Quote Originally Posted by The White Wizard of Fynn View Post
Actually, I believe that in the Silmarillion he says that orcs are "fallen" elves, captured by the forces of darkness and imprisoned. It kind of alludes to concentration camps... Seriously, Tolkien delves much deeper than most seem to realize.
I'm well aware that Tolkien fleshes out (quasi-pun not intended) the orcish race more than pretty much anyone else has done, and I'm not by any means trying to understate the influence he's had on fantasy. I'm just saying Tolkien's orcs were, to begin with, not much more than an extension of the goblin concept (in The Hobbit, they were even called Goblins). He evolved them into a more thought out race later, but that's their origin of sorts as far as I know.

Edit: Uh... I think we've gone quite far off topic. xD If you want to continue this discussion, send me a message and I'll split the thread into two. Otherwise, let's get back on topic!