|
Well, I was sort of assuming that a king who knew from birth he was immortal might not consider HAVING kids or (as we are talking about a world where one must assume birth control is primitve at best) might actually go so far as making sure no kids he had survived long enough to desire the throne.
Yes, that is fine so long as it is an either or choice (you can be immortal and live an elf's life, or you can be mortal and king. The problem, as I was trying to point out, is what happens when the heir doesn't see any reason he can't have BOTH, to rule Gondor eternally. Yes, as an immortal he would no longer be a man and no longer fit to rule Gondro, but the trick is how the hell you get him to stop, or keep him from the throne. Utimately, it might come down to someone actually having to KILL the king (elves can be slain, so presumably, half elves can as well.)
The danger I was trying to refer to is more a mental one than a pysical one, the human brain just isn't equipped to handling living forever, it would crack. Also having the same person ruling forever might result in total stasis for the world, as the king is likey to get a little "set in his ways" over time. I admit that, in the Tolkien verse, that might not be seen as a bad thing (since the general tone is that thing only get worse over time,the Past is always better than the present or future, and the mark of a "good future" is one that strives to return to the ways of before. But from a modern POV, this sounds pretty horrible.
|