mark12_30: Hmm . . . I thought I had actually made my intent clear fairly early on in the essay. The thesis is basicly:
Quote:
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Perhaps we ought to imagine the music of Middle-earth as declining through the ages, so that the songs of Gondor are but echoes of the songs of Numenor; and those are but echoes of the songs of the Eldar in Aman. If we view the music of Middle-earth in this way, the situation becomes the reverse of the one we were considering above. Perhaps it does not represent the time at which polyphony was overtaking monophony; perhaps it represents the time at which polyphony was giving way to monophony, declining into monophony. Perhaps the evolution of music in the Renaissance ought to be thought of as the rediscovery of techniques and practices that were lost with the decline of Men and the departure of the Elves.
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I suppose that, with the alteration of a few pronouns that lose their antecedents out of context, that could serve as an opening thesis declaration.
Did you have something different in mind? I'd be happy to hear your suggestion.