As most of you know, I am reading LOTR aloud to my wife, Barbara. We have just arrived on the borders of Fangorn, and Merry and Pippin are still missing. A strange old man has been seen walking abroad, and the horses have pulled up their pickets and bolted.
I was totally surprised yesterday as I was reading the final chapter of The Fellowship, when I got to the episode where Sam figures out what Frodo's intentions are, and runs in a panic to find him, to prevent him going alone into the Black Land.
I got so choked up that I had to stop reading and get my composure back. Not because of Frodo's quiet courage, but because of Sam's selfless loyalty and love for Frodo!
I have always believed that the bravest act in the book is Frodo's decision to go on alone to Mordor, bearing the burden and refusing to take his companions into almost certain death.
I was therefore amazed at my emotional reaction when reading that part, when I realized that it was Samwise who had elicited the deepest response in me. Is that becase this is about my eighth reading, and my familiarity with Frodo's courage has inured me to any emotional reaction to it; or have I changed, grown, or gotten senile?
Don't you just love Sam Gamgee? I don't think the characters of Merry and Pippen are very clearly drawn; particularly not yet, when the reader has yet to experience their capture and forced march through their own eyes.
But Sam's character is NAILED early on, and he remains as simple and admirable throughout the tale as he is when we first get to know him.
Samwise is, of course, a character familiar to readers of English Literature, from Shakespeare to Patrick O'Brian. The loyal English tar; the footsoldier in Kipling's army; many of Shakespeare's characters in Henry IV (I and II) and Henry V. Simple English country folk: loyal, sturdy, practical, capable; not overly clever or intelligent. Just totally dependable in a pinch, and not looking to gain fame or power.
Without Sam Gamgee, this story loses its appeal to the simple countryman in all of us. If it is only about Great Kings and Elves of ancient lineage, massive battles between Good and Evil; it simply loses its personal impact.
Sam is us, I believe. Sam is the heart of the story, the lynchpin to which everything else connects, allowing us to feel the story in very human terms. We love and admire many of the other characters. We are Sam...
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ALABAMA: Tradition; Class; A name to respect in College Football
[This message has been edited by bobstod (edited April 28, 2001).]
I was totally surprised yesterday as I was reading the final chapter of The Fellowship, when I got to the episode where Sam figures out what Frodo's intentions are, and runs in a panic to find him, to prevent him going alone into the Black Land.
I got so choked up that I had to stop reading and get my composure back. Not because of Frodo's quiet courage, but because of Sam's selfless loyalty and love for Frodo!
I have always believed that the bravest act in the book is Frodo's decision to go on alone to Mordor, bearing the burden and refusing to take his companions into almost certain death.
I was therefore amazed at my emotional reaction when reading that part, when I realized that it was Samwise who had elicited the deepest response in me. Is that becase this is about my eighth reading, and my familiarity with Frodo's courage has inured me to any emotional reaction to it; or have I changed, grown, or gotten senile?
Don't you just love Sam Gamgee? I don't think the characters of Merry and Pippen are very clearly drawn; particularly not yet, when the reader has yet to experience their capture and forced march through their own eyes.
But Sam's character is NAILED early on, and he remains as simple and admirable throughout the tale as he is when we first get to know him.
Samwise is, of course, a character familiar to readers of English Literature, from Shakespeare to Patrick O'Brian. The loyal English tar; the footsoldier in Kipling's army; many of Shakespeare's characters in Henry IV (I and II) and Henry V. Simple English country folk: loyal, sturdy, practical, capable; not overly clever or intelligent. Just totally dependable in a pinch, and not looking to gain fame or power.
Without Sam Gamgee, this story loses its appeal to the simple countryman in all of us. If it is only about Great Kings and Elves of ancient lineage, massive battles between Good and Evil; it simply loses its personal impact.
Sam is us, I believe. Sam is the heart of the story, the lynchpin to which everything else connects, allowing us to feel the story in very human terms. We love and admire many of the other characters. We are Sam...
------------------
ALABAMA: Tradition; Class; A name to respect in College Football
[This message has been edited by bobstod (edited April 28, 2001).]
