Shelob

Shelob is a <a href="/facts/Fictional_monster/EKFI1f1Q">fictional monster</a> in the form of a giant <a href="/facts/Spider/aqpU7eg3">spider</a> from <a href="/facts/J._R._R._Tolkien/41HPhk5C">J. R. R. Tolkien</a>'s <a href="/facts/The_Lord_of_the_Rings/aS5RH7YT">The Lord of the Rings</a>. Her lair lies in <a href="/facts/Cirith_Ungol/Goa0Eh16">Cirith Ungol</a> ("the pass of the spider") leading into <a href="/facts/Mordor/Goa0Eh16">Mordor</a>. The creature <a href="/facts/Gollum/GgooTk1b">Gollum</a> deliberately leads the <a href="/facts/Hobbit/I8c6m2IE">Hobbit</a> protagonist <a href="/facts/Frodo_Baggins/fQ3CvWH0">Frodo</a> there in hopes of recovering the <a href="/facts/One_Ring/DGgzmUK6">One Ring</a> by letting Shelob attack Frodo. The plan is foiled when <a href="/facts/Samwise_Gamgee/bh8PtDjC">Samwise Gamgee</a> temporarily blinds Shelob with the <a href="/facts/Phial_of_Galadriel/u6unMEVe">Phial of Galadriel</a>, and then severely wounds her with Frodo's Elvish sword, <a href="/facts/Sting_(Middle-earth)/Y7weesRW">Sting</a>.
Some scholars have stated that Shelob is in the literary tradition of female monsters. Others have interpreted her as symbolising a sexual threat, with multiple sexual allusions. Scholars have noted her opposition to the Elves, and in particular her adversary, <a href="/facts/Galadriel/lEreyfEn">Galadriel</a>, whose light helps the hobbits to defeat her darkness.
Shelob's physical appearance in <a href="/facts/Peter_Jackson/bBA5NchM">Peter Jackson</a>'s <a href="/facts/The_Lord_of_the_Rings_film_series/LR5Q0xn9">film trilogy</a> was based on the <a href="/facts/Porrhothele_antipodiana/V7YLYryg">New Zealand tunnel-web spider</a>.

Shelob open-in-new

Shelob