Frodo or Sam?

[The Perky Ent]

This is a though that has been paining me for some time, in The Return of the King, who is the protagonist, Frodo or Sam. The story sounds like its about Frodo but Sam has a big chunk of the storyline. If anyone has any ideas, please help...

[Luthien_ Tinuviel]

I've wondered about that myself. And although I'm biased in this direction, I'm inclined to say Sam. If you look closely, you may notice an apparent shift in the focus of the story. Whereas Fellowship primarily deals with Frodo's thoughts, emotions and concerns, somewhere (I'm not quite sure where) in Towers there is a shift in the Sam-ward direction, and by ROTK it's as much or more about Sam as it is about Frodo. One might venture to guess that the story makes a large Sam-centered shift during or directly after Shelob's lair, perhaps because those few chapters deal almost solely with Sam. One might say that as Frodo loses strength, Sam gains it. So the focus of the book seems to change as Sam gains determination and perseverance. Just a thought, though. Can you tell I love Sam? I think I made it obvious. But even Tolkien identified Sam as the "chief hero" in Letters, so I don't think I'm too far astray.

[Iris Alantiel]

I think you're definitely right in saying that Sam seems to be a much more central character in RotK than Frodo. I agree with Luthien when she says that Sam seemed to gain in strength (or perhaps in importance) as Frodo's strength diminishes.

Perhaps Tolkien wanted to emphasize the fact that, though Sam is a very humble and ordinary hobbit, his loyalty and simplicity made it possible for him to make a great contribution to (arguably) the most important part of the quest. I don't have any evidence from Tolkien's letters or anything like that to back up my claims, it's just my opinion, but I think that was an idea that was important to Tolkien. He employs heroes like Frodo and Bilbo - and of course Sam - who are very humble and small and ordinary and has them do great things. Perhaps by increasing Sam's role in the later parts of the quest, Tolkien wanted to emphasize that idea, since Sam is definitely the humblest member of all the Fellowship.

And Luthien - you're not alone, I love Sam too. Definitely, imho, the best character in the Fellowship. So shy and simple, yet so loyal and brave in so many ways . . . don't you just want to give him a hug? [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Luthien_ Tinuviel]

Sam seemed to gain in strength (or perhaps in importance) as Frodo's strength diminishes.

Both, I would say. Importance in his role, taking on more responsibility, and so forth. Up to The Tower of Cirith Ungol, Frodo made most of the decisions about everything. Afterwards, as Frodo diminishes, Sam takes more responsibility for the quest in a practical way. He provides many of the solutions and makes decisions on his own. One could say that Frodo looked after the emotional aspects of the quest (the burden of bearing the Ring), and Sam took care of physical practicalities (such as finding water and so forth). In this way, Sam is as much responsible for the completion of the quest as Frodo is.

And Luthien - you're not alone, I love Sam too. Definitely, imho, the best character in the Fellowship. So shy and simple, yet so loyal and brave in so many ways . . . don't you just want to give him a hug?

Of course I do. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

I wish I had my copy Letters at hand, so that I could find the quote I'm thinking of pertaining to this subject.... I would actually assume that Tolkien started writing LOTR with Frodo in mind, only to find Sam coming to the foreground. These sorts of things seem to happen a lot, and the way he wrote, I can see how possible that would be.

[Theron Bugtussle]

Often small hands do the large tasks because they must, while the great are occupied elsewhere...(Sorry about mangling the quote, you probably all remember it!)

Sam's contribution is humble and entirely a supporting role. Which in Tolkien's economy makes it great, indeed. It is a fascinating viewpoint. "The first shall be last, and the last, first."

And note that in the book, at least, the two Ringbearers get equal honor on the field of Cormallen. So do the great acknowledge the humble.

[Oroaranion]

i must agree that sam is the one with the most action, although frodo does get his own share.

[The Perky Ent]

Yeah Frodo has his share, but lots of people I know know it as Frodo's journey. Sam's the real hero.

[Firefoot]

I would say that Sam definitely seems to be more of the central character than Frodo in RotK.

I would also say the shift happens before The Tower of Cirith Ungol. It becomes very evident in The Choices of Master Samwise but I would say it starts to switch after Faramir lets them go. From then on I would say Sam increases whereas Frodo starts to decrease. Frodo is still making the important decisions but Sam is helping him more and more. For example, when Frodo, Sam, and Gollum are going past Minas Morgul Sam has to encourage Frodo to keep going because the ring is starting to have very evident power over Frodo. Even though Frodo is still featured as the main character in this part of the book, Sam is also having a much larger role.

I would say that RotK is about Frodo's struggle, but told mainly from Sam's point of view. By the end of TTT and certainly in RotK, you read more of Sam's thoughts and actions than Frodo's, so Sam is the main character. But the entire series is basically about the Ringbearer trying to destroy the Ring, so that is why I say it is about Frodo.

[The Perky Ent]

Thanks for the help y'all. I'm really getting a clearer picture on this...although there are still some funny issues...

[Luthien_ Tinuviel]

I think it's an effective (though perhaps not conscious) narrative device that as the journey gets harder for Frodo, and as they move closer to Mordor, the story focuses more on Sam. It is already incredibly hard for Sam, but it must have been infinately more harrowing of a journey for Frodo. The chapters from about Shelob's Lair (actually a little before) on are very dark, and I always find the first three chapters of book six rather hard to read, because the journey is so dark. If it is emotionally draining for the reader to see the journey from Sam's perspective, Frodo's point of view would have been unbearable.

[OddEvenstar]

I like to think that Sam steals the show, as he is a largely overlooked character by some. In my opinion, his is the harder task, for as much as Frodo shows in strength, Sam much show that and go the extra mile to protect his friend. He certainly deserves to be the star, in a way, but of course, that does not lessen Frodo's struggles.