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07-21-2005, 09:38 PM | #22 |
Haunting Spirit
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Stuck in the center of Spooky Hollow...
Posts: 75
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[QUOTE=Bęthberry]Parmawen, it is possible that authors, even very highly ethical ones, don't always share contemporary understandings of sexual mores or ethics. You might want to read more in Tolkien's letters and his other texts for his concept of chastity and sexual ethics. For instance, in Tolkien's theory about elven marriage, "sex out of wedlock" is not possible. For elves, the very act of sexual intercourse constitutes marriage. In fact, for him, the social or cultural control is very much the less important aspect, as Tolkien disliked any wiff of imposed authority. Thus, he made the personal and private choice or decision the determiner of the state of marriage. I suppose one way of saying this is to suggest that for Tolkien sexual intercourse was not fallen, and so that the act of sexual intercourse was the act of marriage. You slept with someone, you were married to that person. Desire for elves was apparently pure in this way. QUOTE]
You have a very good point...and I certainly never knew that about elves. I suppose, it's more that I don't want to believe that Arwen and Aragorn would have been having sex, since for me, it detracts from the mysterious and elegant beauty of it all. Lastly, where did you find these letters/texts? I'd love to read into them more
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I sang of leaves, of leaves of gold, and leaves of gold there grew. Of wind I sang, I wind there came, and in the branches blew... -Galadriel |
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