It seems that Beren was also a vegetarian:
Quote:
|
Thereafter for four years more Beren wandered still upon Dorthonion, a solitary outlaw; but he became the friend of birds and beasts, and they aided him, and did not betray him, and from that time forth he ate no flesh nor slew any living thing that was not in the service of Morgoth.
|
That Tolkien needs to make mention of this suggests that Men generally did eat meat. Maybe it is a mortal diet as Dwarves also seem to eat meat. If the Elves in Mirkwood were hunting just for fun then this might seem a little out of place, as surely they would appreciate that if an animal was to be killed then it ought to be for a purpose other than fun. I would think that even if they did not eat meat, then they must have used animals for their own purposes as they do have bows, and if I am not wrong, then bowstrings are usually made of gut?