ARWEN EVENSTAR Biography - Fictional, Iconical & Mythological characters

 
 

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ARWEN EVENSTAR

Arwen Undomiel is a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in                 
his best-known novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes.               
Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.                                 
                                                                                               
In Sindarin Arwen's name signifies noble woman.                                                 
Her second name or epessë, Undomiel means Evenstar (Evening star)                             
Therefore she is also called Arwen Evenstar.                                                   
                                                                                               
Arwen was the youngest child of Elrond and Celebran; her elder brothers were                   
the twins Elladan and Elrohir. Through her father, she was the granddaughter of                 
Erendil the Mariner (the second of the Half-elven), great-granddaughter of Tuor                 
of Gondolin, and therefore a direct descendant of the ancient House of Hador.                   
Arwen was also a descendant of King Turgon of the Noldor through her great-grandmother,         
Idril. Through her mother, she was the granddaughter of Lady Galadriel and the                 
great-granddaughter of Finarfin. Aomer of Rohan said that the Lady Arwen was                   
more fair than the Lady Galadriel of Lorien, but Gimli son of Gloin thought                     
differently. Through both of her parents Arwen was a direct descendant of the                   
ancient Elven House of Finwë. Furthermore, Arwen was a descendant of Beren and                 
Luthien Tinuviel, whose story resembled hers. Indeed, Arwen was held to be the                 
reappearance in likeness of her ancestress Lúthien, fairest of all the Elves,                 
who was called Nightingale (Tinúviel).                                                         
                                                                                               
Arwen was a very distant relative of her husband Aragorn. Aragorn's ancestor,                   
Elros Tar-Minyatur, the first King of Númenor, was her father Elrond's brother,               
who chose to live as a Man rather than one of the Eldar. Elros died in S.A. 442,               
some 3,240 years before Arwen was born.                                                         
                                                                                               
Arwen eventually became Queen of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor when                 
she married Aragorn, who was of the line of the Kings of Arnor. After 120 years                 
of royal marriage, Arwen died of a broken heart a year after the death of                       
Aragorn.                                                                                       
                                                                                               
After the War of the Ring ended, Arwen and Aragorn produced the future heir of                 
the throne, Eldarion.                                                                           
                                                                                               
By Arwen and Aragorn's marriage, the long-sundered lines of the Half-elven were                 
joined. Their union also served to unite and preserve the bloodlines of the                     
Three Kings of the High Elves (Ingwë, Finwë, and the brothers Olwë and Elwë) as             
well as the only line with Maiarin blood through Arwen's great-great-great                     
grandmother, Melian, Queen of Doriath, and also on Aragorn's side, through the                 
line of kings of Arnor and Númenor to Elros, Elrond's brother, whose great-great-grandmother   
was also Melian.                                                                               
                                                                                               
As told in "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen", found in Appendix A to The Lord of                 
the Rings (after the third volume, The Return of the King), during Aragorn's                   
twentieth year he met Arwen for the first time in Rivendell, where he lived                     
under Elrond's protection. Arwen, then over 2700 years old, had recently                       
returned to her father's home after living for a while with her grandmother                     
Galadriel in Lórien. Aragorn fell in love with Arwen at first sight. About                     
thirty years later, the two were reunited in Lórien; at that time, Arwen                       
reciprocated Aragorn's love; then they "plighted their troth" (promised                         
themselves to each other) on the mound of Cerin Amroth.                                         
                                                                                               
Arwen's first appearance in The Lord of the Rings proper was at Rivendell, when                 
the Hobbits arrived there, and Aragorn was seen with her — the first hint of                 
their relationship. Later, when the Fellowship of the Ring came to Lothlórien,                 
Aragorn remembered their earlier meeting and paused in reverence on Cerin Amroth.               
                                                                                               
Arwen entered the story again when, before taking the Paths of the Dead, Aragorn               
was met by a group consisting of Dúnedain (his people, from the North), and                   
Arwen's brothers, Elladan and Elrohir. They brought to him a banner of black                   
cloth: a gift made by Galadriel, Arwen's grandmother, and a sign that encouraged               
him to take the difficult path. When the banner was unfurled at the Battle of                   
the Pelennor Fields to reveal the emblem of Elendil in mithril, gems, and gold,                 
it was the first triumphant announcement of the King's return.                                 
                                                                                               
Finally, Arwen arrived at Minas Tirith after Aragorn had become king of Gondor                 
and Arnor, and they were married.                                                               
                                                                                               
The four passages described above are Arwen's only appearances in the story as                 
it stands, not counting The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen. Judging only by                         
visibility, Arwen is mostly a minor character in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings               
proper, but she nevertheless appears in detail in its Appendices. Also, she                     
plays a role in the plot which is disproportionate to the number of scenes in                   
which she appears. When Éowyn fell in love with Aragorn it was his fidelity to                 
Arwen that prevented him from reciprocating. This motivated Éowyn's subsequent                 
heroism during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, which had major repercussions                 
for the defence of Middle-earth. Arwen served as inspiration and motivation for                 
Aragorn, who had to become King before he could wed her.                                       
                                                                                               
Arwen gave up her life in 121 of the Fourth Age, at Cerin Amroth in Lórien, one               
year after the death of Aragorn. At the time, she was 2,901 years old. The story               
of Arwen's death is told in Appendix A (v), "Here Follows Part of the Tale of                   
Aragorn and Arwen." In this tale, Arwen told Aragorn, on his deathbed, that the                 
last ship that could have borne her over the sea had already sailed. After                     
Aragorn died, she went to Lórien and died on Cerin Amroth, where she was buried.