[Melilot Brandybuck]

I am re-reading LOTR after not having read it for a few years.... this has got to be my 10th?.... 12th? re-read. Everytime I read it I find new things I had missed on previous reads, it's one of the things I love about the books. So I'll probably have lots of observations / questions, if you guys can bear it!

I notice that the elves did not eat meat. Also Tom Bombadil did not serve meat at his table, nor did Beorn in The Hobbit. However, Men ate meat as did the hobbits. Is there a significance in this?

I remember that Beorn was an animal lover who had animals serving within his household, so I can understand that he would be vegetarian. The elves appear to exist on a diet of various breads and fruits, and I guess they also received nutrition from magic waters. Tom B ate bread and cheese.

Men ate meat, as is mentioned in Theoden's kingdom. The hobbits did too. Is Tolkein suggesting that only lowly mortals would "dirty" themselves with the blood of animals, while higher beings did not? However, in The Hobbit, the elves of Mirkwood were hunting deer. What was the purpose? Just the thrill of the chase?