#also sidenote: if elrond WERE inclined to be racist about his daughter's marriage prospects

[incomingalbatross]

The fact that the Numenoreans/Dunedain have Elvish blood is significant, but I think it is much less significant than the fact that both the mortal and Elvish descendants of Earendil have Maiar blood through Melian.

That's why Luthien was so so very beautiful and powerful, without peer among Elves or Men! That's why both Elrond and the Kings of the West are distinguished by healing powers (as I have seen pointed out somewhere, Aragorn wishes Elrond was there to help heal in Gondor because "he is the oldest of our race," and Elrond's sons do help even though their characters aren't associated with healing. it's an inherited power from their shared descent). That's why our hobbits repeatedly compare Aragorn, Denethor, and Faramir—the Most Numenorean Men Alive—to the Wizards, the Maiar in Middle-Earth.

All of the vibes of Extreme Specialness associated with Being Numenorean have much more to do with being children of Luthien specifically than just with being descended from Elves, is my stance, and you can see this also in the ways that Elrond Halfelven and his children are MORE Special for their descent, even among other Elves, rather than less.

It's not about being Elves or Men, it's about the SECRET THIRD THING.