Lindil,
This is a beautiful and insightful post, yet there is one point you imply that I think is not accurate:
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It is one of the many tragedies of the LotR that theElves are still there, next door to Rohan or companies walking through the shire but the mortals around them can not bring themselves to avail themselves of these living treasures of lore and wisdom.
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Unfortunately, I don't think it was simply a matter of Men refusing to recognize the goodness and riches around them. As others have said before, many of the Elves purposely chose to isolate themselves from the world of Men. I will not say that this isolation was universal. Thraindul's folk in Greenwood/Mirkwood, for instance, had more ties with their neighbors.
But just look at Frodo's experience with the Elves near the Shire at the beginning of the Lord of the Rings. I am fairly certain, from what we know of Frodo, that this hobbit certainly respected Elves and would have desired closer contact with them. Yet, the Elves confided to him they have seen him before yet chose to remain hidden: "We have seen you often before with Bilbo, though you may not have seen us." Hence, even though Bilbo could definitely be termed an Elf-friend from his previous adventure, the Elves had not revealed themselves on the hobbits' former walks through the forest, at least when Frodo was there.
And what about Sam? He would certainly have been open to the Elves. And I refuse to believe that, out of all of Middle-earth, these three hobbits (Bilbo, Frodo, Sam) were the only ones. So I am again drawn back to a critical question: was this kind of isolation and withdrawal necessary on the part of the Elves?
That isolation had to have an impact on how mortals viewed both Galadriel and Lorien. And let's face it, our myths and legends, not just those of Middle-earth, are filled with examples of how Men particularly feared the figure of a strong woman, especially one who wielded powers that might be viewed as magical. That did not help Galadriel either.
And yet, time and time again, I find myself asking whether the Elves' isolation was necessary or desirable. Certainly, I understand there were legitimate reasons for it. To be immortal and watch generation after generation of Men die could not have been easy. If we read the Silm, one can certainly find reasons that the Elves would have to distrust Men (although the slate was not totally clean on the other side either!).
Yet, I still come away with a feeling of sadness. Perhaps this isolation is one of the necessary but tragic features of a world that has been marred.
[ January 07, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]