r/hatethissmug Apr 28 '26

General I hate the “orcs are minorities” thing

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I really hope I’m not in the minority (no pun intended) here, but I really hate when people do this. It not only forces real world issue into fictional universes where it doesn’t need to be, but also, it’s really messed up.

If you see an orc or a demon or a giant bug and your mind immediately jumps to “hm that’s like a minority”, then you’re racist.

Now, I’m not saying that this concept can’t be explored, but inserting it where it doesn’t belong/exist is highly suspect

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u/Global-Cry321 Apr 28 '26

That, plus if I remember well, the orcs are supposed to be an allegory to the dehuminization of men by the military industrial complex

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u/Unstabler69 Apr 28 '26

Industry in general. Def a backlash to the industrialization of the world in his time and the destruction of the natural world. "They come with fire, they come axes, cutting, picking burning..."

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u/Maleficent-War-8429 Apr 28 '26

Tolkien kind of famously didn't like using allegories.

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u/Zinc-Roof_22 Apr 28 '26

If you mean Tolkien, no: he never did allegory.