Maeglin and Idril, and marriage

[Artanis]

I wonder if the published Silmarillion is wrong when stating that Maeglin and Idril could not marry, because they were too closely related? While browsing through Laws and Customs of the Eldar, I came by this:

None of the Eldar married those in direct line of descent, nor children of the same parents, nor the sister or brother of either of their parents; nor did they wed 'half-sisters' or 'half-brothers'. Since as has been shown only in the rarest events did the Eldar have second spouses, half-sister or half-brother had for them a special meaning: they used these terms when both of the parents of one child were related to both of the parents of another, as when two brothers married two sisters of another family, or a sister and a brother of one house married a brother and sister of another: things which often occurred.

But Maeglin and Idril do not fall into any of these categories.

L and C goes on saying:

Otherwise 'first cousins', as we should say, might marry, but seldom did so, or desired to do so, unless one of the parents of each were far-sundered in kin.

This is exactly what Maeglin and Idril are: First cousins, and Idril's mother was Elenwë, and there should be no relation between her and Maeglin's father Eöl. So it seems not correct that they could not marry.

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

Maybe Turgon forbid it seeing what Eol was and think that Maeglin could become like him.

[Radagast The Brown]

Originally Posted by Telcontar_Dunedain

Maybe Turgon forbid it seeing what Eol was and think that Maeglin could become like him.

It doesn't make sense. I'm fairly sure Turgon did not think Maeglin is going to be Noldor-hating Dark Elf, and he didn't think he'd be evil too, as Maeglin was his councelor.

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

He may not of thought him evil but perhaps he could see part of his father in him.

[Artanis]

My concern is not whether Turgon would accept Maeglin as son-in-law or not. I am asking: Why do the Sil say that Maeglin's desire for Idril was without hope, because "the Eldar wedded not with kin so near" while this statement is clearly contradicted in HoME 10?

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

Maybe it was just a mistake!

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Artanis

My concern is not whether Turgon would accept Maeglin as son-in-law or not. I am asking: Why do the Sil say that Maeglin's desire for Idril was without hope, because "the Eldar wedded not with kin so near" while this statement is clearly contradicted in HoME 10?

I haven't read Laws and Customs yet but I guess there may have been differences among the different peoples of the Eldar. Maybe the Gondolindrim were particulary against close-kin-marriages. (Considering they were cut off from the other Eldar for a very long time I could see the logic of such a decision.)

In any case Idril was much against such a marriage and that may very well explain why Maeglin's desire was without hope anyway. Even in the possibility that close-kin-marriages were accepted in their society, he'd could never marry Idril if she did not wished to.

[Rían]

Originally Posted by Artanis

My concern is not whether Turgon would accept Maeglin as son-in-law or not. I am asking: Why do the Sil say that Maeglin's desire for Idril was without hope, because "the Eldar wedded not with kin so near" while this statement is clearly contradicted in HoME 10?

I think the close-kin marriage thing is one of those things that JRRT fiddled with a bit. I think originally it was not a problem, then he changed his mind and made it something that was "not done". And that made Maeglin even more creepy.