Jessie writes: This dispute arose during a game of 20 Questions: Does Legolas from “The Lord of the Rings” use magic? I say no. He has inherent elfin capabilities, such as a keen sense of sight and agility — like how birds have hollow bones for flight. My partners believe all elves are magical. One fancies themself an expert because they read “The Silmarillion.”
Your partner may know their “L.O.T.R.” lore, but can they conjure the fantasy author George R.R. Martin for comment? Well, I can, thanks to my natural ability of shamelessness. Martin writes: “Legolas is a skilled archer, but I don’t think it’s magic. If all elves had magical abilities, all of them would be able to do the sorts of sorcery we see Galadriel and Glorfindel perform.” He notes that Legolas can walk on the surface of snow, but this may speak more to your hollow-bone theory. We just won’t know until we kill and dissect him. Which we won’t, for that would destroy the small-“m” magic — the beguiling ambiguity — that makes fiction so fascinating.
