Double colonization,
in referring to the dual oppression that postcolonial women suffer, might seem
a surprising description of the plight that Arwen faces in this famous trilogy
(Critical Theory Today: A User-Friendly
Guide, Third Edition, by Lois Tyson; page 405). But prevailing colonialist
ideology devalues her because of her race and cultural ancestry, despite the
fact that Elves are portrayed as graceful, agile, wise, immortal creatures (http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Elves).
The admirable beauty that her people exhibit is irrelevant; mankind is driving them
away from Middle-Earth—settling on Elven lands and seizing natural resources
for themselves—and, consequently, the positive traits characterizing Elves counterintuitively represent symbols of oppression (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GS3tt0kIsg). Humans are, in essence, colonizing the
Elves’ territories, so much so that nature itself objects to their intervention
(http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Ents).
Further worsening the situation, Arwen, as a result of being female in her
world, is subjected to patriarchal ideology—mistreatment based on her sex (Tyson
405). Several scenes from the movies alone illustrate the double colonization
that makes her experience rough.
 |
| Goals. Except for the colonization and sexism parts that we can just ignore. |
Arwen, not unlike
Pocahontas, is romantically involved with one of her oppressors, a man who,
although a compassionate and helpful member of his class, is nonetheless a
member of the group that is acting discriminatorily toward hers. And yes, he is
a human being, in spite of his ability to live for an unusually long time (https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/38738/how-do-arwens-mortality-and-her-and-aragorns-lifespans-work-out).
Arwen’s father Elrond expresses his frustration with regard to Men’s negative
interference in his family’s life when he claims, in response to the wizard
Gandalf’s request for his aid in a quest to save the virtuous inhabitants of
Middle-Earth, that humankind is, in addition to being unworthy of assistance,
unworthy of trust from other races. Rightly, he observes that it is Men who
have been responsible for keeping the evil Ring of Power on Middle-Earth whenever
the Elves have been willing to destroy it (Elrond’s assertions: http://www.tk421.net/lotr/film/fotr/15.html).
Still, the Elves remaining on Middle-Earth—the Elves whose environments have
not been too extensively damaged, and whose life forces are resilient enough to
withstand the growing malice in Middle-Earth due to the strengthening villainy
at work thanks to the Ring’s perpetuation and its owner’s sinister maturation—opt
to cooperate with Men in a rescue attempt anyway (http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Fellowship_of_the_Ring).
Personally, Arwen
finds that her immortality is not sufficiently durable to keep her healthy
during the moral crisis that confronts Middle-Earth (https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/54460/did-arwen-actually-die).
Yet she cannot drive herself to abandon Aragorn to his fate and travel to a
safe place beyond the landmass that is free of Men and does not include him, so
she stays and risks her life. The colonial rules restricting her liberty force
her to decide between true love and, granted the well-intended mission Aragorn
is contributing to fails and Middle-Earth descends into the chaos of tyranny,
death.
How annoying, then,
that Aragorn displays arguably blatant sexism as soon as she is introduced to
moviegoers. She encounters Aragorn and several of his defenseless friends in a
forest in her debut and, seeing that a precious crime-fighting comrade valued
by the enemy is mortally wounded, offers to take him with her on her horse on a
rapid flight to her Elf kin nearby (Aragorn and Arwen’s conversation: http://www.tk421.net/lotr/film/fotr/13.html).
Aragorn tells her, urgently, that the journey is too difficult. Out of
affection, perhaps—and perhaps instead, or partly also, out of a belief that
masculinity has a better chance than femininity of getting there faster.
Luckily, Arwen is not having it. After informing him that she is, in fact, the
superior equestrian, she proves her mettle by sweeping their buddy off to her
relatives in record time, just barely faster than the pursuing villains. While
colonization may wreak havoc on her quality of life, potentially sexist
comments will not—not as long as she can help it.
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| She looks so scared and incapable, don't you think? I'm sure that beneath the determined facial expression she is really only a timid pansy. |
It is fascinating
that, even in the most touching stories, relationship imbalances can mar what
would at first glance appear to be a flawless connection. Arwen and Aragorn,
quite possibly the most moving pair in the Lord
of the Rings, are unevenly matched: Aragorn is, likely unwittingly, or
maybe unwillingly, playing a part in her political and sexual subjugation.
Spoiler alert: she becomes a queen at his side once he defeats the bad guys, so
ideally she assists him in promoting cultural tolerance and gender equality in
the future.
