Re: OT: elves and jinn (was Re: [...] THE WORLD OF THE JINN)

On Fri, 17 Oct 2003 21:01:09 +1300,
Wesley Parish <wes.parish@...> wrote:

> I've put a lot of thought into the matter, and Tolkien had also done so
> apparently, because in the material published by his son Christopher, in the
> book "People of Middle-Earth", if I remember correctly, he refers to them
> becoming invisible, immaterial beings - there's also something in the
> Silmarillion about them being consumed by the fire of their spirits over the
> years, but I can't recall the precise point.
Yes, Tolkien entertained that kind of idea, but as far as the time of
_The Silmarillion_, _The Hobbit_ or _The Lord of the Rings_ is
concerned,
the Elves have bodies of flesh and blood like humans, only that they
are fairer to behold and immortal.  And Tolkien's idea about the
"fading" of the Elves apparently wasn't fixed, but underwent revisions
from time to time.  At times, he thought of the Elves becoming
immaterial spirits, at other times, he considered them simply
leaving this world for the Undying Lands, and existing only
in old tales and distorted memories.

> So, technically, the elves as we meet them in the Hobbit and the Lord of the
> Rings are nature spirits, [...]
I don't think the term "nature spirits" is appropriate here.
The Elves are free beings, not bound to particular trees, mountains
or rivers as more traditional nature spirits are.  Magical they are,
of a sort, but that doesn't make them nature spirits.

Greetings,

Jörg.

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