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Old 03-03-2019, 07:14 PM   #6
Galadriel55
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Galadriel55 is lost in the dark paths of Moria.Galadriel55 is lost in the dark paths of Moria.Galadriel55 is lost in the dark paths of Moria.Galadriel55 is lost in the dark paths of Moria.
Quote:
Originally Posted by William Cloud Hicklin View Post
I'm not sure if it's helpful when discussing Tolkien to think of "power" as something quantifiable, a number on a dice-roll table. Power is a very broad word which applies to all sorts of things, including natural phenomena and intangible ideas. A bear is powerful; so is a bulldozer, a Browning M2 , and Bach's B-minor Mass.


Of course here we're talking about what Hobbits clumsily mis-call "magic"; but even there Galadriel's Mirror and Thranduil's automatic gates aren't really the same sort of "magic" power. It's not like saying, "See! Eonwe has a Level 30 Magic Blast, but Galadriel with a +12 Nenya Bonus has the equivalent of a Level 32!"

Seconded.

Whenever I glance at this thread I keep thinking about Hurin standing down Morgoth. Clearly there is a huge gap in their existential rank - this is not elf vs Maia, this is Man vs one of the most powerful Ainu, they're not even close. The physical exhibitions of their power, what Sam would call magic that one can see, are also nowhere close. But Hurin stands down Morgoth and his willpower in that moment is at least equal to that of Morgoth's. It doesn't mean Hurin has the power of an Ainu, it means he's one heck of a man and we all admire him for it. Power doesn't come in one dimension, so it's hard to make generalized conparisons. I guess my point is, Galadriel doesn't need to have the power of a Maia to be one heck of an Elf.
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