"How Do You Solve a Problem Like 'Mairon'?"
The paper I presented in 2023 and 2024 at Tolkien@UVM, GIFCon, and Oxonmoot has been published in The Journal of Tolkien Research. It's a deep dive into Sauron's name "Mairon." Find it at the link below (copy/paste to get it to work).
https://scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftolkienresearch/vol20/iss2/3/
This paper analyzes Sauronâs âoriginalâ name, âMairon,â in its various contexts (textual, temporal, and linguistic) and then applies it to a reading of the character in order to produce a âcapsule characterizationâ or âminimythâ for the Lord of the Rings himself. The name âMaironâ appears only in a note to a single entry in a list of Eldarin roots, not published until 2007 in the journal Parma Eldalamberon. This niche location suggests one of the many ways in which this name is marginal: typographically, linguistically, narratively, and historically (as in the Secondary World). The name appears to have been conceived during a flurry of revision to the Legendarium following the publication of The Lord of the Rings, revision that elsewhere included additional work on Sauron. Apparently derived from maira (âadmirable, excellent, preciousâ), the name is situated within a broader complex of entries expressing notions of greatness, art-making, service, usefulness, and value. Both âMaiaâ and âMaironâ are ultimately derived from the same root, suggesting a possible understanding of the pre-corrupted Sauron as in some way exemplary of his own order. The name is notably distinct from the names of most of the other Ainur, the majority of whom are named for particular domains of Creation with which they are associated (weeping, weaving, invention, birds, etc.); âMaironâ (âThe Admirableâ) is more closely aligned with Melianâs Quenya name âMelyannaâ (âDear Giftâ) as both names suggest an implied âother.â Ultimately, the name âMaironâ is meaningful to a reading of Sauron and fits smoothly into a larger pattern of associations of the character with the notions of seeing (or not), being seen (or not), and how one is seen (or how one sees the self).
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