Darth Revan wrote:Sauron and Melkor are two great enemies of Middle-Earth; each in his own way. Both have caused untold suffering and damage to its inhabitants, and although for a long time Sauron was Melkor's servant (and by that, "less evil", as Tolkien tells us in Morgoth's Ring), when he gained "independence" from his master he proved to be at least Melkor's equal in cruelty and malevolence. The difference between the nature of their evil is interesting: while Melkor seeks only to unmake Arda, sinking into what seems to be insanity further as he strives toward that goal, Sauron is not concerned with his master's quarrel with Eru; he merely seeks lordship and dominion over Middle-Earth, to eradicate all that would oppose him (especially Elves, whom he feared and hated because he could not subdue them).
Sauron was not inherently evil even while under Melkors dominion. After the fall of Melkor Sauron was captured and released because he repented. The Valar considered this repentence genuine (and they are good judges of character). Sauron didnt return to doing evil for a considerable time afterwards, probably around a millenia - while the Numenorean Empire grew.
Melkor sought to unmake Arda out of spite because he had lost his rightful position as chief of the Valar.
Darth Revan wrote:Sauron also had a big advantage Melkor did not have. He had it in the beginning(as can be seen from his corruption of Men in Atrabeth Finrod ah Andreth, and by his actions in Valinor when the Valar released him), but later on, when he needed it more, he lost it. Whether because he thought he did not need it or because he could not control himself thus anymore, we do not know. That advantage is cunning, lies and deceit. Sauron mastered these skills well while under Melkor, when he wore the form of an evil sorcerer, and later on those skills literally saved his existence and proved to be the end of existence for others.
This is not true, Sauron was taught the skills of deceit by Melkor. Melkors lasting fruit is dishonesty and it stains relationships forever, even in the Undying Lands lies and hatred are concepts that are embadded in society. It is mentioned that this is his legacy after his destruction.
Darth Revan wrote:
Now the scope of Melkor's "influence" is very large indeed: He brought discord into the Song, thus ensuring that Eru's original plans for Arda can never be fulfilled ere the End; he fought the Valar in the Beginning for lordship and damaged much of the young world, further marring it; he caused untold suffering to the Elves, first by deceit and lies he spread in Valinor, fueling Curufinwe's desire to leave, then by stealing the Silmarils and fighting with them for their posession.
Melkors influcence was intentional from the beginning, it is ther power Eru illuvatar bestowed upon him. Each of the Ainur has a function in the Choir. Melkor was the soloist and lead vocal. He was supposed to sing differently from everyone else, but it went to his head.
When Arda was made some of the Ainur came to the world to become Valar, each had a role - mostly elemental in nature. Melkors role was Shadow. Shadow was not evil in itself but it added depth to every other role. Melkor turned the world from '2d' spiritually speaking into '3d' thus shadow contained a part of every other power. So Melkor was a Valar jack-of-all-trades able to touch some of the power of every other Valar, but Melkor wanted to make something of Shadow in and of itself this personal and seperate force could be best described as 'evil'.
Darth Revan wrote:
However, Sauron's own record is pretty impressive also: He caused much harm while in Melkor's service, and then when he remained behind in Middle Earth he quickly moved to establish a reign of terror of his own; cunning and seduction served him well in the creation of the Rings and the One Ring, which tipped the scales in his favor greatly. Ordinary wars and cruel persecutions of both Men and Elves in ME are typical for his personality profile, so I needn't mention them specifically. However, there is one thing which Sauron did, and which Melkor wanted to do, but never managed to do it; to utterly destroy a race or people.
Sauron was slow to turn back to evil. A long time passed between the years when Melkor fell and Sauron became the Dark Lord. However the seed of corruption was always there and he remembered the lessons Melkor had taught him. eventually he put the sorcery he had learned bac into practice.
Darth Revan wrote:
The Numenoreans had as much in common with ordinary Men on the earth as the Elves did (except for the inevitable fact they were both mortal), so I believe it is fitting to separate them from the other Men as a race of their own. Their glory was somewhat shadowed before Sauron's arrival, true, but noone with a sane mind can claim that the events would happen like they did if Sauron's influence was not at work in Westernesse. An entire group of people, a glorious, powerful race was destroyed exclusively due to his machinations and influence.
Saurons corruption of Numenor was pivotal, but the Numenoreans had already corrupted themselves, Sauron only needed to give them a push in the wtrong direction. Its also considerably easier to corrupt men than any other race. Corrupting elves and dwarves is a far harder task, and one beyond Sauron.
Darth Revan wrote:
But, I have dragged on for too long. Essentially, I would like to hear your opinions on this; Who was "more evil"? Can such a comparison be made in the first place? Is Melkor's power more important when determining the magnitude of their evil than Sauron's cold, hard logic and scheming? After all, Sauron did with falsehoold and deceptions in Numenor what no multitude of Melkor's Orcs and Dragons could. I await your contribution.
Melkor was considerably more evil. He invented evil and corrupted Sauron amongst others. It was Melkor who twisted the elves into orcs and the ents into trolls. It was Melkor who destroyed the Lamps, the Trees (with help) and denied the Silmarils to all others.
As far as deceptions are concerned Melkor deceived the world twice into releasing him from captivity after falling into the hands of the Valar. Sauron was released once from capture (excepting being released by Huor the Wolfhound while in wolf form) . Tolkien records that Sauron was so intimidated by the army of the Valar (with Noldor remnant and Vanyar in tow) that he genuinely repented.