“Every Time a Bell Rings…” Zuzu Bailey

I was surprised in session 119 when, without specific comment, we stepped past what might be the pivotal moment in Tolkien’s canon.

Remember that the lines in the Crist written by Cynewulf:
éala éarendel engla beorhtast / ofer middangeard monnum sended
"Hail Earendel, brightest of angels, over Middle-earth* to men sent"

are reported to be the wellspring from which the Legends of Middle Earth arose. One could imagine that the entirety of the writings of the First Age could be directed toward the moment wherein Earendel get his wings, and here it is, tucked blithely into Bilbo’s cheeky poem.
This poem may be the only place in which this particular gift is bestowed on one of the Children of Iluvatar, and if this is the case, then Earendel becomes our cultural archetype of the winged being of heavenly light, and it may be the only place in Tolkien’s writing where the wings themselves are mentioned.

*this may also be the origin of the term Middle Earth
 
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I noted in listening to ep 120 that Prof-T* stated that Elbereth put wings on Earendel's ship (which then could fly) but I did not read the text as such ("and wings immortal made for him"). I believe that it is Earendel who now has angel's wings

*Hip-hop name
 
Hi Saxo,

I agree with you, that when we know that this line from the Crist poem was a key inspiration, it elevates the import of the 'Earendil was a Mariner' poem, and suggests that we should pay more attention to it.

However, as first time readers of TLOTR, we don't know this. Within the context of reading TLOTR, we should not pay too much attention to the Crist poem. However, we don't really need to. There are enough clues in TLOTR on its own for us to understand that the 'Earendil was a Mariner' poem is important, without knowing this.
 
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