10 Lord Of The Rings Canon Details People Always Get Wrong

The Lord of the Rings has one of my more complex lores of fandom, which makes J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth canon easy to misunderstand.

The Lord of the Rings is one of the most beloved fandoms of all time, but there are several aspects of its canon that even die-hard fans often get wrong. This has a lot to do with the complex and often flexible lore developed by author J.R.R. Tolkien and the changes made by screen adaptations. Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy and Prime Video's The Rings of Power have each made various changes and adjustments to the story, which has led to some misconceptions—even from fans of the original books.

The Lord of the Rings books provide only a taste of the complex lore of Middle-earth. To really understand the world created by Tolkien, readers must dive into works like The Silmarillion and The History of Middle-earth, among others. These posthumous works outline the making of Tolkien's world, how certain beings came to be there, and how the story progressed toward Frodo's journey. Of course, over the years, some of these details have been distorted, and misconceptions have gained popularity.

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It has long been believed that the orcs of Middle-earth used to be elves. This has some foundation of truth but is still inaccurate. In the early days of the world's creation, the Dark Lord Morgoth desired nothing more than to create life. However, only the supreme god, Eru Ilúvatar, could do this. Angry and jealous, Morgoth began kidnapping Ilúvatar's creations, the Elves, and distorting them into creatures of evil. These were the early orcs. However, by the time of the The Lord of the Rings, all the orcs had been bred, not made.

The name 'Undying Lands' is clearly misleading and is assumedly responsible for the common belief that anyone who travels there would never die. However, when Frodo and Bilbo traveled to the Undying Lands in Lord of the Rings (as well as Sam and Gimli later), they all would have still eventually died. There is much debate about whether this would have been sooner or later than in Middle-earth, but Tolkien's writings clarify that the land (known as Valinor) would not put off death for mortals indefinitely.

When audiences think of the world of The Lord of the Rings, they are likely to think of the name Middle-earth. It's the one that is heard the most often and is the setting of Frodo's story. However, it is only the name of a continent. The full world is known as Arda and comprises four continents—Middle-earth, Aman, the Land of Sun, and the Land of Dark. Tolkien also described the universe that surrounded Arda, known as Eä.

Though Lord of the Rings and The Rings of Power make Valinoor look like it is only a ship ride away, traveling there from Middle-earth is no simple task. This is because the two lands exist in separate pocket dimensions. It wasn't always, but since the beings of Middle-earth kept trying to make trouble with the Valar, they decided to make their home a little less accessible. Only the Elves have the means to travel to Valinor, which is why they seem to get there so easily in the screen adaptation.

Throughout The Lord of the Rings movies, Sauron seemed more of a presence than a real villain. This was especially true because of the giant eye atop Barad-dûr in Mordor, which became the symbol of the Dark Lord's form. However, this wasn't really the case in the books. Aragorn spoke to Sauron through the Palantir, and Gollum was tortured by the villain, and described him to be a hand missing a finger. Ultimately, until his One Ring was destroyed, Sauron continued to have many forms.

Many Lord of the Rings fans would consider pointed ears to be a must for the Elves of Middle-earth. However, there is never an instance in the books where Tolkien described them this way. They were often said to be beautiful, light on their feet, and graceful—but their ears were never part of the conversation. Still, this feature might have been assumed since elves have long been associated with pointed ears. Still, it's unclear if this was how Tolkien intended his version of the magical beings.

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A major obstacle in Aragorn and Elrond's relationship in the Lord of the Rings movies was Elrond. Peter Jackson's version of the character vehemently opposed this union of men and elves and feared the repercussions his daughter would have to endure if she chose to marry a mortal. This version of the plot has become so commonplace that it's easy to forget that this wasn't the case in the books. There had been several marriages between elf women and human men in the history of Middle-earth—his only stipulation was that they wait to tie the knot until Aragorn was officially king.

Another misconception caused by the Lord of the Rings movies is the nature of the Three Elven Rings. In the films, Galadriel explained that Sauron had made many Rings of Power and gifted them to the various races of Middle-earth to control them with his own One Ring. She listed the Three Elven Rings as being among them, which seemed to imply that he had made and gifted these as well. However, that wasn't the case. The Three Elven Rings were made without his knowledge to thwart him, though they still fall somewhat under his control (something seen more in The Rings of Power season 1).

Morgoth was defeated by the Valar long before the start of The Lord of the Rings, and Sauron's later defeat seemed to imply that the world would continue in peace ever after. However, Tolkien's works describe a day long after Frodo's journey when Morgoth would return. This is an event known as Dagor Dagorath, the final battle in which the forces of good would destroy that of evil once and for all. Unfortunately, this also means the destruction of all living things in Middle-earth and Valinor—but the Elves, at least, would be resurrected.

Perhaps the biggest misconception regarding the Lord of the Rings series is that there is any definitive and inarguable version of Tolkien canon. Fans will argue about the correct version of events and criticize screen adaptations for getting it wrong. However, Tolkien himself recorded many of his stories very differently. Everything from the creation of Arda to its ultimate destruction during Dagor Dagorath was written in several ways. This isn't because the writer was inconsistent, but because, as a historian, Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings like real-world mythology—and that's part of what makes it so great.