Resurrection of Haudh-En-Ndengin thread "Rivendell or Lothlorien"

[blantyr]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Well, he also says that Elves came and talked to the trees. Lorien Elves could have come during times of peace just to visit. It's a possibility. They grew rather alien of one another by the end of the TA: each one says that the other is queer and dangerous, though really both are ancient and wise and etc... and dangerous.

Oh, yes. Individuals from the two woods might well have met, but if the leaders of the two cultures have never met, describing them as 'allies' doesn't seem right.

It has always seemed odd to me that Tolkien's free peoples tend to be so isolationist, so distrustful of one another. The Rohirrum thought Ents a children's tale, and though evil of Galadriel. The Wild Men were thought of as beasts, while hobbits were a legend. Aragorn forbade men access to the Shire, and thought this a good thing, a favor to the hobbits.

I'm not saying this is wrong, but it is an odd aspect of Middle Earth. In many a political fantasy world, if a state like Fangorn or Lorien remained ignorant, isolated and alone, they might become victims of this plot or alliance or that. In Middle Earth, remaining isolated and alone, protected by great power that sleeps for millennia, is more the norm.