June 1, 2003

The Fate of the Elves
Lilly

Lortehund, Men do dwell in the Halls of Mandos, but Elves also have a special place set aside for them when they have passed. You make it seem like they just fade into oblivion. That is not the case, fortunately.

Some Tolkien writing that I've come across actually says that Elves are re-born in their decendants, and so never really die. That's also why the number of Elves in Middle Earth stayed the same (or rather, decreased) while the numbers of Men increased. Men don't come back; Elves may. This is one way people have explained Glorfindel's appearance in the FOTR after having died thousands of years earlier in the Sillmarillion (though others simply say it is another Glorfindel).

The Elves coming to the aid of Rohan in Helms Deep is actually (I THINK but AM NOT SURE) an exaggerated version of what happened in the books, which is (I THINK) a small group of elves (weren't they Arwen's brothers, or am I just off my rocker altogether?) came to Aragorn with messages and aid. I rather liked the vast army better, though it didn't accurately portray Tolkien's vision.

Elves die of grief. They die of wounds. Some early writings say they come back: I don't know if that is the case. But they don't just end.

Yours.

~Lilly