirits that can be used to enthuse certain plants and animals, maybe even inanimate things. These "spirits" would have a certain amount of power, but would not be as strong as the Valar and Maiar, and could become the spirits of the Ents, Entwives, the Huorns, possibly "Old Man Willow," and maybe even become the spirits trapped within the stone figures that stand as "Silent Watchers" beneath the gates of the Tower of Cirith Ungol. So if Thuringwethil is not a Maia (something not yet proven or disproven) might she not be one of these "spirits" gone over to Morgoth's side and "clad" in the hideous form of a great vampire bat?
Then there is the direct matter of "skin-changing," a separate topic in itself. LOL!
2. Skin-Changers:
So, just who can "change-skins" in Tolkien's mythology?
a. Elves:
The High Elves, at least those with great power as "nobles," and possibly as a function of their having lived some time in Valinor, could do a form of shape-shifting, or "disguising." There are several examples of "shape-shifting" Elves in the Silmarillion as when Finrod Felagund "alters by his own arts the faces and forms of his companions so that they are "changed into the likness of Orcs..." (Silmarillion, p. 206). The real problem here is determining if the changes were actual reformations of the flesh, true shape shifting, or just alterations in external appearance, "disguises." Elwing (Silmarillion: pp. 305 - 306) has a true bodily transformation when she becomes a white bird, but in this case the Elf maiden does not seem to have the power of "skin-changing" herself, as the act is accomplished by the power of the Vala Ulmo. Luthien has several instances of apparent "skin-changing" but even here there are problems in seeing her acts as Elven shape shifting:
1) She is part Maiar and so may have gotten her "shape-shifing" abilities from this inheritance and not as a part of her Elven nature.
2) Are the "transformations" of appearance she executes for Huan, Beren and herself "disguises" assisted (or even caused) by putting on the hides of the werewolf and the vampire, or do Huan, Bern and Luthien actually change their own physical natures to become, in the flesh, a werewolf and a vampire? At any rate the "disguises" of Finrod and Luthien seem so complete that it takes a higher power and a greater "magical" art to defeat and "uncloak" these Elven examples of shape-shifting. I am thinking here that Tolkien is trying to convey that the more powerful Elven Lords and Ladies did have more ability in shape shifting than just the creation of clever costuming disguises. This needs more research, but for the moment I am inclined to see Finrod and Luthien as being able to cause some fundamental and real alterations in the configurations of their forms.
b. Ainur:
In addition we know that the Ainur, both the Valar and the Maiar, could take on the appearance and the actual form of whatever creature they wished (Silmarillion, p. 11). This ability seems to be reduced according to the initial power and the behviours of the Vala or Maia in question. Morgoth has a wide variety of forms he can assume until his evil actions make it impossible for him to assume a "fair" shape, and Sauron likewise has his power to shift into a "fair" seeming form curtailed by continued evil actions and the lessening of his might after the catastrophe that sinks the Numenorean Atlantis.
c. Men:
Then finally, we know Beorn and his blood-line preserved the ability to "change skins" between a human and a bear form for generations (Hobbit, p. 278). But of course the argument here depends upon whether or not we accept Beorn and his family as "Men."*
d. Vampires and Werewolves:
Though he does not give us Thuringwethil's origins or "species," Tolkien does give us a very interesting fact about her nature: she is a vampire. She is also Sauron's messenger, her name translates as "Woman of Secret Shadow" and she "took the form of a great bat..." (Sil. pp. 437 - 438). We are further informed (Silmarillion: page 216) that the vampire Thuringwithil could fly in this bat form -- all well-and-good. But I have been unable yet to find a direct quote that allows us to say that she was unequivocally a shape-shifter, or a "skin-changer." In fact, and perhaps this is a gap in my reading knowledge, we are not told in the Silmarillion how Thuringwethil came to die (or has she?) and so left her "fell" (Anglo Saxon for "pelt", skin, or hide) to be found in the ruins of Sauron's island fortress. All we know for certain here is that Huan, the Hound of the Valar finds Thuringwithil's pelt (claws still attached!) and carries it off to Luthien (Sil. p. 216).**
In the same section of the Silmarillion, "Of Beren and Luthien," we learn also that the ranks of Morgoth included werewolves as well as these vampires. In this tale, Huan meets and kills in battle the great werewolf Draugluin. At the same moment he picks up the Thuringwethil's "fell" from the ruins of Sauron's fortress, Huan also takes the "hame" of this dead werewolf. The Anglo Saxon term "hame" means almost the same thing as "fell," both refer to the hide covering of an animal, its pelt or skin. But, although "skins" figure thus prominently in this episode, there still is no clear indication that either Thuringwethil or Draugluin could alter their forms from the vampire-bat or the wolf shape.
If we look at the two terms, vampire and werewolf, in their European-folkloric context, the most common 19th and 20th century stories concerning these creatures do make it plain that "shape-shifting" is an integral power of both. In these standardized folk tales, vampires and werewolves do "skin-changing" or shape-shifting -- hence Bela Lugosi, "Dracula," can appear as a "normal" human, an altered human (when the big fangs appear!) or even as a full vampire bat with no traces of its original "humanoid" form at all. Werewolves (Lon Chaney!) are similarly human at base, but under certain conditions can (voluntarily or not) shift their shapes, and change their skins, to become hairy humans (presumably with fleas) or even transform themselves totally into a pure wolf form. So, if Tolkien was basing his Middle-earth vampires and werewolves on common European literary models, then it is likely that "skin-changing" or "shape-shifting" would be part of their functional repertory.***
But, for now, we have no independent confirmation that either Draugluin or Thuringwethil ever "shifted" their shapes or "changed-skins." Indeed the "fell" or pelt of Draugulin is later used as a disguise by both Huan and Beren, who, under the glamours of Luthien (a half Maia), become the wolf Draugluin by wearing his skin -- at least to all outward appearances. Meanwhile, Luthien clothes herself in the hide of Thuringwethil and by wearing this ghastly raiment, and adding her own magical powers of tranformation or disguise, she becomes, outwardly, Thuringwethil. But these are acts of "skin-changing" for Huan, Beren, and Luthien, not for Draugluin and Thuringwethil! (Silmarillion: page 216)
e. Other instances of "skin-changing"
On pages 211 - 212 of the Silmarillion, JRRT does directly state that Sauron, being a Maia, was also a "skin-changer." In his battle with the Hound of Valinor (Huan), Sauron shifts his shape from wolf, to serpent, to monster, and then back to his humanoid appearance before a final skin-change to become a vampire bat (in which form he finally escapes Huan). The Balrog of Moria, likewise a Maia, has the ability to "change skins" becoming serpent-like in form as he falls into the deeps of the abyss during his fight with Gandalf.
3. Conclusions:
I am not really certain that I have any! But there are several avenues of further research lined out here that might eventually allow us to make a sure and valid assignment of such creatures as Thuringwethil to one of the orders of beings that Tolkien uses to populate his Middle-earth mythology.
1. There may yet be a direct and firm statement by Tolkien in one of his more obscure works, edited for publication by his son Christopher, that will plainly state her origins.
2. If we find more evidence from Tolkien's Letters, Biography, or notebooks we may be able to determine how much he meant his version of vampires and werewolves to resemble the stock characters of European folktales and films.
3. But, even if we are eventually able to "prove" that Thuringwethil did possess shape-changing abilities we may be no closer to assigning her a "species" designation: for now we know that Valar, Maiar, Elves, and Men (Beorn and descendants), all have some form of "skin-changing" power available to them.
So just "who" or "what" was Thuringwethil, and could she "change" her skin?
LOL - a nasty problem that will require further study!
_____________
* Shippey, Author of the Century: p. 32, expresses the opinion that Beorn was a "were-bear" a human being who could change into a bear.
**If Thuringwithil was a "skin-caster," not quite the same thing as a "skin-changer," then she would have a "normal" form, probably humanoid, and would be able to "wear" a bat-suit that she would don and then animate it through her magical powers. This might explain how Huan found Thuringwithil's "fell" and carried it to Luthien, apparenly the vampire had cast off her "bat guise" and left it laying on the bedroom floor just before the whole fortress was tumbled into a heap by Luthien. Consequently, as a "skin-caster" Thuringwethil could be alive even though her misplaced bat-form, her "fell," had now been otherwise appropriated.
***If, however, Tolkien was merely using these terms (vampire and werewolf) as the nearest literary "equivalent" for his Middle-earth creatures -- much as his "Elves" are not the pixie-elves of European folk tales despite the similarities of the name Elf -- then we have no assurance that the characteristics of the European vampire and werewolf have much in common with Tolkien's own version of these life-forms.
____________________________________________
Reply
Message 2 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/20/2002 5:58 PM
Karo6 wrote:
c. Men:
Then finally, we know Beorn and his blood-line preserved the ability to "change skins" between a human and a bear form for generations (Hobbit, p. 278). But of course the argument here depends upon whether or not we accept Beorn and his family as "Men."*
Karo, if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times...well, once anyway...Beorn WAS a man. Letter#144, pg 178: "Though a skin-changer and no doubt a bit of a magician, Beorn was a Man."
Robert Foster makes the claim in The Complete Guide to Middle-Earth that Thuringwethil's bat form was a "shaping-cloak". There is nothing that I can find in my books to say whether or not she had to give up her life with her bat-skin or if indeed it was just a cloak.
____________________________________________________
Reply
Message 3 of 10 in Discussion
From: Karo6
Sent: 7/20/2002 7:30 PM
DaleAnn:
AKKK! Yep! Thanks fer the "jog" to the brain!
LOL! Gasp! Those pesky "Letters!" If I had a nickle for each one I've been told about or even read myself, and then promptly forgot its contents... You are absolutly correct DA!
Letter 144: p. 178 - "Though a skin-changer and no doubt a bit of a magician, Beorn was a Man."
Sigh... wanna bet I forget this by next week?
DaleAnn, good citation on R. Foster! (Another book I need to buy.) I keep hoping that there is a "Letter" somewhere to confirm suspicions that Thuringwethil was a "skin-caster," or a brief note in the HOME series about her origin, still looking. Also I am trying to find the origins of shape-shifting itself, seems a very common item in the mythologies of people all over the globe and througout history. Perhaps a "pagan" element more than a Christian one?
___________________________________________________-
Reply
Message 4 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/20/2002 8:05 PM
Karo, I've got the newer "Letters" with the expanded index. I've looked up every possible word I can think of, including "Bela Lugosi" and "Bram Stoker" trying to come up for a reason for werewolves and vampires and shapeshifters, etc....I can't find anything. Hope you can find something in mythology.
_____________________________________________________
Reply
Message 5 of 10 in Discussion
Sent: 7/20/2002 8:55 PM
This message has been deleted by the author.
____________________________________________________-
Reply
Message 6 of 10 in Discussion
From: MSN NicknameIarwainBen-adar1
Sent: 7/26/2002 7:20 PM
DaleAnn and Karo,
I think Shippy touches on this subject a bit in his book "Author of the Century". He is explaining how Tolkien borrowed from Beowulf (which if I recall translates into "Honey wolf") and another Norse tale which included a skin changer of a similar name. As far as the Vampire side of the tale, I've always wondered the origins of that particular spieces within the context of Tolkien's world. As near as I can recall the only creratures even close to Thuringwithil would be the spiders, being they sucked the life out of other creatures to increase their power, not that they were shapeshifters. Which brings me to Vampire in general. I don't recall the book, but I do remeber reading that the festing upon blood is not true to the myth of vampires and it was the soul they consumed from the body. Darn, as if I already don't have too many things to research and here you guys suck me in again! Hey wait a minute.........LOL!
Namárië,
Iarwain
P.S. Have I mentioned how enjoyable it is reading both of your insights!
________________________________________________
Reply
Message 7 of 10 in Discussion
From: DaleAnn
Sent: 7/26/2002 7:37 PM
Iarwain, as you were posting, I was reading this. And like you, I am now off to find vampires:
However, it is most likely that the people most associated with wolves and werewolves in pre-Christian Europe were the Norse. The most famous wolf from Norse myth is almost certainly Fenris, the outcast son of Loki who will devour Odin the AllFather at Ragnaroc. Indeed, the war between the Norse gods and their subhuman enemies is called 'the war with the wolf'. Fenris is joined in myth by Skoll and Hati, a pair of shapeshifted giants who will devour the sun and the moon on the last day.
But, such supernatural shapeshifters and semi-divine monsters aside, the most famous shapeshifters in Norse myth and society were the berserkers, or more appropriately, the ulfhednar or 'wolfskins', special warriors consecrated to Odin as the War God. Historian, poet, and politician Snorri Sturlusson wrote that the chosen warriors of Odin fought in a state of inspired frenzy, in which they became invulnerable to harm and could change their shapes. The berserkers took the bear as their totem animal, while the ulfhednar followed the wolf. They wore its skin and howled like wolves as they entered battle. These superhuman warriors often formed the bodyguards of kings in pagan Scandinavia, almost always appearing in a group of twelve and the power of the frenzy was passed down through specific families. They appeared as brutish killers in the later, Christianized legends, but very likely were originally a privileged company of fighting men, devoted to Odin and war, and supported by the community as especially chosen divine champions. In the oldest stories they are harsh, ruthless figures, cruel and bloodthirsty yet brave and loyal. Unsurprisingly, they come across as unpopular, even in pagan days, but they received high respect for their skills.
But there was a darker side, too. Werewolves were often viewed as lawbreakers and vicious savages, even sorcerers. In Old Norse, the word for a wolf, vargr (also Old English Warg, which should be familiar to anyone who read Professor Tolkien's book The Hobbit) does double duty for magicians and outlaws. The story of the outlawry of Sigmund and Sinfjotli, listed in the Volsungasaga, is especially worthwhile, as it displays werewolves as both warriors and outlaws.
Early in the saga, Sigmund, and his son Sinfjotli are forced into outlawry as a result of a feud with an enemy. The two flee to the woods and live by banditry. They stumble across two men sleeping in a hut, who, unknown to them, can become werewolves with the aid of enchanted wolfskins. Sigmund and Sinfjotli steal the skins, put them on, and transform into wolves and use the speech of wolves. They then prowl through the woods for ten days, agreeing to fight and kill as many as seven men each unaided, but to howl for help if they should encounter more.
The complete article cornwuff.kittyfox.net/fuzzylogic/werewolf.html
_______________________________________________-
Reply
Message 8 of 10 in Discussion
From: MSN NicknameLord_Algamesh
Sent: 8/28/2002 11:31 PM
I may have a few bits of information to bring up on this one ...
If one looks in the HMCO First American Edition of The Silmarillion (1977) the following passage can be found on pg. 164:
... and Sauron brought werewolves, fell beasts inhabited by dreadful spirits that he had imprisoned in their bodies.
This seems to suggest that the Tolkien werewolf was not a shape-shifter at all, rather ... a possessed animal. There certainly seems to be nothing human about them according to this statement.
Thuringwethil is still a mystery. I am very curious concerning the events of her death. Surely, Tolkien didn't leave us to assume that she perished during Luthien's razing of Tol-in-Gaurhoth?
Algamesh
________________________________________________
Reply
Message 9 of 10 in Discussion
From: sparrow
Sent: 9/4/2002 7:00 PM
This is sort of an aside - there is an interesting story in a book by Peter Dickinson called Merlin Dreams about a girl who has the power to swap bodies with her dog by putting on the collar. Interesting twist on the skin changing/shape shifting theme.
__________________________________________________
Reply
Message 10 of 10 in Discussion
From: Kendal
Sent: 3/20/2004 10:54 PM
Just a quick addendum:
Elwing once wore the "shape" of a bird to fly to her lover Earendil. And later, when this couple became more settled she seems to have furthered her association with the featherd kindreds, learning their tongues, and flying now by "craft" rather than true shape-shifting, if I am reading p. 250 Silmarillion correctly.