32852985

A PASSAGE EXTRACTED FROM THE LAY OF LEITHIAN
I give here the passage in the Lay (written in 1925; see p. 88) that describes the treachery of
Gorlim, known as Gorlim the Unhappy, who betrayed to Morgoth the hiding place of Barahir
and his companions, and the aftermath. I should mention here that the textual detail of the
poem is very complex, but since my (ambitious) purpose in this book is to make a readily
readable text that shows the narrative evolution of the legend at different stages, I have
neglected virtually all detail of this nature, which could only confuse that purpose. An
account of the textual history of the poem will be found in my book The Lays of Beleriand
(The History of Middle-earth, Vol. III, 1985). I have taken the extracts from the Lay in the
present book word for word from the text that I prepared for The Lays of Beleriand. The
line-numbers are simply those of the extracts, and have no relation to those of the whole
poem.
The extract that follows is taken from Canto II of the Lay. It is preceded by a description
of the ferocious tyranny of Morgoth over the northern lands at the time of Beren’s coming
into Artanor (Doriath), and of the survival in hiding of Barahir and Beren and ten others,
hunted in vain by Morgoth for many years, until at last ‘their feet were caught in Morgoth’s
snare’.
Gorlim it was, who wearying
of toil and flight and harrying
one night by chance did turn his feet
o’er the dark fields by stealth to meet
with hidden friends within a dale,
and found a homestead looming pale
against the misty stars, all dark
save one small window, whence a spark
of fitful candle strayed without.
Therein he peeped, and filled with doubt
5
10