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I remember reading something in Tolkien's writings that perfectly summarized his response to the Problem of Evil (in the context of his imagined world, anyway): if God (or Eru) is perfectly good, why does he allow evil (Melkor) to exist in his creation?

Tolkien's response was, paraphrasing (obviously; if I could quote him directly I wouldn't be asking), that the existence of suffering makes the story of the world more poignant and beautiful than it would otherwise have been.

What is this quote, and where does it appear? It's been bothering me for ages, and I've referenced it a few times in answers without being able to remember what the exact words were (or where to find them).

Note that I am looking for a specific quote, which (hopefully) I'll know when I see it. Any quotes from Tolkien addressing Theodicy in Middle-earth are welcome, but I'm only giving the tick to the one I'm looking for.

To save you some time, here's a few I'm confident aren't the one I want:

And it seemed at last that there were two musics progressing at one time before the seat of Ilúvatar, and they were utterly at variance. The one was deep and wide and beautiful, but slow and blended with an immeasurable sorrow, from which its beauty chiefly came. The other had now achieved a unity of its own; but it was loud, and vain, and endlessly repeated; and it had little harmony, but rather a clamorous unison as of many trumpets braying upon a few notes. And it essayed to drown the other music by the violence of its voice, but it seemed that its most triumphant notes were taken by the other and woven into its own solemn pattern.

 

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

 

Then Ilúvatar spoke, and he said: 'Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor; but that he may know, and all the Ainur, that I am Ilúvatar, those things that ye have sung, I will show them forth, that ye may see what ye have done. And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.'

 

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

I remember reading something in Tolkien's writings that perfectly summarized his response to the Problem of Evil (in the context of his imagined world, anyway): if God (or Eru) is perfectly good, why does he allow evil (Melkor) to exist in his creation?

Tolkien's response was, paraphrasing (obviously; if I could quote him directly I wouldn't be asking), that the existence of suffering makes the story of the world more poignant and beautiful than it would otherwise have been.

What is this quote, and where does it appear? It's been bothering me for ages, and I've referenced it a few times in answers without being able to remember what the exact words were (or where to find them).

Note that I am looking for a specific quote, which (hopefully) I'll know when I see it. Any quotes from Tolkien addressing Theodicy in Middle-earth are welcome, but I'm only giving the tick to the one I'm looking for.

To save you some time, here's a few I'm confident aren't the one I want:

And it seemed at last that there were two musics progressing at one time before the seat of Ilúvatar, and they were utterly at variance. The one was deep and wide and beautiful, but slow and blended with an immeasurable sorrow, from which its beauty chiefly came. The other had now achieved a unity of its own; but it was loud, and vain, and endlessly repeated; and it had little harmony, but rather a clamorous unison as of many trumpets braying upon a few notes. And it essayed to drown the other music by the violence of its voice, but it seemed that its most triumphant notes were taken by the other and woven into its own solemn pattern.

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

Then Ilúvatar spoke, and he said: 'Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor; but that he may know, and all the Ainur, that I am Ilúvatar, those things that ye have sung, I will show them forth, that ye may see what ye have done. And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.'

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

I remember reading something in Tolkien's writings that perfectly summarized his response to the Problem of Evil: if God (or Eru) is perfectly good, why does he allow evil (Melkor) to exist in his creation?

Tolkien's response was, paraphrasing (obviously; if I could quote him directly I wouldn't be asking), that the existence of suffering makes the story of the world more poignant and beautiful than it would otherwise have been.

What is this quote, and where does it appear? It's been bothering me for ages, and I've referenced it a few times in answers without being able to remember what the exact words were (or where to find them).

Note that I am looking for a specific quote, which (hopefully) I'll know when I see it. Any quotes from Tolkien addressing the Theodicy problem are welcome, but I'm only giving the tick to the one I'm looking for.

To save you some time, here's a few I'm confident aren't the one I want:

And it seemed at last that there were two musics progressing at one time before the seat of Ilúvatar, and they were utterly at variance. The one was deep and wide and beautiful, but slow and blended with an immeasurable sorrow, from which its beauty chiefly came. The other had now achieved a unity of its own; but it was loud, and vain, and endlessly repeated; and it had little harmony, but rather a clamorous unison as of many trumpets braying upon a few notes. And it essayed to drown the other music by the violence of its voice, but it seemed that its most triumphant notes were taken by the other and woven into its own solemn pattern.

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

Then Ilúvatar spoke, and he said: 'Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor; but that he may know, and all the Ainur, that I am Ilúvatar, those things that ye have sung, I will show them forth, that ye may see what ye have done. And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.'

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

I remember reading something in Tolkien's writings that perfectly summarized his response to the Problem of Evil (in the context of his imagined world, anyway): if God (or Eru) is perfectly good, why does he allow evil (Melkor) to exist in his creation?

Tolkien's response was, paraphrasing (obviously; if I could quote him directly I wouldn't be asking), that the existence of suffering makes the story of the world more poignant and beautiful than it would otherwise have been.

What is this quote, and where does it appear? It's been bothering me for ages, and I've referenced it a few times in answers without being able to remember what the exact words were (or where to find them).

Note that I am looking for a specific quote, which (hopefully) I'll know when I see it. Any quotes from Tolkien addressing Theodicy in Middle-earth are welcome, but I'm only giving the tick to the one I'm looking for.

To save you some time, here's a few I'm confident aren't the one I want:

And it seemed at last that there were two musics progressing at one time before the seat of Ilúvatar, and they were utterly at variance. The one was deep and wide and beautiful, but slow and blended with an immeasurable sorrow, from which its beauty chiefly came. The other had now achieved a unity of its own; but it was loud, and vain, and endlessly repeated; and it had little harmony, but rather a clamorous unison as of many trumpets braying upon a few notes. And it essayed to drown the other music by the violence of its voice, but it seemed that its most triumphant notes were taken by the other and woven into its own solemn pattern.

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}

Then Ilúvatar spoke, and he said: 'Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor; but that he may know, and all the Ainur, that I am Ilúvatar, those things that ye have sung, I will show them forth, that ye may see what ye have done. And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.'

^{The Silmarillion I Ainulindalë}