Quote:
|
I would agree that there may not have been any body parts exclusive to one race or the other, as I don't hold with the ears-different theory.
|
Then I would say that nothing of their Mannish ancestry, if any, would set them apart.
Quote:
|
Need it undergo any transformation at all? The Númenoreans were pretty longeval, and under the original schema they didn't die of old age, but of surrendering their lives. Granted, there was aging going on, but if one further takes the Athrabeth into account, one could make a case that the inherent Mannish form was as immortal as the Elven one.
|
However, in contrast to Andreth's words, Tolkien notes in the letters that if Men are "immortal" too, then they are pretty much elves, so there would be no point in having both of them. Also, Myths Transformed speculates that even given the perfect conditions of Aman, a Man would perish soon (as compared with those with true "immortality"). It may also be that this idea of Men being initially "immortal" was instilled as part of Melkor's plan to corrupt their view on life and death.