To me, Miriel's problem looks like a combination of severe PTSD (known during WWI as "shell shock") and postpartum depression. You don't just snap yourself out of either illness, and both of them leave scars.
Interesting.... Since my chosen study was clinical psychology, I am a bit embarrassed to confess that this angle never occured to me before, but wholly agree that she does seem to fit the profile of postpartum depression. I have generally avoided the temptation attaching diagnoses to Elves, though, because of the biochemical components and the fact that I can't say that Elves have the same brain biochemistry as a mortal, since so much else about their biology seems to be so different.
I have always seen Miriel's malady as deriving from a damaged fëa, which of course, cannot be put into any terms equivalent to a mortal, since we are not fëa-based beings, as are Elves. Of course, with a damaged fëa, she had perhaps less a choice than even a mental condition, which does have hope for improvement over time.
I always wonder about why she chose to leave the kids behind.
I've always seen it as less a choice to leave the kids than the kids' choice not to go with her. I think it is likely that some--or possibly all--were adults at the time, and made the choice to follow Fëanor. As far as I know, there is no definitive answer to say how old they were when she left; I've always envisioned them as adults.
It is funny, though, that in the Silmarillion, custody often seems to favor the father. Curufin took Celebrimbor to Middle-earth while his wife remained behind; Fingon sent Gil-Galad to Cirdan to be fostered . (Of course, Gil-Galad's mother could have been deceased, but nothing is said on this, so I think it just as likely that she was alive and Fingon sent their son from his family. Period.)
Finwë -- as you probably know, I don't consider him either evil or good for what he did.
Me neither :) I just like to play Devil's advocate because so many people are quick to blame Indis and Miriel but are aghast at doing the same for Finwë. I believe that all of the bad things in Fëanor's life--Miriel's death, Finwë's remarriage--contributed to some of his problems in the end, but certainly, I don't think that anyone knew how badly things would turn out. Especially Finwë.
About Finwë trying to please too many people, that is an interesting idea, an angle I had never really considered before.
You can probably figure that I don't think any of the Elves evil. They just make bad choices, as you so aptly pointed out.
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Interesting.... Since my chosen study was clinical psychology, I am a bit embarrassed to confess that this angle never occured to me before, but wholly agree that she does seem to fit the profile of postpartum depression. I have generally avoided the temptation attaching diagnoses to Elves, though, because of the biochemical components and the fact that I can't say that Elves have the same brain biochemistry as a mortal, since so much else about their biology seems to be so different.
I have always seen Miriel's malady as deriving from a damaged fëa, which of course, cannot be put into any terms equivalent to a mortal, since we are not fëa-based beings, as are Elves. Of course, with a damaged fëa, she had perhaps less a choice than even a mental condition, which does have hope for improvement over time.
I always wonder about why she chose to leave the kids behind.
I've always seen it as less a choice to leave the kids than the kids' choice not to go with her. I think it is likely that some--or possibly all--were adults at the time, and made the choice to follow Fëanor. As far as I know, there is no definitive answer to say how old they were when she left; I've always envisioned them as adults.
It is funny, though, that in the Silmarillion, custody often seems to favor the father. Curufin took Celebrimbor to Middle-earth while his wife remained behind; Fingon sent Gil-Galad to Cirdan to be fostered . (Of course, Gil-Galad's mother could have been deceased, but nothing is said on this, so I think it just as likely that she was alive and Fingon sent their son from his family. Period.)
Finwë -- as you probably know, I don't consider him either evil or good for what he did.
Me neither :) I just like to play Devil's advocate because so many people are quick to blame Indis and Miriel but are aghast at doing the same for Finwë. I believe that all of the bad things in Fëanor's life--Miriel's death, Finwë's remarriage--contributed to some of his problems in the end, but certainly, I don't think that anyone knew how badly things would turn out. Especially Finwë.
About Finwë trying to please too many people, that is an interesting idea, an angle I had never really considered before.
You can probably figure that I don't think any of the Elves evil. They just make bad choices, as you so aptly pointed out.