tolkiens legendarium - Why did Thingol refuse to let Luthien marry Beren?

It seems quite hypocritical that Thingol wouldn't let Beren marry his daughter yet he is married to a Maia. Thingol came upon Melian and instantly fell in love with her in Beleriand, then Beren comes along in the same fashion Thingol did and yet he isn't allowed to be married to her. Why is this?

Answer

This is answered explicitly in the text (emphasis mine):

Thingol looked in silence upon Lúthien; and he thought in his heart: 'Unhappy Men, children of little lords and brief kings, shall such as these lay hands on you, and yet live?'

^{_{The Silmarillion III Quenta Silmarillion Chapter 19: "Of Beren and Lúthien"}}

Thingol's objection is twofold:

1. 
   

   Men are comparatively low-rank. This is classism as much as it is good old-fashioned racism; at this point in Middle-earth's history, there are no great kingdoms of Men. Although there are the Three Great Houses, they're just tenants of the Elf-lords, rather than lords in their own right. It's not until the Second Age that we get the first real Kingdom of Men.

   
   


2. 
   
   

   They're mortal. This one is just racism, basically. But bear in mind that there's no precedent for an Immortal marrying a Mortal; although Thingol married a Maia, they're to fairly similar beings, at least spiritually. For Thingol, who at the time of this tale has lived for thousands of years, 30-year-old Beren seems rather unimpressive.

   
   

   Although it's not touched on in this instance, there is a practical edge to this complaint, which Tolkien addresses in an essay titled "Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth." The essay is the text of a discussion between Finrod Felagund and Andreth, a human wisewoman; the two talk about a number of things, but most relevant for our purposes is a discussion about he potential of a relationship between Andreth and Finrod's younger brother Aegnor:

   
   

   
   

   'I would not have troubled him, when my short youth was spent. I would not have hobbled as a hag after his bright feet, when I could no longer run beside him!'

   
   

   'Maybe not,' said Finrod. 'So you feel now. But do you think of him? He would not have run before thee. He would have stayed at thy side to uphold thee. Then pity thou wouldst have had in every hour, pity inescapable. He would not have thee so shamed.

   
   

   'Andreth adaneth, the life and love of the Eldar dwells much in memory; and we (if not ye) would rather have a memory that is fair but unfinished than one that goes on to a grievous end. Now he will ever remember thee in the sun of morning, and that last evening by the water of Aeluin in which he saw thy face mirrored with a star caught in thy hair - ever, until the North-wind brings the night of his flame. Yea, and after that, sitting in the House of Mandos in the Halls of Awaiting until the end of Arda.

   
   

   ^{_{History of Middle-earth X Morgoth's Ring Part 4: "Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth"}}

   
   

   
   

   Finrod's argument is that, had they married, Aegnor would have remained faithful to Andreth for her entire life, as she aged and died and he remained perpetually young (which is consistent with Elvish tradition; they mate for life, and re-marriage is exceptionally rare). That would have been incredibly embarrassing for Andreth, who would have felt like a burden on her immortal husband, and would have saddened Aegnor to have to remember her as an invalid.

   
   

   Although we can't be confident that Thingol was thinking about this at the time, it does lend a certain legitimacy to his point of view; it's just bad news for all concerned.