Abstract
This paper uses Gestalt theory, the Gestalt laws of perception, and the reception theory of Wolfgang Iser to elucidate the character “Sauron” as he appears in The Lord of the Rings, The Rings of Power, and Tolkien’s wider legendarium. It argues firstly that Sauron’s high degree of indeterminacy and ambiguity suggests he can be read as a gestalt entity, one the reader creates by mentally constructing a whole from (seemingly) disparate parts. Building on the semiotics work of Nagy (2013), it argues that Sauron in The Lord of the Rings can be read as gestalt across the spatial, temporal, and mythological dimensions of the Secondary World and has a geographical dimension that can be interpreted through the Gestalt laws of perception. Further, it argues that The Rings of Power season one attempts to mimic the indeterminacy of Sauron in The Lord of the Rings through the construction of a “Schrödinger box” (as opposed to a “mystery box”). Lastly, it argues that when viewing Sauron across the entire legendarium, Sauron can be said to be gestalt across an additional metatextual dimension. That high degree of indeterminacy and ambiguity has implications for how Sauron is interpreted by readers, fans creating fan works, and those producing adaptations that feature Sauron.
Recommended Citation
Bourquein, Cameron
(2025)
"Perceiving the Perceiver: “Viewing” Sauron Through the Gestalt Theory of Perception,"
Journal of Tolkien Research: Vol. 21:
Iss.
2, Article 3.
Available at:
https://scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftolkienresearch/vol21/iss2/3
Included in
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