I suppose all elves are allowed to sail west. Even those who did not heed the call all the way back to when they awoke on the shores of Cuiviénen. It was a blanket invitation.
But since we do know that the Valar make exceptions, we should expect that Arwen could make a case as compelling as Luthien and her other grandmother Elwing to let a mortal travel to the undying lands.
Not to BE immortal, but to experience the bliss of living there if for but a short time (according to elves).
Loved this. It wakens a lot of thought for me. First of all I hadn’t even thought about Gandalfs role in Frodo getting permission to travel to the West.
The second thing I think about is Frodos sacrifice.
I often forget Frodos sacrifice. The quest took his old life and he never got it back.
And the third thing I thought about was Arwens choice. The choice that is both sweet and bitter. This is something that I admire with Tolkiens work. He mixes the sweet and the bitter aspects of life in a beautiful way.
Beautiful! I am new to the books (just started TT today!) But I love learning all these details, even though I haven't gotten to them in the books yet. I love the context it gives. Thank you for your beautiful writing!
Yes! I HIGHLY recommend rereading them. It’s one of the main reasons I host read-throughs here on my Substack every September. I learn new things every time!
I suppose all elves are allowed to sail west. Even those who did not heed the call all the way back to when they awoke on the shores of Cuiviénen. It was a blanket invitation.
But since we do know that the Valar make exceptions, we should expect that Arwen could make a case as compelling as Luthien and her other grandmother Elwing to let a mortal travel to the undying lands.
Not to BE immortal, but to experience the bliss of living there if for but a short time (according to elves).
Loved this. It wakens a lot of thought for me. First of all I hadn’t even thought about Gandalfs role in Frodo getting permission to travel to the West.
The second thing I think about is Frodos sacrifice.
I often forget Frodos sacrifice. The quest took his old life and he never got it back.
And the third thing I thought about was Arwens choice. The choice that is both sweet and bitter. This is something that I admire with Tolkiens work. He mixes the sweet and the bitter aspects of life in a beautiful way.
I never caught this!! But it is so beautiful oh my goodness 😍
Beautiful! I am new to the books (just started TT today!) But I love learning all these details, even though I haven't gotten to them in the books yet. I love the context it gives. Thank you for your beautiful writing!
And what do you think of it so far? I love hearing from people who are new to the books! And thank you for your kind words ❤️
I'm loving it! I already know I'll be reading it again; I love that it's such a vast world it feels like there's always more to discover 😊
Yes! I HIGHLY recommend rereading them. It’s one of the main reasons I host read-throughs here on my Substack every September. I learn new things every time!
I loved this part of the story on my last read-through!
It's an easily missed detail that I hadn't thought of deeply until last year and I love that Tolkien gave us even more insight into it in his letters!
Yes! I always love when you include the letters. I haven’t read them and it’s so fun to hear his commentary on his own work.