> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://mythicmindfellowship.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The Two Towers, Part 2: Helm's Deep and the Palantir (Mythic Mind, ep. 182) - URL: https://mythicmindfellowship.com/the-two-towers-part-2-helms-deep-and-the-palantir-mythic-mind-ep-182/ - Published: 2026-07-16T13:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T04:11:58.000Z - Author: Andrew Snyder Mythic MindEpisode 182 # The Two Towers, Part 2: Helm’s Deep and the Palantir (Mythic Mind, ep. 182) Dr. Andrew Snyder 16 July 2026 [Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) ## In this episode Tolkien once wondered whether a film could cut Helm’s Deep. In the book it still teaches how hope arrives at dawn, and how a seeing-stone can undo the unwary. In this Mythic Mind Lord of the Rings study, Dr. Andrew Snyder (professor of philosophy and theology) walks Book III, chapters 7-11: the Hornburg and the men of Rohan, Gandalf’s dawn, and the Palantir’s dangerous gift of sight after Orthanc. Topics include battle as more than spectacle, hope against despair, and why true seeing is moral before it is magical. ### People **Dr. Andrew Snyder**Host and speaker ### Key themes - Battle as more than spectacle - Hope against despair - Why true seeing is moral before it is magical ## Chapters 1. [00:00Introduction](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=0s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 2. [02:28Heroes who fight for a people](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=148s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 3. [07:24The horn of Helm](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=444s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 4. [09:52Dawn is ever the hope of men](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=592s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 5. [12:20Eucatastrophe through catastrophe](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=740s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 6. [17:16Saruman’s little copy of Mordor](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=1036s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 7. [19:44Evil as formlessness](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=1184s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 8. [27:08Gandalf breaks Saruman’s spell](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=1628s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 9. [29:36Gandalf’s unveiled power](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=1776s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) 10. [32:04The real battle of the soul](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=%5FXTGWHb0iDY&t=1924s&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) Choose a chapter to jump the video to that moment. ## Related - [**The Two Towers, Part 1 (Mythic Mind, ep. 178)**Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueNTOpwZInI&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) - [**The Two Towers as Film and Adaptation (Mythic Mind Movies, ep. 26)**Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQQy1BkKGt0&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) - [**The Fellowship of the Ring as Film and Adaptation (Mythic Mind Movies, ep. 25)**Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpZY3u%5Feyuw&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) - [**J.R.R. Tolkien and the Long Defeat (Mythic Mind, ep. 181)**Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-1Yp1Z8dv4&ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) ## Books mentioned - [**The Two Towers**J.R.R. Tolkien](https://bookshop.org/a/129785/9780547928203?ref=mythicmindfellowship.com) ## Go deeper The Cosmos ### [Mars](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/cosmos/) The Fifth Heaven Find it on the Cosmos The Reading Room ### [The Wisdom of Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/the-wisdom-of-tolkien-the-lord-of-the-rings/) Tracing the Wisdom of Arda. For Fellows and Companions. See the course Fellows and Companions study every course in the Academy, current and future. [View Membership Options](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/membership/) [Previous in Mythic MindJ.R.R. Tolkien and the Long Defeat](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/j-r-r-tolkien-and-the-long-defeat-mythic-mind-ep-181/)[Next in Mythic MindWhat is Romanticism? w/ Josh Traylor](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/what-is-romanticism-w-josh-traylor-mythic-mind-ep-183/) [All episodes in The Gallery](https://mythicmindfellowship.com/videos/)