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Of the Sindar
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Welcome this fortnight's chapter discussion!
Important: This is not a spoiler-free zone. It is hard to discuss any chapter in depth without referring to things that happen in later chapters. Proceed at your own risk!

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Summary
Meanwhile in Beleriand, all the Elves take Elu Thingol as their lord. Melian’s power allows life and joy there, even though the rest of the world is under the Sleep of Yavanna. Lúthien is born.
The Dwarves come into Beleriand during the second age of Melkor’s imprisonment. The Eldar are astounded, because they thought themselves the only thinking beings in Middle-earth. The Dwarves learn Sindarin and they build a great road, though they are not great in friendship with the Elves. (They rather feel more kinship with the Noldor when they arrive.) Melian has foresight that the current peace will not last and counsels Thingol to build a stronghold. The Dwarves help build Menegroth.
Later, the Dwarves warn the Elves that not all the evil has been rooted out of the North and fell creatures, including the Orcs, have begun to multiply and roam once more. The Dwarves help the Sindar create weapons and they drive off the beasts for a while.
Denethor, son of Lenwë who led the Nandor down the Anduin, comes to Beleriand and dwells in Ossiriand with Thingol’s welcome. There is peace during this time and Daeron devises the Cirth. Occasionally, Oromë rides Nahar and while the Elves feared his majesty, they also know evil things flee before him.
But the peace ends when Melkor slews the Trees and flees to Beleriand with Ungoliant. The Elves hear the noise of his scream and know it a portent of death even though they do not know what caused it. Melian’s power keeps Ungoliant out of Neldoreth, though it cannot prevent Ungoliant from settling nearby. Morgoth returns to Angband, rebuilds it, and raises the towers of Thangorodrim. It is unnervingly close to Menegroth.
The Orcs multiply and then attack. Most Elves at that point wander freely in Beleriand, with only Menegroth and Eglarest having large populations. Thingol is cut off from Círdan and calls upon Denethor to help fight. The Dwarves likewise fight. They win the first battle in the Wars of Beleriand and few Orcs return to Angband. But Denethor and many of his people die in battle, and the Laiquendi never take another king. However, the Orcs have driven Círdan to the sea and Thingol calls his people in for their safety. Melian fences the region with her power and the land becomes known as Doriath, the Land of the Fence. Outside of it and the walls of Falas, Morgoth’s servants roam at will.
But at this time, Fëanor and his people land in Middle-earth, unlooked for and unexpected by anyone.
Favorite Quotes
~ “Though Middle-earth lay for the most part under the Sleep of Yavanna, in Beleriand under the power of Melian, there was life and joy, and the bright stars shone as silver fires; and there in the forests of Neldoreth Lúthien was born, and the white flowers of niphredil came forth to greet her as stars from the earth.”
~ “In the darkness of Arda already the Dwarves wrought great works, for even from the first days of their Fathers they had marvellous skill with metals and with stone; but in that ancient time iron and copper they loved to work, rather than silver or gold.”
~ “But the Elves also had part in that labour, and Elves and Dwarves together, each with their own skill, there wrought out the visions of Melian, images of the wonder and beauty of Valinor beyond the Sea.”
~ "The pillars of Menegroth were hewn in the likeness of the beeches of Oromë, stock, bough, and leaf, and they were lit with lanterns of gold. The nightingales sang there as in the gardens of Lórien; and there were fountains of silver, and basins of marble, and floors of many-coloured stones. Carven figures of beasts and birds there ran upon the walls, or climbed upon the pillars, or peered among the branches entwined with many flowers."
~ “Whence [the Orcs] came, or what they were, the Elves knew not then, thinking them to be perhaps Avari who had become evil and savage in the wild; in which they guessed all too near, it is said.”
~ "Therefore Thingol took thought for arms, which before his people had not needed, and these at first the Naugrim smithied for him; for they were greatly skilled in such work, though none of them surpassed the craftsmen of Nogrod, of whom Telchar the smith was greatest in renown. […] Their smithcraft indeed the Sindar soon learned of them; yet in the tempering of steel alone of all crafts the Dwarves were never outmatched even by the Noldor, and in the making of mail of linked rings, which was first contrived by the smiths of Belegost, their work had no rival."
~ "But of bliss and glad life there is little to be said, before it ends; as works fair and wonderful, while still they endure for eyes to see, are their own record, and only when they are in peril or broken for ever do they pass into song."
~ “In Beleriand in those days the Elves walked, and the rivers flowed, and the stars shone, and the night-flowers gave forth their scents; and the beauty of Melian was as the noon, and the beauty of Lúthien was as the dawn in spring. In Beleriand King Thingol upon his throne was as the lords of the Maiar, whose power is at rest, whose joy is as an air that they breathe in all their days, whose thought flows in a tide untroubled from the heights to the deeps.”
~ “Within [Doriath] there was yet a watchful peace; but without there was peril and great fear, and the servants of Morgoth roamed at will, save in the walled havens of the Falas.”
~ “But new tidings were at hand, which none in Middle-earth had foreseen, neither Morgoth in his pits nor Melian in Menegroth; for no news came out of Aman, whether by messenger, or by spirit, or by vision in dream, after the death of the Trees. In this same time Fëanor came over the Sea in the white ships of the Teleri, and landed in the Firth of Drengist, and there burned the ships at Losgar.”
Alternate Versions
This chapter appears to have been an editorial inclusion by Christopher Tolkien, presumably to help readers keep track of the timeline (and what happened with the Sindar pre-Darkening) before plunging back into Middle-earth. The material as presented in the published Silmarillion originates entirely from the "Gray Annals". Only traces of it can be found in earlier versions.
The Sindar and Menegroth
~ In The Book of Lost Tales Thingol, beguiled by Melian, disappears from the records during the Great March. His name is briefly mentioned as that of an Elven leader in the outlines for the "History of the Exiled Gnomes" appended to "Gilfanon's Tale", but it isn't stated where he lives or who his followers are. (1)
~ The "Tale of Tinúviel" in the Book of Lost Tales begins with a summary of Thingol's and Melian's history. It mentions how the wandering Elves of Beleriand "rallied beneath King Tinwelint (Thingol)", and that the power of Thingol and Melian keeps evil out of their woods, here named Artanor and later Doriath. Thingol's people are described as an eerie and strange folk who initially knew little about light, beauty or music, although it is said that they changed when the Sun rose. Ethnically, they are Noldor. Dairon (Daeron), who in this version is Lúthien's brother, is named "among the three most magic players of the Elves", but his invention of the Cirth is mentioned nowhere. (2)
~ In the "Turambar and the Foalókë" chapter of the Book of Lost Tales, it is said that the folk of Thingol love fair and beauteous things as all Elves do, but that they possess little wealth. Thingol's dwelling is in a natural cave, and before the Dwarves make a golden crown for him, his symbol of power is a wreath of red leaves. (3) The description of Menegroth given in the Lay of Leithian reads entirely different: Here, Thingol wields "might and glory, wealth untold" and possesses a great deal of jewels, weaponry and armour. He now dwells in an underground mansion called the Thousand Caves. The poem goes on to explain the geographical situation of Doriath and describe the Thousand Caves as tall and torchlit halls, with many carved sculptures and pillars shaped like trees; however, there is no mention of any Dwarven contribution to the building of Menegroth. (4)
~ "The Earliest 'Silmarillion'" introduces the idea that the Ilkorins (i.e. Elves who forsook the March) of Doriath equal the Calaquendi thanks to Melian's power, and that otherwise the Calaquendi surpass the Úmanyar in "wit, skill and beauty" as much as the Úmanyar in their turn surpass mortal Men (5, Text 7). This idea reappears in "The Quenta" (6, Text 7).
~ An extension to "The Earliest Annals of Valinor" notes at what time Thingol made his mansions at Menegroth (apparently without the Dwarves) and Melian wove her magics around Doriath: V.Y. 2990 – 2991, after Morgoth has escaped into the North of Middle-earth and begun to re-establish his stronghold. It also first mentions that some Elves did not withdraw into Doriath, but lived beside the Great Sea in the havens of Brithombar and Eglorest. (7, Footnote 18)
~ “The Later Annals of Beleriand” has a brief summary of what happened when Morgoth fled to Beleriand: he brought forth Balrogs and Orcs, but the Elven resistance failed, and Denethor died. Thingol withdrew to and closed Doriath. (8)
~ It is in the “Annals of Aman” that the Dwarves first help build Menegroth. (9)
~ The "Annals of Aman" state that Daeron devised the runes. (10) The "Grey Annals" name them Cirth. (11)
~ It should be noted that none of these sources use the name of "Sindar" for Thingol's people. The name "Sindar" is first applied in "Of the Coming of the Elves" in the "The Later Quenta Silmarillion. (12, Commentary)
Denethor and the Nandor
~ The earliest drafts do not name any leader of the "various tribes of Ilkorindi" (Elves who never came to Kôr, i.e. Tirion) except for Thingol (13; 5, Text 2; 6, Text 2). Denethor (originally named Denilos and later Denithor) first appears in pencilled additions to "The Earliest Annals of Valinor". He is named as the leader of "Green-Elves or Laiqi or Laiqendi", who are Noldor who forsook the Great March under the leadership of Dan and after many journeyings came over Ered Lindon to Ossiriand. They become allies of Thingol. (7, Footnote 14) This proves fatal for Denethor, who at length is slain when helping Thingol to keep the Orcs from the South. (7, Footnote 18) In “The Later Annals of Valinor,” it is stated that Pengolod added this information to Rúmil’s work. (14)
~ “The Lhammas” states that Dan’s people are neither counted among the Eldar nor the Lembi (Avari). They turned northward because they found the lands to the south dark and desolate. They had their own language, which was most similar to Doriath’s tongue. They eventually took Beren as their lord and their language has all but disappeared. They sent some warriors to answer Fionwë’s call to arms, but their kin in the Hither Lands eventually merged with the Avari. (15) In the “Quenta Silmarillion” is the first mention of their name coming from their habit of dressing in green in the spring and summer, as well as their singing. (16)
~ It is only in the “Annals of Aman” that the Nandor become followers of Olwë and thus Teleri. (17) “Of the Coming of the Elves” says that they had greater knowledge of all living things-- plants and animals-- than any other kind of Elf. They are here labeled Úmanyar. (12, §29)
~ “The Later Annals of Beleriand” have a brief summary of what happened when Morgoth fled to Beleriand: he brought forth Balrogs and Orcs, but the resistance failed and Denithor died. (8) The "Grey Annals" expand the information given, but do not contradict any of the developments. (11)
Dwarves
~ As our research for Chapter 2, "Of Aulë and Yavanna", has shown, the Dwarves as sentient creatured adopted by Eru do not appear in earlier versions of the history of Middle-earth. Initially, the Sindar have no dealings with them prior to the later First Age when the Dwarves craft Thingol's crown and the famed Nauglafring (2). The first encounters between Dwarves and Elves in "The Earliest 'Silmarillion'" and "The Quenta" are hostile; according to these records, the sons of Fëanor first encounter them, and only in war (5, Text 9; 6, Text 9). The Quenta specifies that the Dwarves are no servants of Morgoth, although they often appear that way. It is explicitly said that they are almost as skilled in metalwork as the Noldor are, but in spite of their similar interests in that field, they "little […] love the Gnomes". However, that sentence was bracketed for exclusion in a later revision (6, Notes to Text 9).
~ According to the "Earlier Annals of Beleriand", the Elves first learn of the Dwarves when the Swarthy Men come into Beleriand, i.e. in 163 F.A., shortly before the events of the Lay of Leithian begin. The entry focuses more on Men and does not say how exactly the Dwarves and Elves first met, and who among the Elves had the first (or any) dealings with the Dwarves. There is no mention of the Dwarven trade-road yet. However, the first meeting of Dwarves and Elves now no longer appears to be on the opposite sides of a battlefield, although it is stated that "their friendship was small". A later entry notes that Maidros (Maedhros) employs the Dwarves to forge weapons. Thingol still has no dealings with the Dwarves before the making of the Nauglafring. (18)
~ In “The Later Annals of Beleriand”, Caranthir’s people first find the Dwarves. At this point, the Dwarves still have no spirits and turn back into stone upon death. They do, however, have a great road into Beleriand. (19) It is explicitly stated in “Of Men and Dwarves” that the encounter with Caranthir’s people is the first one the Gnomes (Noldor) had. The Sindar already knew of them. The old conception of the Dwarves as not quite allies but not quite enemies still remains. (20)
~ It is in the “Annals of Aman” that the Dwarves first help build Menegroth. (9) In the chapter “Concerning the Dwarves”, the hostile view vanished and new ideas were introduced, as has previously been discussed. However, the central conception of the Sindar trafficking with them originally and the Dwarves living near Caranthir’s people remain unchanged. (21)
Food for Thought
~ Do you think the inclusion of this chapter was a good idea, or do you think it interrupts the flow of the narrative? Do you think it should have been included in bits and pieces as part of other chapters?
~ If you follow The Silmarillion version of the Sun and the Moon appearing only after the Darkening, how do you handle the Sindar’s food supplies in a world with no photosynthesis?
~ Why was there little friendship between the Sindar and the Dwarves despite there being no reason for hostility?
~ Despite Daeron's invention of the Cirth, Sindarin society appears to have been predominantly oral. Do you think that some of the Noldorin feelings of superiority may have been caused by the fact that they were literate and the Sindar were not?
Works Cited
(1) The Book of Lost Tales 1. "Gilfanon's Tale: The Travail of the Noldoli": The History of the Exiled Gnomes according to earlier outlines.
(2) The Book of Lost Tales 2. "The Tale of Tinúviel."
(3) The Book of Lost Tales 2. "Turambar and the Foalókë."
(4) The Lays of Beleriand. "The Lay of Leithian", Canto I and IV.
(5) The Shaping of Middle-earth. "The Earliest 'Silmarillion'", Text 2, 7 and 9.
(6) The Shaping of Middle-earth. "The Quenta", Text 2, 7 and 9 + Notes.
(7) The Shaping of Middle-earth. Notes 14 and 18 to "The Earliest Annals of Valinor".
(8) The Lost Road, “The Later Annals of Beleriand,” Before the Uprising of the Sun.
(9) Morgoth's Ring, “The Annals of Aman,”Fourth section of the Annals of Aman, §84
(10) Morgoth's Ring, “The Annals of Aman,”Fourth section of the Annals of Aman," Commentary on the fourth section of the Annals of Aman, JRRT's note to §85
(11) The War of the Jewels, “The Gray Annals,” §17-41
(12) Morgoth's Ring, “The later Quenta Silmarillion,” The First Phase, “Of the Coming of the Elves,” §29, Commentary on §29-30.
(13) The Book of Lost Tales 1, "Of the Coming of the Elves".
(14) The Lost Road, “The Later Annals of Valinor,” VY 2000-2010.
(15) The Lost Road, “The Lhammas,” §7
(16) The Lost Road, “Quenta Silmarillion,” Of Beleriand and its Realms, §115
(17) Morgoth's Ring, “The Annals of Aman,” Section 3, “1115,” §62
(18) The Shaping of Middle-earth. "The Earliest Annals of Beleriand", Years 163, 165-70 and 201.
(19) The Lost Road, “The Later Annals of Beleriand,” Years of the Sun 104
(20) The Lost Road, “Quenta Silmarillion,” Of Men and Dwarfs, §122-125
(21) Morgoth's Ring, “The Later Quenta Silmarillion,” Concerning the Dwarves, §1-8
Please note: We don't know everything and it's perfectly possible that we missed something. These summaries and questions are by no means supposed to be complete and exhaustive. If you have looked further into this particular topic or would like to discuss something that we've overlooked, please share it!
Also, please don't be afraid to talk amongst yourselves. We don't want this to be an echo chamber or for us to be lecturing to you. We want this to be a discussion among the community as a whole - everybody's got something to contribute!
Finally, don't forget to rec your favorite fanworks related to this chapter in the Fanworks Rec Post.
“Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor” is due May 18.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 01:09 pm (UTC)It does break the flow a little but better serves its purpose by doing so. Up to this point, one might have almost thought that they Noldor believe they
are going to arrive in an uninhabited land.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 01:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 02:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 10:57 pm (UTC)That said, there's nothing stopping you from asking your own questions in the comments. There's nothing stopping you from talking solely about the Silm itself. We don't want this to be purely HoME-focused or people merely answering the questions we ask. Those are meant to be conversation starters; not the entirety of the discussion.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-06 02:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 02:02 pm (UTC)I just wonder what happened after Thingol's ban? Did the Noldor continue to use Quenya in writing?
Otherwise it's sad how Denethor is forgotten so often. Now his people are often just seen as extention of Thingol's people.
But there must have been issues between the two tribes, because of the girdle?
no subject
Date: 2014-05-04 11:07 pm (UTC)I think the Noldor continued to use Quenya in writing (and in Noldor-only settings). It is the language of lore in the Third Age.
There may very well have been! I honestly find it difficult to believe that any two peoples would get along 100% of the time.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 08:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 07:49 am (UTC)It is my experience that when someone looks alien, one expects them to behave that way too; it's not a surprise. They are simply exotic foreign types doing their exotic foreign thing. The bigger shock is someone who looks like one's friends and neighbours, but doesn't behave like them.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 08:15 am (UTC)But half of the Feanorian's lived similar the Sindar and are mentioned to have mingled with them. That Amrod and Amras build a fortress in Amon Ereb, the place Denethor died and was buried. So at least some Nandor must have gotten friendly with the Noldor.
The Feanorian's having no explicit king, could have helped. [Recognizing Fingolfin is not the same as calling him their king] It is said that the Nandor never had a King after Denethor (or at least not in the First Age).
Food culture is also a great subject. I just don't know enough about it, but I would guess some Noldor never ate meat before? Or at least didn't learn how to prepare it. In cultures like the Sindar it's common to use (and eat) every part of the animal. Food could be sparse, especially with Orc's running around in every corner.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 09:48 am (UTC)That would be quite normal, I'd have thought. Different people have different tolerance levels for unfamiliarity. Finrod I would have considered a major xenophile, since he was friendly with Dwarves (who helped him with Nargothrond) and Men ('Friend of Men') and remained on good terms with all his relatives until the debacle with Celegorm and Curufin.
Caranthir too was obviously capable of dealing with Dwarves on a civil if not friendly basis, and was on good enough terms with the Laiquendi to persuade at least some of them to come and fight at the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. My own view was that the Laiquendi weren't Thingol's subjects, and didn't see why he should determine their relations with the Noldor, and just took the various Feanorians as they found them.
On food: my conception is that the Noldor at home have a tropical cuisine (like Southeast Asian, or classical Mexican cuisine - see Diana Kennedy's books for the kind of thing I am thinking of) with complex, strong flavours, heavy on spices and vegetables, though with game and fish as well. So Sindar food would be horribly bland and dull to them. The difference would be like that between, say, Thai food and Japanese food.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 07:37 am (UTC)In my interpretation, Dwarves are fundamentally different from both Elves and Men in that they were designed by Aule, both physically and psychologically. The difference is something like the difference between azi and born-men in C J Cherryh's Alliance-Union novels. Dwarves are rational; they respect skill; they value both proper work and proper leisure; they are community-focused. Tolkien doesn't mention eccentric solitary Dwarves; there is no real Dwarvish equivalent of Eol.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-06 02:49 pm (UTC)I honestly haven't thought too much about the Dwarves, but I do think there's a psychological difference between them and the Children of Eru.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 07:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 06:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-09 10:24 am (UTC)Of course, things would have been different in Valinor, where the bright light of the Trees would indeed have fostered a very different flora, and the resilient darkness-and-cold-bearing plants would either not be present at all, or far away from Elven settlements in the shadows of the Pelóri. So Valinor might starve after the Darkening, but then, there's Yavanna to take care of that. So, yep, hand-waving away!
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 06:03 pm (UTC)Orcs: Whence they came, or what they were, the Elves knew not then, thinking them perhaps to be Avari who had become evil and savage in the wild.
Eldarin prejudice against the Avari?
no subject
Date: 2014-05-06 01:19 am (UTC)My theory was that Morgoth grew the original generation of Orcs using tissue from captured Elves (and used the hand that Maedhros left behind as well; waste not, want not and those genes would surely come in useful). Not whole live ones, because of the whole fea-hroa problem (Eru is the one who distributes fear and surely wouldn't force them into the bodies of tortured mutants, generation after generation). They're something like organic von Neumann machines, self-replicating AIs running on the programmes that Morgoth designed for them, or actually on little sub-routines of himself.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-07 02:17 pm (UTC)Good definition of orcs: no elven hroa/fea issue, no free will discussion, no awkward questions about orcish babies!
Maedhros's hand: it's a worrying thought that there might be orcs with Feanorian genetic material. It may have got diluted through the years, though!
no subject
Date: 2014-05-08 01:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-06 02:55 pm (UTC)Eldarin prejudice against the Avari?
Definitely. There's more than enough "West is better" thought running through everything to account for that. And since Orcs are humanoid…It's a logical but unpleasant conclusion. (Mind, I think the Orcs are genetically engineered Elves (and/or descendants of them) and the meddling removed the immortal aspect, possibly on purpose. And that adds a different dimension to that quote.)
no subject
Date: 2014-05-05 06:31 pm (UTC)- I appreciate this chapter. The Silm is not famed for its flowing narrative, anyway.
- I tend to assume VERY bright stars that enabled slow photosynthesis, except in Doriath, where Melian speeded it up with her magic. (Another reason for most of the Sindar to be nomadic, moving between slow-growing food sources.)
- I agree with Anna about the Dwarves.
- I suspect that putting a very high value on literacy might be a Mortal thing. One of its main advantages is allowing the transfer of information between the dead (or senile) and the living -- but the Elves would have no need for that, being long-lived and gifted with excellent memory. I would assume that agreements could be sealed by deciding on the wording (maybe in verse) and then trusting in memory and goodwill.
(But writing might really come in handy for personal letters, of the sort one does not want to give a messenger to memorize.)
And the Noldor had plenty of reasons to look down on the natives, regardless. They had swords, better jewellery, and shiny, shiny eyes.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-06 03:03 pm (UTC)I suspect that putting a very high value on literacy might be a Mortal thing.
True-- but why then would so much emphasis be placed on Fëanor bettering Rúmil's work and the script flourishing? Or would there be something in Valinor that promoted literacy?
They had swords, better jewellery, and shiny, shiny eyes.
*cackles* The better to see you with, of course!
no subject
Date: 2014-05-07 02:36 pm (UTC)Maybe not just Mortal. I suspect Sindar -especially pre-Fence- didn't need literacy as the relevant information of a mostly nomadic society would be kept in people's memory even more so considering the elven memory. On the other hand, oral transmision of science/technology ... (*imagines Maglor singing equations*)
no subject
Date: 2014-05-09 11:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-09 11:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-09 10:39 am (UTC)(SHUT UP, LYRA, NOBODY CARES THAT THIS WAS ONE OF YOUR EXAM TOPICS AND YOU'RE BORING EVERYBODY TO DEATH.)
Anyway! As the chroniclers are a) Noldorin and b) literate, I guess it isn't surprising that the narrative is biased towards both the Noldor and literacy. Heck, out-of-universe, the author would have been highly biased towards literacy, coming from an Oxford background!
And the Noldor had plenty of reasons to look down on the natives, regardless. They had swords, better jewellery, and shiny, shiny eyes.
True dat! (Although unless you follow the very first drafts, the Sindar had swords as well, and didn't even need Melkor's teachings to get them! ;)) Of course, the Sindar in their turn probably looked down on the Noldor for being coddled philosophers with no clue about the harsh realities of life in a less-favoured part of the world...
no subject
Date: 2014-05-09 11:31 am (UTC)And the thing about it being a Literate thing is that... well, the Sindar DID have a proper written language, and did not value it. (Or do you take "Literate" to mean that a very high percentage of literacy? Meaning that most people should be able to read before the whole thing starts to make sense? But that has not been the case in *our* history, has it?)
And I certainly think the Sindar looked down on the Noldor, as well...
no subject
Date: 2014-05-12 04:30 pm (UTC)I just figure that even if you're immortal and have an excellent memory, you may want a means of storing and above all sharing knowledge - in other words, I'm not sure that the major way in which Elves differ from us would make a difference in this particular context. (After all, there are human cultures that do, or at least did, just fine without writing, even though their adherents are or were mortal and have "only" the normal human potential for remembering knowledge.)
By literate culture, I do mean that the entire culture is based around the conception that "everyone" can read (and probably write). So no, a culture that is technically aware of the possibility of writing but doesn't make much use of it wouldn't be "literate", even though single individuals who belong to that culture might be literate. To illustrate, Anglo-Saxon culture was very much oral, even though writing existed and some people, such as Alcuin, Bede or Cynewulf, were very much literate. Middle English culture was somewhere in-between: Literacy was becoming essential at least for the upper and (later) middle classes, although as a lowly commoner you could still do perfectly well without "knowing your letters". Today, if you're illiterate, you're pretty much left out of normal cultural participation. I'm assuming that the Noldor would be more like us, and the Sindar would be more like the Anglo-Saxons!
(OH CRAP HERE I AM LECTURING AGAIN)