The Arwen and Aragorn relationship is the main romantic relationship from The Lord of the Rings series. Many people were engaged in their love story and wanted them to be together and happy. However, there are a lot of things about their relationship that don’t make a lot of sense.
For people who only watched the movies and didn’t read the books, things about Arwen and Aragorn and what keeps them apart can be even more confusing. There’s also the fact that the movies often add things in to tell a more watchable story, so there are definitely many aspects of their relationship that don’t make sense.
How rare elven/human relationships are in the first place
While in many fantasy stories, especially newer ones, there are often relationships between different races, this wasn’t the case in Tolkien’s world. The reasons for this are kind of confusing and hard to explain, but the premise is that they basically have different gods.
Also, since elves live so long, it’s always going to be a lesson in heartbreak to be with someone who dies so quickly. However, it still seems way rarer than is realistic.
What exactly is the Evenstar?
In the movies, Arwen gives this necklace to Aragorn as a representation of her love for him, but it’s not very well explained. There’s a sense that it is somewhat magical or contains her grace, but this is very vague.
While Arwen in the books did wear a white jewel, she actually gave it to Frodo. This necklace was mostly a movie invention, so it’s hard to say precisely how powerful it’s supposed to be.
Elrond being way too involved in Arwen’s choices
In many ways, the world of Middle-Earth is fairly old-fashioned when it comes to gender roles. There are some exceptions to this for sure, but Arwen seems very much like an old-fashioned lady or princess whose father, Elrond, has a lot of say in her life.
However, since the movies tried to update things somewhat and give the women more of a storyline, this comes across as weird and patronizing.
The fact that Arwen will lose her immortality if she is with Aragorn
While it’s technically possible for any human and elf pairing to fall in love, the thing that sets Arwen and Aragorn apart is that she has the ability to choose to be mortal or immortal like her ancestor Luthien.
The reasons for this are a bit weird and have to do with the god figures in the world. While this is the explanation, it’s still not presented well in the movies. And, it seems like Arwen could realistically just live out Aragorn’s life and find happiness, but things are complicated.
That Arwen can’t go visit him later in the series
In the books, Arwen is hardly mentioned at all in the main plot. The love story of Aragorn and Arwen is told in the appendices, but Arwen has very little role in the series.
However, the creators of the films wanted to include some of this love story while also giving Arwen more of a role. This means fans see her also as a capable warrior, so the fact that she never goes to see Aragorn again doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Aragorn’s unwillingness to embrace his identity
In the books, Aragorn is a bit less of a reluctant hero than he is in the films. However, since that makes for a more interesting story with character development, Aragorn in the movies doesn’t want to become the King of Gondor.
However, the reasons for this are rather shaky, and it makes him seem unwilling.
His indecisiveness about their relationship
In one way, this makes a lot of sense. Aragorn clearly carries a lot of guilt over their relationship because he doesn't want Arwen to give up her immortality for him. He obviously loves her and doesn’t want her to be hurt because of him.
However, it can also come across as if he doesn’t respect Arwen’s choice in the manner. He is rather back and forth about things in an attempt to push her away.
That Arwen can die of a broken heart
Even if Arwen chose not to give up her immortality, there’s a chance she would have died young anyway. Elves are immortal but they can die of things like battle wounds, and they can also die of a broken heart.
This is kind of a dramatic trope, but it is something that Tolkien laid out. And, in Arwen’s case, almost all of the elves would be gone from Middle-Earth by the time Aragorn died, but it’s a very weird concept in the first place.
Aragorn’s interest in Eowyn
Given how loyal Aragorn is, it always felt a bit weird in the movies when he did seem briefly to consider being with Eowyn. While at that point he technically had tried to break things off with Arwen, it did feel out of character.
It’s clear that Eowyn would be the easier, sensible choice in a way, but it’s hard to see how this makes sense for him given the epic nature of his love for Arwen.
Why Arwen’s life is connected to the fate of the Ring
This is another thing that only happens in the movies, not in the books. This was definitely a way to create even more drama and desperation for Aragorn and drive his story forward, but it also just doesn't make sense.
If at this point fans presume she’d already given up her immortality, then she would obviously be at risk if Sauron had his way. However, this applies to every person left in Middle-Earth. The movies make it seem like Arwen’s life force is almost linked to Sauron’s power, and this is strange.