← “The Silmarillion”: Chapter by Chapter
Lesson
Lesson 1. Breakdown: what matters and what's interesting
Work through the meeting of Thingol and Melian, the birth of Doriath, and the meaning of their union.
Guide: what this chapter is about
Summary
A very short but pivotal chapter about a love that decided the fate of Beleriand.
Elwë is one of the lords of the Teleri who led their people west. In the forest of Nan Elmoth he meets Melian, a Maia, a spirit of the Valar's people who had come to Middle-earth. They stand spellbound for long years while trees grow up around them, and their people search for them in vain.
Elwë never goes over the sea. He becomes Thingol (“Greymantle”), king of the Sindar, the Grey-elves who stayed in Beleriand. With Melian he rules the hidden forest kingdom of Doriath. Melian surrounds it with an unseen defense, the Girdle of Melian, which no one can pass against her will. Their daughter is Lúthien, fairest of all the Children of Ilúvatar.
Lesson notes
Summary
A very short but pivotal chapter about a love that decided the fate of Beleriand.
Elwë is one of the lords of the Teleri who led their people west. In the forest of Nan Elmoth he meets Melian, a Maia, a spirit of the Valar's people who had come to Middle-earth. They stand spellbound for long years while trees grow up around them, and their people search for them in vain.
Elwë never goes over the sea. He becomes Thingol (“Greymantle”), king of the Sindar, the Grey-elves who stayed in Beleriand. With Melian he rules the hidden forest kingdom of Doriath. Melian surrounds it with an unseen defense, the Girdle of Melian, which no one can pass against her will. Their daughter is Lúthien, fairest of all the Children of Ilúvatar.
A union of spirit and Elf
— Elwë Singollo → Thingol in Sindarin, “Greymantle.” His brother Olwë led the Teleri on, over the sea, and became king at Alqualondë.
— Melian, a Maia who once served Vána and Estë in the gardens of Lórien; she has a gift of deep wisdom and a power beyond the reach of Elves.
— Doriath, “the Land of the Fence,” a forest kingdom guarded by the Girdle of Melian.
— Menegroth, “the Thousand Caves,” Thingol's halls.
— Lúthien Tinúviel, their daughter, in whose veins runs the blood of both Maiar and Elves.
The main idea: this is the first of three great unions between Elves and beings of another kind (here, an Elf and a Maia). It produces a unique line in which natures mingle, and from it a special beauty and a special power will come into the world.
Why this union is the root of everything
— Lúthien, daughter of Thingol and Melian, will become the beloved of the mortal Beren. Their story (the chapter on Beren and Lúthien) is the heart of “The Silmarillion” and Tolkien's own personal story (the names Beren and Lúthien are carved on his and his wife's grave).
— From Beren and Lúthien comes a line leading to Elrond and Elros, and so to Aragorn and the kings of Númenor. In this way the forest union ties “The Silmarillion” directly to “The Lord of the Rings.”
— Doriath under the Girdle of Melian is one of the last strongholds of peace and beauty in dying Beleriand; its fall (later, because of cursed gold and a Silmaril) will be one of the greatest tragedies.
— Melian is the only Maia who took an Elf as her husband and bore a child; her wisdom and foresight guide and warn the heroes more than once.