Summary
Finrod Felagund, riding alone in Ossiriand near to the Blue Mountains, was the first of the Eldar to encounter Men. He came on an encampment of them, and went among them while they were sleeping, and sang to them. At first they thought he was one of the Valar, who they had heard rumors of that said they dwelt in the West. But Finrod soon learned their language, and taught them much. Their chieftain was named Bëor, and they were the first of several kindreds of Men making their way to Beleriand after generations of wandering. Bëor wouldn't say much of their past, desiring to put it behind them now that they had come to a place of safety, but it was afterwards learned (if only a little) that Morgoth and his emissaries had been among Men almost from their first awakening with the dawning of the Sun.
In the years to follow, Finrod was always a great friend to the Men who came to Beleriand, who came to be called the Edain (Elf-friends). Many Men took service with the lords of the Noldor. Thingol wasn't too pleased by all this, not least because no one but Finrod bothered to ask him about it. He said that Men could dwell in the northern part of Beleriand with the Noldor, who would be answerable for them. He also said that no Man would be permitted to ever enter Doriath, for he had long had troubling dreams concerning the coming of Men. But Melian said to Galadriel that great deeds were fast approaching, and that one man of Bëor's House would indeed come to Doriath, because his destiny was too great for her power to stay, and he would be remembered in song.
There arose strife among Men, many of whom did not want to get involved in the war with Morgoth. This argument itself was Morgoth's influence at work - it went so far as having one of his servants putting on the form of one of the chieftains and advocating for abandoning the war. This was discovered when the chieftain in question showed up and denied being at the meeting before, let alone speaking. Nevertheless, many Men chose to leave Beleriand and passed out of this history.
The people of Haladin lived in scattered homesteads, and were vulnerable when attacked by the Orcs. They were driven from their homes, and their chieftain killed, but the chieftain's daughter Haleth rallied them and they were able to hold off the orcs until relieved by Caranthir son of Fëanor. Caranthir was impressed by them, and offered to take them into his service. But Haleth refused to serve any master, and led the survivors (now and ever after known as the House of Haleth) westward. After much hardship they settled in the forest of Brethil, which was part of Doriath though not within the Girdle of Melian. Thingol would have evicted, but given all they’d been through, Finrod persuaded him to let them stay. Thingol agreed on the condition that they guard the forest and nearby rivers and allow no Orcs to pass through them. Haleth was insulted that this was held as a condition, since Orcs had killed her father, her brother, and many of her people, but there the House of Haleth remained long after she herself had died.
The folk of Bëor settled in Dorthonion, and the people of Hador (the third House of the Edain) settled in Dor-lómin. They were all allies of the Eldar, but ruled themselves and marched under their own banners. Yet they too were caught up in the Doom of Mandos, though they did many great deeds in the wars against Morgoth.
The people of Hador were hardy, golden-haired, and quick to laugh. The people of Bëor were most like to the Noldor: dark haired, solemn, and intelligent. The people of Haleth were like the people of Bëor, but less eager for knowledge, and their time in Beleriand was filled with sadness and loss.
Bëor relinquished his life freely at the age of 93, and the Eldar were shocked and saddened by this: he had died of no sickness or injury, but instead chose to end his life and go to whatever came next. The Eldar were very uncertain what to make of all this, as the ultimate fate of Men was hidden from them.
Commentary
This is another chapter with a hell of a lot going on. Those who talk about the Sil being dense do have a point, after all.
First thing I want to say: Tolkien, you are such an adorable language nerd. Take this part:
It is said also that these Men had long had dealings with the Dark Elves east of the mountains, and from them had learned much of their speech; and since all the languages of the Quendi were of one origin, the language of Bëor and his folk resembled the Elven-tongue in many words and devices. It was not long therefore before Felagund could hold converse with Bëor.
Or this one:
‘Others of my own kin have crossed the Mountains,’ he said, ‘and they are wandering not far away; and the Haladin, a people from whom we are sundered in speech, are still in the valleys on the eastern slopes, awaiting tidings before they venture further. There are yet other Men, whose tongue is more like to ours, with whom we have had dealings at times.’
Or this one:
In his house only the Elven-tongue was spoken; but their own speech was not forgotten, and from it came the common tongue of Númenor.
I’m hardly one to talk (given that I lead Tolkien read-alongs, help run a fantasy book forum, and take standardized tests on the weekends) (no I’m not kidding), but Tolkien is such an über philology nerd. This is why we love him.
Felagund: dude is awesome. He’s been awesome in the past, and will be more so again.
I’d completely forgotten about the debate over whether or not to abandon the war. It doesn’t really go anywhere, from a story-telling perspective. Some Men wanted to leave, and left. The end. But it’s interesting for Morgoth’s continual attempts to drive wedges among his enemies. And I can’t help but wonder if the false Amlach wasn’t actually Sauron in disguise. It’s in his portfolio to shape change like that, and the whole thing reeks of his style.
Haleth is yet another of the women of Tolkien’s works not living up to the damsel-in-distress fantasy cliche that Tolkien supposedly epitomizes.
Thingol is feeling a bit … irrelevant, and I think he would agree (probably in tones of frustration). He is King of Beleriand, and yet mostly ignored outside of the Girdle of Melian. The Sindar living elsewhere listen to him, but as more of a spiritual leader than an actual monarch. It’s a necessary consequence of walling Doriath off like he has done, but he’s definitely feeling less important than any of the Noldorin lords right now. That will change. I will say his “demand” that the people of Haleth keep Orcs out of Brethil was indeed insulting, and Haleth was very rightfully pissed off about it. Meanwhile, we get this nice bit of foreshadowing:
Melian said nothing to him at that time, but afterwards she said to Galadriel: ‘Now the world runs on swiftly to great tidings. And one of Men, even of Bëor’s house, shall indeed come, and the Girdle of Melian shall not restrain him, for doom greater than my power shall send him; and the songs that shall spring from that coming shall endure when all Middle-earth is changed.’
Worth remembering that, like with Mount Doom, Tolkien’s preference for Germanic words of Latin plays a part here. He’s using “doom” in an older sense that most people nowadays would probably call fate or destiny.
Next time, things go as well as one might expect when we read Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin. But we also get the most bad-ass moment in the history of fantasy, so we’ve got that going for us. Which is nice.
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