Two children had Tinwelint, then, Dairon and Tinúviel, and Tinúviel was a maiden, and the most beautiful of all of the maidens of the hidden Elves, and indeed few have been so fair, for her mother was a fey, a daughter of the Gods; but Dairon was then a boy strong and merry, and above all things he delighted to play upon a pipe of reeds or other woodland instruments, and he is named among the three most magic players of the Elves… But Tinúviel’s joy was rather in the dance, and no names are set with hers for the beauty and subtlety of her twinkling feet.

1. Notice one of the few references to Tinúviel’s divine heritage in the chapter.

2. Dairon is something of a romantic interest for Lúthien in the Silmarillion, but here, he is her brother. Why do you think Tolkien made that change? How do you suppose the Sil story would be different if Dairon loved Lúthien because she was family rather than because she was heroic/charming/brilliant/beautiful? How differently do you think the Tale of Túrin would have happened, had Thingol already a son? Do you think it would have happened at all?

3. Dairon here is a great magician. Why do you think this was removed? Generally, his role in the story in the Sil is less than that in the Tale. Why did Tolkien make him less important?

4. Comment on Dairon’s being “magical”. Tolkien uses the word “magic” to apply to the Elves and to the White Council in The Hobbit, but by the time he wrote the Sil, or The Lord of the Rings, he used different language. Why did he go from one opinion to the next?