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Saruman
Sign in to saveAlso known as Saruman the White, Saruman of Many Colors, Curunír
Saruman, also called Saruman the White, later Saruman of Many Colours, is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. He is the leader of the Istari, wizards sent to Middle-earth in human form by the godlike Valar to challenge Sauron, the main antagonist of the novel. He comes to desire Sauron's power for himself, so he betrays the Istari and tries to take over Middle-earth by force from his base at Isengard. His schemes feature prominently in the second volume, The Two Towers; he appears briefly at the end of the third volume, The Return of the King. His e
Key facts
- Character.name
- Saruman the White
- Character.series
- Tolkien
- Character.image
- Escudo Isengard.svg
- Character.first
- The Fellowship of the Ring (1954)
- Character.last
- Unfinished Tales (1980)
- Character.caption
- The White Hand of Saruman
- Character.aliases
- CurunírCurumoSharkeyMan of SkillWhite MessengerHead of the White CouncilLord of Isengard
- Character.race
- Maia
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Curunír.jpg
Show 1 more fact
- name in native language
- Saruman
via Wikidata · CC0
~21 min read
Article
22 sectionsContents
- Appearances
- ''The Lord of the Rings''
- Other books
- Creation and development
- ''She''-like death scene
- Analysis
- A thoroughly modern character
- Once good, but fallen
- Industrial evil
- Evil and providence
- Adaptations
- Radio
- Motion pictures
- Games
- Notes
- References
- Primary
- Secondary
- Sources
- Secondary
- History of composition
- Fiction
Saruman, also called Saruman the White, later Saruman of Many Colours, is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. He is the leader of the Istari, wizards sent to Middle-earth in human form by the godlike Valar to challenge Sauron, the main antagonist of the novel. He comes to desire Sauron's power for himself, so he betrays the Istari and tries to take over Middle-earth by force from his base at Isengard. His schemes feature prominently in the second volume, The Two Towers; he appears briefly at the end of the third volume, The Return of the King. His earlier history is summarised in the posthumously published The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales.
Saruman is one of several characters in the book who illustrate the corruption of power. His desire for knowledge and order leads to his fall, and he rejects the chance of redemption when it is offered. The name Saruman () means "man of skill or cunning" in the Mercian dialect of Anglo-Saxon; he serves as an example of technology and modernity being overthrown by forces more in tune with nature.