Quote:
Originally Posted by Ivriniel
Hi Belegorn and Celludur,
I don't want to get caught in any crossfire, but I was curious to understand what the 'core' of the debate is? I've read the stuff you've posted, and much of it makes sense.
But, some of it is Lobelia-Sackville-Bagginses's Lotho-lorien-dorenan-ish tra la la lally Goldberry cooks Lembas, but Lego-gimli sailed East over sea...... 
I'm pretty sure you're both on the same, basic page, that no-one disputes. That is, that whether you call the Peredhil Elves or Men or Meno-Level-Elves-o-Rama, Mandos catches 'em all when they get downed. And what seems to happen to the Peredhil (is that) their Choice allows their Spirit to be partitioned to either Fate of the Eldar or the Followers. That Mandos...thing....had very big halls and some folk turned left at the Junction that read "Firstborn" and others had to stand in the other immigration queue that read "The Followers--Stand here and wait to be called at the End of Time"
What makes an "Elf" an "Elf" and a "Man" a "Man"? When the genomes are all mixed up? The Half Elf is both-and-neither, I've always said. The body of Arwen, bearing Celebrian's parenthood, has more Elf than Man. I'm sure she looked very Elf-y but I'm sure she still might have grown a beard because she had some human blood.
Wait, I mean, that her children were Half Orcs if she married Shelob's Ungoliantified Unlight, web, thing, whatsit, that Morgoth was a bit weirded out about when The Silmarils ate Morgoth's big toe.... |
Belegorn will have to answer for himself why he thinks the matter is important.
As for it's not just a question of semantics to decide whether Elrond or Galadriel are more powerful. It's something, which runs through Tolkien's entire work. The Half-elven are neither elves nor men, but in reality a mixture of both. The mixed heritage they have leaves them with qualities unique to them and them alone.
For instance the Half-elven do not grow beards until very, very late in life like elves.
The Half-elven even as diluted as Aragorn have the ability to use 'magic' men do not.
At the same time even as Elvish Half-Elven as the Sons of Elrond are afraid of the shades of men, which Legolas is not.
The Half-elven even in the case of Elwing( who is 3/4 Elf/Maiar) grow up and have children much quicker.
There is a very real difference uniqueness to the Half-Elven, whether mortal or immortal which does not fit either Men or Elves.
This is before we get into how Tolkien always keeps the Elves separate from the Half-Elven in terms of language.