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Sorry, but 'do not' is emphatic, 'need not' isn't. What I like about 'do not[/i]' is that its actually quite mysterious - why would it be that they do not count the running years? Perhaps because by the end of the Third Age Time itself has come to seem an 'enemy', a thing to be avoided, in thought at least. Perhaps Time is something they have decided to have as little as possible to do with. Time may pass in the 'world outside' their realms, but within them (& within their own minds) it has no place. Time takes away everything they love, time will drive them into exile from Middle-earth (only the Noldor are 'going home' when they pass into the West, the Sindar will be leaving the only home they've ever known.)
So, the words Legolas uses in relation to Time are significant, in that they reflect his (& other Elves') attitude to the running years. 'Do not' is a stronger expression than 'need not'. 'Need not' is too passive - it expresses a kind of unconcern with Time, as though its irrelevant to Elves - they can take notice of it or ignore it, as they choose. But it seems to me that Time & what it means to Elves is a central theme in Tolkien's works. Why are they so driven to 'embalm', to stop time, to hold back change, if Time & the change it brings isn't a central concern to them?
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