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Most people think Frodo is the true hero of\u00a0The Lord of the Rings<\/i>. To put it another way: It is accepted by nearly all readers that the novel is\u00a0about\u00a0<\/b>Frodo. It\u2019s his quest, his burden, he\u2019s the focus. The little blurbs in magazines that are designed for the non-initiate read like this: “The story of a hobbit, Frodo Baggins, who is sent to destroy an evil Ring of power\u2026” Sound like a good pitch? Not quite.<\/p>\n
The main character is really Samwise Gamgee, though you may not know it. I\u2019m telling you now, it\u2019s all about Sam.<\/p>\n
You can safely argue Frodo Baggins should be the centerpoint of the tale. In\u00a0The Hobbit<\/i>\u00a0Bilbo had the limelight for an entire book, and no one came close to grandstanding him (except maybe Smaug). Seems like Tolkien intended to chronicle the history of the Baggins family; first through Bilbo\u2019s adventures\u2013then with Frodo inheriting more adventures than he bargained for.<\/p>\n
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The story takes Frodo\u2019s point of view often enough. Throughout the trilogy we share his experiences though personal sensations, his internal thoughts, and even his dreams. Tolkien lets us inside his suffering. And through that suffering we understand the dynamic of true sacrifice. He\u2019s the Ringbearer, after all.<\/p>\n
But a character-driven story like\u00a0LOTR\u00a0<\/i>is not strictly about sacrifice (or heroism, or the impermanence of beauty, or all those themes that are intrinsic). I must admit the novel is woven of many threads but the groundwork of the tale,\u00a0the telling of it<\/b>, spins on a single proviso: Who is transformed the most between the opening and the closing page, taking the reader through his transformation?<\/p>\n
Aragorn is the most heroic character. But it\u2019s not his story.<\/p>\n
Gandalf is greatest manipulator of events. But it\u2019s not his story.<\/p>\n
Sauron is the ever-present antagonist. But it\u2019s not his story.<\/p>\n
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Let me give you the clearest example from another fantasy, familiar to all but the most sheltered\u2013Star Wars<\/i>. You think the original\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0<\/i>films are about some farmboy named Luke Skywalker? You think he\u2019s the main character?\u00a0BUZZZ!<\/b>\u00a0I\u2019m so sorry\u2026 thanks for playing! If you had said Darth Vader, you\u2019d be walking home with the grand prize.<\/p>\n
The guy in the black helmet is pulling all the strings. Vader begins the first scene of the first episode by walking through that laser-blasted door looking for Leia. He is the first character the audience has a relationship with. More importantly, his choices put the plot in motion for all three films. Every facet of the story we experience is an after-effect of what Darth Vader is doing. When\u00a0Return of the Jedi\u00a0<\/i>comes to its conclusion, it is only after Vader\u2019s most difficult redemption and after we see his glowing form with his predecessors, that we know the story is over. He\u2019s redeemed. Roll credits. The end.<\/p>\n
When you write a 1,200-page novel, you have the luxury of branching off into other subplots and you can take time to work with various characters. But you still need one common thread that thematically brings your story full circle. The transformation of Sam is Tolkien\u2019s central storytelling device, though not the most obvious one. There are many clues that reveal Sam, not Frodo, as the main element.<\/p>\n
Sam goes an extreme route: from simple gardener to a participant in legend. He starts things off in\u00a0The Fellowship of the Ring\u00a0<\/i>as the first new character we learn about, through a description offered by his father, the Gaffer:<\/p>\n Crazy about stories of the old days he is, and he listens to all Mr. Bilbo\u2019s tales\u2026\u00a0Elves and Dragons!<\/i>\u00a0I says to him.\u00a0Cabbages and potatoes are better for me and you.<\/i><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n So you see, our dear Sam is the contact point that we immediately relate to. Just like him, we are daydreaming of fairies, elves, and elephants. That is why Tolkien introduces Sam at once. All the magnificent events of the War of the Ring, the journey, battles, treachery and triumph, are diluted down to this profound effect: Sam is transformed beyond what he recognizes in himself. In the end he becomes the subject of all his dreams. Even he acknowledges that his feats might someday be the subject of future stories and songs.<\/p>\n Sam\u2019s conversation with Frodo in the pass of Cirith Ungol says it all:<\/p>\n \u2018But that\u2019s not the way of it with the tales that really mattered, or the ones that stay in the mind. Folk seem to have been just landed in them, usually\u2013their paths were laid that way, as you put it\u2026 I wonder what sort of a tale we\u2019ve fallen into?\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018I wonder,\u2019 said Frodo. \u2018But I don\u2019t know. And that\u2019s the way of a real tale\u2026 The people in it don\u2019t know\u2026\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And when Sam realizes the grand stories of the First Age, of Beren and the Silmarils, are indeed connected to the present unfolding events he says:<\/p>\n \u2018Why, to think of it, we\u2019re in the same tale still! It\u2019s going on. Don\u2019t the great tales never end?\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018No, they never end as tales,\u2019 said Frodo. \u2018But the people in them come, and go when their part\u2019s ended.\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n To this Sam replies, \u2018\u2026Still, I wonder if we shall ever be put into songs or tales.\u2019 And with that strangely self-referential remark, the Professor quietly moves Sam into his greatest moments of peril and deliverance.<\/p>\n Sam\u2019s perspective is that he can finally return to domestic life without any further adventures. An end has come to chronicling his tale. He is now back with his family, back to his private life; and the intrusive eyes of future generations can leave him in peace.<\/p>\n Much too hasty,<\/p>\n Quickbeam![\"evt100608154100399\"](\"http:\/\/www-images.theonering.org\/torwp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/evt100608154100399-300x199.jpg\")
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As final proof, I offer a closer look at the novel\u2019s conclusion. The epic story does not end with the destruction of the Ring, not even with Frodo\u2019s departure from the Grey Havens. The final moment we cling to as the story closes its doors, is of Sam coming back to his family, sitting at his table and declaring that his role in the formation of a myth is done. Three simple words, “Well, I\u2019m back,” are his final admission that there is no more story for him to contribute to.<\/p>\n
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