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I just completed reading the lotr books for the 3rd time a couple of weeks back and this entire issue with Arwen and her immortality is bugging me way more than it should! I feel like I really need to get it off my chest.

So Arwen's marriage to Aragon is only the 3rd time in all of tolkien history in which an Elf has wed a Man, the other 2 being Luthien & Beren (married under extreme circumstances, more of a one-time basis) and Tuor & Idril (married without much difficulty with the approval of Idril's father, King Turgon). As you can see there is not much previous references to go on, which leads me to my first question:

  1. Could Arwen simply have married Aragon without having to give up her immortality? If not why couldn't she do so? (Idril married Tuor without giving it up)

I understand that being Half-Elven she had the choice to choose between being an Elf or a mortal , much like her father and Elros. But wouldn't she have solved a huge 'problem' by marrying Aragon whilst still 'choosing' to be an immortal Elf? I can't find any text that says she has to give up her immortality to marry Aragon. In fact I can't find any text that says an Elf must relinquish their immortality to marry a mortal (I'd be more than happy to be corrected on this point)

In the books, Arwen clearly loves her father dearly almost as much as she loves Aragon and she is torn between the two. Which makes me wonder for my 2nd question:

  1. Would it be possible for her to marry Aragon, live together as a happily married couple till his days on middle-earth is up before departing for the Undying Lands to rejoin her people and Elrond?

I say this because in the Tales Of Aragon And Arwen, even on his deathbed Aragon seems to confirm the fact that Arwen still had a choice

'"I speak no comfort to you, for there is no comfort for such pain within the circles of the world. The uttermost choice is before you: to repent and go to the Havens and bear away into the West the memory of our days together that shall there be evergreen but never more than memory; or else to abide the Doom of Men." Appendix A, RoTK

Correct me if I am interpretting it wrongly but it seems to me that Arwen still has the "uttermost choice" before her to sail to Valinor to reunite with her father. This would have been made even easier by the fact that upon learning of Aragon's death, Legolas built a ship and sailed to Valinor together with Gimli. I'm assuming that Arwen could have joined the both of them on this final journey?

Janus Bahs Jacquet
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TWL
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  • @Randal'Thor I have read that previous thread but unfortunately it doesn't answer the crux of my question – TWL May 05 '16 at 23:52
  • @anaranjada My apologies, I'll be sure to ask 1 question per post for future questions! So sorry! – TWL May 06 '16 at 00:08
  • I've just posted an answer to the question linked by @Randal'Thor which I believe satisfies your first two questions here. I would advise you to split up the other two into separate questions (i.e. keep one here, and ask the other separately). I have answers for both, though I believe at least one of them is a duplicate – Jason Baker May 06 '16 at 00:23
  • @JasonBaker I have edited my post to include only the first 2 question. Do you think you could post your answer to the question linked by Randal'Thor here on this thread? I'm new to this site and I can't leave a comment on other users question yet. I can only reply to comments & answers to my own question that I have posted. My apologies! – TWL May 06 '16 at 00:53
  • @JasonBaker How do I edit my post/question such that the Duplicate will be released? Sorry this is the first time I'm posting a question on this site – TWL May 06 '16 at 01:01
  • Simply editing your post at this point will nominate it for reopening; see here for more. However, I don't see a reason to reopen it at this point. The linked question is essentially the same as what you've asked here, and you've already admitted that my answer there is satisfactory to you. Rather than having the same answer posted in two separate places, we prefer to close questions as duplicates. If you want your question reopened, you should make a case for how that question (and its answers) don't answer your question – Jason Baker May 06 '16 at 01:15
  • @JasonBaker Thanks, your answer in the other thread more or less answers my 1st qn whereby Arwen's fate was more of a 'choice of Luthien' rather than something that HAD to be done.

    However the 2nd qn still bugs me "The uttermost choice is before you: to repent and go to the Havens and bear away into the West the memory of our days together that shall there be evergreen but never more than memory" Appendix A, RoTK

    So could Arwen actually still sail to the West after Aragon died? Was this option really still available to her whereby she could see Elrond once more and be immortal?

     – TWL May 06 '16 at 11:07
  • @anaranjada No worries, thanks for sharing how this site operates! – TWL May 06 '16 at 11:08
  • @TWL I think that question is substantially answered by my answer; she didn't want to be immortal. However, the question of whether she still had a choice to make at this point is an interesting one, and I'd recommend you ask it separately. Remember: one question per question – Jason Baker May 06 '16 at 16:03
  • @JasonBaker Sure thing, i'll ask that question seperately tomorrow when I have a little more time to structure and phrase the question in a better manner. Thanks for the advice! – TWL May 06 '16 at 18:39

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