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Originally Posted by deagol
When I think of Tom the one word that simply won't go away is "outside."
Outside, in its literal form, obviously. Tom is attuned to all things natural (that is, in nature) and to eschew the unnatural (manufactured), expressed primarily in the One Ring having no power over him. But more than that, I see Tom as "oustside" the entire tale. Tom is described (if I remember correctly) as always having been. Eternal, if you will. I think Tom is from somewhere else entirely and, perhaps, not of the music at all. I don't think we're meant to know -- as, apparently, no one in the tale itself seems to know -- where Tome came from or what he is about. He just is, and cannot be explained. I also liken this theory to what happens to me when I try to picture him in my mind. He's a timeless child, impossibly old and young at the same time. I can't explain it any better than that.
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"Outside" is also the place Tom says the Dark Lord (Morgoth) originated from. I see this as the Void.
This is in line with what the Elves thought of Ungoliant:
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The Eldar knew not whence she came; but some have said that in ages long before she descended from the darkness that lies about Arda, when Melkor first looked down in envy upon the Kingdom of Manwë.
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Silmarillion Of the Darkening of Valinor
Tom said he "knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless--before the Dark Lord came from outside."
I think "outside" could well be the key, and I see a parallel between Tom and Ungoliant. In line with what
narfforc said, both are creatures obviously not of the Children of Ilúvatar, seeming to each have their own desires apart from those of the "divine" in Arda, the Valar, their attendant Maia, and the rebels, Melkor and those who served him.
Perhaps Tom and Ungoliant were merely Ainu who came to Arda seperately from (and completely unknown to) the Valar, to either fulfill a part in the Music known only to the One, or to independantly pursue their own goals.