The Longetivity of Hobbits.

[Mithadan]

I was thinking more in terms of why, in terms of the mythos, Hobbits might be longer lived than average humans. I do not disagree with any of the "clean living" comments above, other than to note that the Hobbits lived in a primarily agrarian culture which sometimes is less conducive to longevity.

The Dunedain were longer lived in part as a reward for their loyalty and service during the First Age. Could there have been some merit inherent in the Hobbits that justified their longer lives? Or perhaps their role in events could have somehow been foreseen, or even planned by Eru? There is, to my knowledge, no direct textual evidence of this, so I am speculating.

Letters provides some very slight insight. Hobbits are described as a branch of the human race that had gone entirely unnoticed by the "great" until the Third Age. Letter no. 131. So it could not be said that they were involved in any of the great events of the First Age (a certain RPG to the contrary). However, Bilbo is later described as having been "selected by the authority and Gandalf" (because he was abnormal) and they were "ordained individuals inspired and guided by an Emissary." Letter no. 281.

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by Mithadan

Hobbits are described as a branch of the human race that had gone entirely unnoticed by the "great" until the Third Age. Letter no. 131. So it could not be said that they were involved in any of the great events of the First Age (a certain RPG to the contrary). However, Bilbo is later described as having been "selected by the authority and Gandalf" (because he was abnormal) and they were "ordained individuals inspired and guided by an Emissary." Letter no. 281.

As you say, it can only be speculation, but maybe Hobbits were allotted a greater span to afford them a decent sized population, in order to provide for a greater selection from which a "suitable" individual could be chosen as Ring-bearer.
If so, that seems a bit calculating on behalf on the race's "maker", though it certainly does not seem to have caused any distress to them.

On a tangential note, it's really amazing that Gollum the Stoor was able to live to such an advanced age with the help of the Ring. Was that too a product of his innate longevity?

[Belegorn]

That was the Ring itself. Otherwise he was still some remnant of himself after possessing it for so long. He did not always wear it when under the mountain so that may have helped in his not being totally bound to the Ring.

[Faramir Jones]

I was interested to read what you had to say here, Inziladun, then Belegorn:

On a tangential note, it's really amazing that Gollum the Stoor was able to live to such an advanced age with the help of the Ring. Was that too a product of his innate longevity?

That was the Ring itself. Otherwise he was still some remnant of himself after possessing it for so long. He did not always wear it when under the mountain so that may have helped in his not being totally bound to the Ring.

I agree that Gollum's longevity was due to his hobbit nature plus the Ring. While I don't have LotR to hand, I recall Gandalf telling Frodo, after recounting the story of Gollum, how he got the Ring, and how he had it for so long, that hobbits seemed as soft as butter, but as tough as old tree roots. He was honestly admitting that while he was interested in hobbits, and had known them for a long time, there was a lot about them he did not know.

Gandalf said that while he was always suspicious about the Ring, because of Bilbo lying about how he got it, he let things pass, even though that hobbit continued to look youthful for his age, by saying to himself that he was from a long-lived (for hobbits) family on his mother's side. This was a reference to the Old Took, his maternal grandfather, who lived to 130.

What I've always liked about Tolkien is that he never explicitly called Gollum a hobbit. All he was prepared to say was once that Gollum looked like a very ancient hobbit. This was to ask the question that if something like the Ring makes a mortal being from a particular race live far longer than his or her normal time span, is that person still a member of that race?

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by Faramir Jones

This was to ask the question that if something like the Ring makes a mortal being from a particular race live far longer than his or her normal time span, is that person still a member of that race?

The keeper of the Ring is not fundamentally altered in what they are. A Man remains a Man, a Hobbit (or quasi-Hobbit), a Hobbit. He "borrows" Sauron's natural immortality while he bears it, and when that influence is removed, nature takes its course.
Witness how Bilbo was affected. At the time of the Council of Elrond, Bilbo was old, but still sound in mind and body. After the Ring was destroyed, he very quickly showed his age by sleeping a great deal and becoming very forgetful.

[Faramir Jones]

Originally Posted by Inziladun

The keeper of the Ring is not fundamentally altered in what they are. A Man remains a Man, a Hobbit (or quasi-Hobbit), a Hobbit. He "borrows" Sauron's natural immortality while he bears it, and when that influence is removed, nature takes its course.
Witness how Bilbo was affected. At the time of the Council of Elrond, Bilbo was old, but still sound in mind and body. After the Ring was destroyed, he very quickly showed his age by sleeping a great deal and becoming very forgetful.

Is there any reference to a wearer of the Ring '"borrowing" Sauron's natural immortality while he wears it' in LotR? I might be mistaken, but I only recall Gandalf saying that a wearer did not die.

I'm also a little confused. You say that 'when that influence is removed, nature takes its course'. Are you referring to the person ceasing to wear the Ring, or the Ring's destruction? While Bilbo, as you say, 17 years after giving up the Ring, was still old but able, he rapidly aged once the Ring was destroyed.

However, Bilbo was at least just within a hobbit's life span, being 131 when he went over Sea. Gollum, by comparison, was the best part of 600 when he died. Despite the Ring having left him after he wore it for centuries, he was still able to leave the Misty Mountains looking for it, while feeding himself and avoiding most of his enemies. Bilbo at 111 would not have been capable of such feats.

[Zigûr]

Yes, I always got the impression that the "counterfeit immortality" conveyed on mortals by the Great Rings was a side-effect of their intended ability to resist and stay the progression of time in mortal lands.

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by Faramir Jones

Is there any reference to a wearer of the Ring '"borrowing" Sauron's natural immortality while he wears it' in LotR? I might be mistaken, but I only recall Gandalf saying that a wearer did not die.

The "borrowing" is nowhere explicitly stated in the books, I don't think; that's just my theory of how the life-extension would work.
The Ring's power derives from Sauron, after all. By itself, it is only an object.

Originally Posted by Faramir Jones

I'm also a little confused. You say that 'when that influence is removed, nature takes its course'. Are you referring to the person ceasing to wear the Ring, or the Ring's destruction? While Bilbo, as you say, 17 years after giving up the Ring, was still old but able, he rapidly aged once the Ring was destroyed.

The Ring's destruction. As you note, Gollum too continued to live as long as the Ring survived. He told Sam on Mount Doom:

'And when Precious goes we'll die, yes, die into the dust'.

ROTK Mount Doom

I think Gollum knew that the Ring's loss would result in his physical death.