The Lord of the Rings opened with Galadriel narrating the history of the Ring, and her “None now live who remember it” line takes a bit of untangling to be fully clear. Lord of the Rings’ One Ring went through hell and high water to arrive in Frodo’s palm in the first movie, and Galadriel’s narration summed that up nicely. It was a fairly key introduction for many viewers, especially given that not all of them had read the book or its surrounding lore. But some eagle-eyed readers may flag a lie or mistake in Galadriel’s statement.
Despite The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring movie ending with the Fellowship breaking apart, it started millennia before any of them were even born. Adapting volume one (The Fellowship of the Ring) of English high fantasy originator J.R.R. Tolkien’s masterwork, The Lord of the Rings, this movie skipped Tolkien’s prologue on Hobbits, choosing instead to adapt the atmosphere of its opening poem about the One Ring. As such, it was totally appropriate, but Galadriel’s opening lines don’t quite stand up to scrutiny, given the facts shared across the legendarium.
Galadriel Says “None Now Live Who Remember It,” But She’s Wrong
Galadriel’s Statement In The Lord Of The Rings Prologue Is Vague But Invites Examination
Galadriel, artfully played by Australian actress Cate Blanchett, said, “None now live who remember” some of Middle-earth’s earlier days, but she wasn’t quite right. Galadriel’s first full lines were pulled straight from the novel – “The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.” However, in the novel, it was Treebeard who spoke those words. Treebeard was older than Galadriel and did not specify what everyone forgot, making his statement easier to accept than Galadriel’s.
|
Tolkienian Age |
Event Marking The Start |
Years |
Total Length In Solar Years |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Before time |
Indeterminate |
Indeterminate |
Indeterminate |
|
Days before Days |
The Ainur entered Eä |
1 – 3,500 Valian Years |
33,537 |
|
Pre-First Age Years of the Trees |
Yavanna created the Two Trees |
Y.T. 1 – 1050 |
10,061 |
|
First Age |
Elves awoke in Cuiviénen |
Y.T. 1050 – Y.T. 1500, F.A. 1 – 590 |
4,902 |
|
Second Age |
The War of Wrath ended |
S.A. 1 – 3441 |
3,441 |
|
Third Age |
The Last Alliance defeated Sauron |
T.A. 1 – 3021 |
3,021 |
While Treebeard and Galadriel were both among the oldest Lord of the Rings characters in the movies, Treebeard was “A power that walked the earth, ere Elf sang or hammer rang,” according to Gandalf. Elves’ awakening marked the start of the First Age, and Elves recorded most of the legendarium in-universe. So, indeed, much of the time before the First Age, including the Years of the Trees, was lost to the mists of time. But the high-born Galadriel and her family, including Celeborn and Elrond, had access to lore dating from the First Age.
Much of the time before the First Age, including the Years of the Trees, was lost to the mists of time.
Galadriel’s statement is almost as vague as Treebeard’s, atmospherically spoken over the opening title screen and Elvish whispering. In that sense, the first of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies gets away with it – Galadriel could be talking about anything. However, her “Much that once was” claim leads directly into her next point – “It began with the forging of the great rings.” This happened in the Second Age, and Galadriel remembers it as well as Elrond, Círdan, and Gandalf, not to mention the other Eldar and immortal Maiar in Valinor.
What Galadriel Actually Means In The Lord Of The Rings’ Opening Monologue
Galadriel Is Much Older Than Most Others In The Lord Of The Rings Movies
There are certainly ways in which Galadriel’s lines in Peter Jackson’s prologue do make sense – Galadriel is clearly talking about events that happened long ago in general, which most in Middle-earth aren’t aware of. Tolkien’s medievalist vernacular tends to use absolutes like “none” and “always,“ without necessarily meaning “none” or “always,” reflecting Viking and Anglo-Saxon epics and creating a sense of drama and magic. Also, Galadriel is one of the most powerful Elves in Lord of the Rings, and older than most, so there could well be certain important things that only she remembers
Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies comprise one of cinema’s most famous franchises, but how does each Middle-earth movie rank?
Galadriel is so powerful in Lord of the Rings due to her Eldar lineage, upbringing, training, age, and magical items. These saw her through many of the world-shattering changes that she may be referring to in her opening lines of The Fellowship of the Ring, possibly leading to her unique knowledge. However, all in all, it’s most likely she’s talking about the way Middle-earth was before Elves. Galadriel would have known that immortal Maiar roamed Middle-earth from its inception, but there still may be some parts of it that weren’t traveled by them.
Galadriel’s Monologue May Be Narrated Long After The Lord Of The Rings
It Isn’t Clear When Galadriel Is Speaking In The Lord Of The Rings Prologue
Galadriel narrates the prologue to The Lord of the Rings, but she did no such thing in the novel, so the jury is out as to when Galadriel is speaking in-universe. She is clearly speaking retrospectively, looking back on the past. So, in theory, she could be speaking from any point from the Third Age onward, since her narration covers up until the end of Lord of the Rings’ Second Age. Ending with the War of the Last Alliance, the Second Age saw Galadriel resist Sauron, and Jackson could reason that she is reading an Elvish history text made after that.
“History of Galadriel and Celeborn” is a chapter composed of Tolkien’s differing drafts on Galadriel in Unfinished Tales, written throughout his life.
However, Galadriel may be narrating from even further in the future. It seems to make most sense to imagine Galadriel narrating the story of the movies from after their end, given her tone and choice of subject matter. The Third Age ended for the Elves when they went overseas to Valinor, which happened at the end of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Galadriel could be speaking from the Fourth Age, in which case it is even likelier than none live to remember certain elements of the past in The Lord of the Rings.
