Elves, Men, and Perceptions of Time - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Birdland · 06-16-2003, 08:32 PM

B.B - when I saw the title of this thread, "Elves, Men, and the Perception of Time", it made me recall a facinating episode of Nova that I saw a while back.

It dealt with how the body's metabolism actually effects how we perceive the world around us. For instance: when an older person comments on how fast the seasons and years pass, he is not just waxing poetic. Time really does "speed up" as we age, due to our slower metabolism.

Size effects this, too. An elephant perceives humans as skittering around with the speed of mice. Mice perceive humans as lumbering and languid as elephants.

Makes you wonder how the body of an immortal would perceive Middle Earth. Did the sun scamper across the sky and set in a "blink of an eye". Could they speak to a mortal and watch the signs of aging creep across their face? Did it seem that Elves never slept because their bodies' circadian rhythms were measured in weeks or months, rather than hours?

No wonder they wanted to freeze time.

06-16-2003, 08:32 PM	#12
Birdland Ghastly Neekerbreeker Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: the banks of the mighty Scioto Posts: 1,751	B.B - when I saw the title of this thread, "Elves, Men, and the Perception of Time", it made me recall a facinating episode of Nova that I saw a while back. It dealt with how the body's metabolism actually effects how we perceive the world around us. For instance: when an older person comments on how fast the seasons and years pass, he is not just waxing poetic. Time really does "speed up" as we age, due to our slower metabolism. Size effects this, too. An elephant perceives humans as skittering around with the speed of mice. Mice perceive humans as lumbering and languid as elephants. Makes you wonder how the body of an immortal would perceive Middle Earth. Did the sun scamper across the sky and set in a "blink of an eye". Could they speak to a mortal and watch the signs of aging creep across their face? Did it seem that Elves never slept because their bodies' circadian rhythms were measured in weeks or months, rather than hours? No wonder they wanted to freeze time.