"Uruk ... We Prefer 'Uruk'": The Representation of the Orc in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

In Tolkien’s legendarium, there are many complicated characters, vexed figures who combine aspects of what readers might think of as good and evil, but Orcs are, it seems, always and only evil. This despite the fact that Tolkien’s own writings provide ample evidence that Orcs, however loathsome they may appear, are nevertheless people, a “race” that like Elves, Dwarves, Men, and Hobbits maintains social orders and belongs to Middle-earth. The Amazon Prime show The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power offers a glimpse of Orc culture from within, as the audience is introduced to a mysterious new character, Adar, who is both a leader and patriarch of the Orcs. In this essay, Robert T. Tally Jr. analyses the role of the Orc in The Rings of Power, suggesting that the show's representation provides food for thinking of a more nuanced moral universe in Middle-earth, one in which good and evil are not tied strictly to racial categories, and Tolkien's narrative complexity is given the credit it is due.