[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by Morthoron

... in addition, Tom is the "eldest" because he existed before The Lord of the Rings was ever conceived by the author (as a stuffed toy in his children's bedroom, and as a character in his own set of poems).

Not Eru, not a Maia, not anything directly attributable to Middle-earth (ergo the One Ring has no affect or hold on him), he is a character outside of time inserted into a story because he amused the author, and the author said as much. And Tolkien must be laughing somewhere at the endless scholarly debate his jest has engendered.

Heh, indeed! Tom could be one of the most 'in' of in-jokes ever committed to paper. A critic who was fond of post-modernism and all that malarkey could have a field day exploring this from the angle of authorial intervention. Of course, if Tolkien did intend Tom this way then he made a thoroughly good job of it as he fits right in and the sense, for the reader, is worlds apart from the sorts of intrusions you find in The French Lieutenant's Woman for example.

Originally Posted by Inziladun

I do want to point out though that Bombadil as an Ainu would not be affected by the One, having an inherently greater power than its Maia maker.

But would being an Ainu mean that? There's a quote somewhere (a comment made by Gandalf or Elrond) that Tom too would suffer should Sauron succeed in his aims, which suggests he is not part of the hierarchy we know about. He's not logical and doesn't 'fit' neatly. The question is - would he too suffer because he is not an Ainu or in spite of him being an Ainu?

Here's another thing - if he is one of the Ainur or Maiar then Tom is pretty much going to be tied to his physical form in the same way as Melian, Morgoth, and a host of others. He eats and drinks, I think he smokes, and he has a wife. Not sure what this means yet though...Hmmm...

But I think, in his own lovely words, Tom tells us that he was here before anyone, even anything, in Middle-earth. I have a suspicion that in some way, he might have been 'houseless'

Tell me, who are you, alone, yourself and nameless?

That line makes me think of the words spoken to Eowyn when the Nazgul threatens her, "He will bear thee away to the houses of lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy flesh shall be devoured, and thy shriveled mind be left naked to the Lidless Eye." It's equally chilling, speaking of extreme and almost unending loneliness.

But it was not an unpleasant loneliness to Tom. It was just how it was when he first lived in Middle-earth:

He knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless--before the Dark Lord came from Outside.