Middle-earth Connections: Lore of the Rings

Elves, born in Middle-earth -- even in the Second Age -- would either have to wait their turns or else would have to hope the Rings could help them, too. When Gandalf was discussing the confrontation with the Nazgul at the Ford of Bruinen with Frodo, Frodo asked if the shining figure he saw was Glorfindel. "Yes," Gandalf replied. "You saw him for a moment as he is on the other side: one of the mighty of the First-born. He is an Elf-lord of a house of princes." A little earlier in the same conversation, Gandalf also noted that Rivendell was home to "the Elven-wise, lords of the Eldar from beyond the furthest seas. They do not fear the Ringwraiths, for those who have dwelt in the Blessed Realm live at once in both worlds, and against both the Seen and the Unseen they have great power." So, perhaps the Rings were not necessarily intended for Elves who had actually lived in Aman. Rather, the Rings may have been intended for their younger cousins or children, Elves who had been born in Middle-earth, who had not learned to live "at once in both worlds." It must have been important to the Elves to possess this ability, and perhaps it meant they would be less likely to fade, since they would be able to move between both realms, so to speak. Not move physically, but via their will. They should have been able to perceive and interact with disembodied spirits (wraiths) in Aman, and so they wished to do so in Middle-earth. The interaction must have included "making things of the invisible world visible". Could the restorative powers of the Rings actually bring an Elf back to life? Could the Rings have been used to give the Elves new bodies? Or could they simply have been used to make Elf-wraiths visible to all? In "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen" Aragorn briefly imagined that "he had strayed into a dream, or that he had received the gift of the Elf-minstrels, who can make things of which they sing appear before the eyes of those that listen." Something of this ability is also gleaned in the account of Finrod's duel of sorcery with Sauron in the fortress upon Tol Sirion. Finrod sang of his life in Valinor, but his song turned against him as he was forced to sing about the Kinslaying, and Sauron was able to capitalize on

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