Of the women of the House of Hador and how their pride affected their fate

The Men of the House of Hador are much renowned for their achievements, for although they were at times coupled with grief and sorrow, they were always remembered as great among men and elves. However, what is often forgotten is that the women of their house, Rían, Morwen, Nienor and Aerin, each earned in their way a noted but fairly tragic place in history. Within the House of Hador there were many different situations, and though grief came to all women through wars, jealousy, blindness and curses, how it was handled was determined not only by what came their way, but also by their individual personalities.

The Women of the House of Hador

There were four main women of Hador that we are told about in The Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales. These were Morwen, Rían, Nienor and Aerin. Lalaith has been included as well, for her fate also shows the tragic ends of the women of Hador.

Rían

Wife of Huor and mother of Tuor.

“By hard fate was she born into such days, for she was gentle of heart and loved neither hunting nor war. Her love was given to trees amd to flowers of the wild, and she was a singer and a maker of songs.” (Unfinished Tales, Narn i hîn Húrin)

It would seem that the grief of those days was far too great for Rían, and after the death of her husband nothing, not even her infant child, could convince her to go on living. Leaving Tuor in the care of the Grey Elves, Rían went to the waste of Anfauglith, and laying herself down at the Haudh-en-Ndengin, she died. Her son Tuor grew up in the care of the elves and in time made his way to Gondolin and brought hope to both Men and Elves.

Nienor

Daughter of Morwen, sister of Túrin. Nienor was born in the land of Dor-lómin and later escaped with her mother to Doriath. When her mother left in search of Túrin, she also went away, disguised as one of Thingol’s men. In that time she came to Nevrast and was enchanted by the dragon Glaurung. Under his enchantment she failed to remember even her own name, and when meeting with her brother she did not know who he really was. The two married only to discover the truth at the death of Glaurung. The grief of her life, as well as the thought of Túrin dead, and the realisation of what had occurred between the two of them was too much for Nienor and she committed suicide.

Aerin

Aerin is a true woman of the House of Hador, and through her relationship with Húrin, she came to a most pitiable end. Aerin was never a strong person, her mind was gentle and she was easily scared and thus a certain victim of the many horrible events that took place after the Battle of Nirnaeth Arnoediad. When Easterlings came plundering to Dor-lómin, she was made the wife of Brodda, who found in her the beauty and splendour that he did not see in the scarce numbers he had with him of his own kind. Her position as wife of Brodda gave her a degree of liberty and the ability to help her own kin secretly. Though ever fearful of the punishment of her brutal, scornful and dominant husband, she did as well as she could. She led a pitiful and miserable life until the return of Túrin who came in search of his sister and mother, but in helping him she earned the wrath of her husband, and when Túrin in his temper killed Brodda, he also sealed her death.

Lalaith

Though her time in Middle-earth was short, this daughter of Húrin was fair and merry, and considered to be as an ‘elf-child’. She was taken by the Evil Breath before the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, thus becoming yet another sad example of the tragic ends of the Hador women.

Morwen

The real tragedy of Morwen was her pride, which was the source of her many later sorrows. Morwen was wise and held great love for Húrin her husband, and suffered much when he disappeared, although in this as in all other matters she kept her sorrow and the following fear to herself. This was the second great loss she had to bear, the first being the death of her daughter Urwen (Lalaith). It was her pride that made her disregard her husband’s and later the Elves’ advice about leaving Dor-lómin and seeking refuge for her and her son in Brethil or in Doriath.

After having suffered many general hardships from the hands of the Easterlings, she eventually brought herself and her daughter to the safety of Doriath in search of her son, but it was too late, and when news came of his suspected death, she once again ignored the counsels of the Wise and left her shelter in pursuit of him. What came out of this was not a fond family reunion though, but instead the loss of her daughter and death to herself. Though Morwen’s sorrow was mainly caused by her own pride, it was also this pride that was her strength, helping her maintain her appearance and her dignity at all times.

The Pride of the House of Hador

Pride is one of the very prominent aspects of the lives of the women of Hador, and we see it displayed in a number of ways. Sometimes it is in the way of self-respect and dignity, and at other times we see it shown as arrogance and haughtiness, and in some cases both. However, it is plain that in every case the women of Hador cannot face life if their pride is lost, it seems the one weapon they all have against the world.

Morwen is one of the few who displayed both self-respect and dignity, as well as arrogance and haughtiness, showing how the pride of her house was both a blessing and a curse. In the first instance, following the battle of Unnumbered Tears, we see her strength striking fear into her enemies and for this reason her house is not harmed.

“But so great was the beauty and majesty of the Lady of Dor-lómin that the Easterlings were afraid, and dared not to lay hands upon her or her household; and they whispered among themselves, saying she was perilous, and a witch skilled in magic and in league with the Elves.” (The Silmarillion, Of Túrin Turambar)

She is not above sending her only son to Doriath for his protection, but when elves are sent by Thingol to escort her to the safety of Doriath, she refuses and hides her poverty from them. Her pride stops her from obeying her husband’s previous words to her, which were:

“But if things do go ill, I will not say to you: ‘Do not be afraid! For you fear what should be feared, and that only; and fear does not dismay you’. But I say: ‘Do not wait!’ I Shall return to you as I may, but do not wait!” (Unfinished Tales, Narn i hîn Húrin)

In women such as Aerin, the pride of the House of Hador is less obvious. She chooses survival through a forced marriage and in this she is unlike Morwen, who probably would have chosen death over that option. However,r in her position Aerin aids her people, despite the consequences to her wellbeing. It is her courage in helping those around her that eventually leads to her death, as well as causing her much suffering at the hands of her husband throughout her life. The pride of her house is shown in her strength to be kind and forgiving and endure great hardships, even though in the eyes of many her marriage to Brodda could be seen as weakness.

Rían has a similar disposition to Aerin, in that they are both gentle women born in grievous times. However, unlike Aerin, Rían loses her husband and, unwilling to face ruin without him, she chooses to lay down her life while her dignity remains. In this she is similar to Morwen, who it would seem holds her pride and dignity closer to her than anything else.

Although it is more difficult to say what characteristics would have been the most prominent in Nienor had she been born in happier days, her reaction upon discovering the loss of her dignity is the same as Rían’s; it seems that none of the women of Hador could survive once their pride had been taken from them.

As can be seen, the pride of the house of Hador was strong in every woman, it was what gave them the courage to face what came their way and do so in a way that would help them maintaining their dignity at the same time. They found the courage to choose death or to go on and suffer a multitude of hardships, they found the courage to defy norms and to keep their place in the world. They found the courage to see their line continue, even if it meant parting with their children. If not for this pride, the women of Hador may not have had the will to survive It was their desire to ‘save face’ that saw their descendants live. Obviously these displays of courage would always be connected with the same air of tragedy as almost anything else in our ladies’ world.

This is most evident when speaking of Aerin and Morwen, the former dared to live alone in a country filled with enemies, while the latter was also ready to go in search of her son all by herself. Aerin’s courage, though slightly less conspicuous than her relative’s, was still great, for she dared defy her abusive husband and help her kin in their plight.

Compared to the courageous reaction of Morwen and Aerin to their troubles, the courage of Rían and Nienor may diminish a little, for they willfully chose their own death when overcome with difficulties. Yet we must not forget that Rían never had so much pride as Morwen and therefore could gain less support from it. Also, she first ensured that her son was left in good hands. And as for Nienor, she was with Morwen when many of her courageous deeds were done, and had just as great a share of pride as her mother. It was only when this was stripped from her by the revelation of her relationship with her brother that she lost her strength to carry on against all odds.

Determination, linked with pride and courage, is a trait shown most effectively in Nienor and Morwen. Their determination to do things their way sees them ignoring the counsel of those around them, which in most cases causes them more harm than good. But also it is determination that makes them continue with a seemingly hopeless life, which would bring no pleasure or gladness in times to come.

But their willpower reaches farther than that, it reaches to their psyche. It is their strength of will that together with their pride make them keep up the appearances and not show the fear or sorrow that they feel in day-to-day life. Their determination is caused by something outside of themselves and is used as an outer drive, their willpower is used in the opposite way. This is also the reason why we see a change in who has what. Aerin has determination but she lacks the willpower of the others, whereas Rían has less of the first but much of the other.

Duty also seems to be present in the lives of these women, especially Morwen and Rían. Morwen saw it as her duty to wait for her husband and to protect her children. Rían similarly saw it as undutiful to continue without her husband, and her duty to ensure that her son was cared for she also fulfilled. Aerin shows a great sense of duty, it is one of the great reasons why she keeps taking care of the people of her kindred when made wife of Brodda. When Túrin comes to ask for news of his mother, it is also her duty towards Húrin’s family that makes her speak. In this it can also be seen how closely duty and pride are connected, as it is the women’s pride in their House that makes them perform their duty without wincing the slightest.

We have not yet looked at how Nienor performs her duty, but it is because her case is special. One may argue that she displays the greatest sense of duty when she commits suicide, as it may be seen as an act when she rids the world of herself, rids the world of something tainted with ill luck and curse. She, if one may say so, feels like she is doing her duty to the world as well as to her House, when, realising she has lost all honour, decides not to pollute her family any longer by remaining alive. This shows that while the pride and duty of the House of Hador is its strength, it also places a great pressure on its people, which can have tragic results, as it indeed also had for Aerin, who in doing her duty to Túrin forfeited her own life.

In the case of Morwen she followed her duty to protect her children so blindly that she fled Doriath seeking Túrin against the advice of Melian and Thingol. This action only caused her grief. However,r it could be seen as an act of love, not of duty, and begins to show us the other underlying value in the Women of Hador. Besides pride and duty, these women had a love for their people that even the shadow of Morgoth could not quench. Both Morwen and Rían held great love for their family, their sons, and most importantly their husbands. They both made sure their sons were placed in the care of elves for their protection, and chose to face their fates without husband or son.

It is also worth noting that, while Rían confronted the fact that her husband had died and so gave up her life herself, Morwen let it be a driving force of her life to hope for his return, she would not allow herself to admit that he might have been lost. Both Rían’s and Morwen’s actions concerning their sons and the news of their husbands are interesting because they show two different ways of reacting to the same news and also the different sense of duty the two of them had.

Though their husbands won great renown in battle, the women of Hador endured so much while maintaining the pride of their house, that they should not be overshadowed by the valour of their husbands. Their fight was just as important as the battles that the Men of Hador won. Each showed the pride of their people, did what they saw as their duty stubbornly, and showed great love to those that were left of their house. Every woman did this individually, but all did it nonetheless, and it was them that saw the line of Hador continue. To do this though they gave up their own lives and their own welfare. “She was not conquered.” This four-word phrase said by Huor at the end of Morwen’s life seems to sum up each of these women’s individual strength in the face of grief and ruin. They were not conquered and their tragic ends were not for nothing, and after their death their sacrifices would become known for what they were. From the line of Hador came the ruler of Númenor, the greatest civilization of Men ever to abide in Arda.

by Elvishmusician and Eressëa