Samwise Gamgee

Tolkienchar
character_name = Samwise Gamgee
character_alias = See names and titles
character_title = Ring-bearer
character_race = Hobbit
character_culture = Shire-hobbit
character_birth = April 6, ME-date|TA|2980The date of Sam's birth in "The Longfather-Tree of Master Samwise" (Appendix C) is S.R. 1380 (equivalent to T.A. 2980), however, "The Tale of Years" (Appendix B) gives it as T.A. 2983, which is incorrect. In S.R. 1476, Sam is said to have been ninety-six years old, so 2980 is more correct than 2983. Also, the birth year of his sister, Marigold, is given S.R. 1383 (T.A. 2893), and it is most unlikely that they were born in the same year. In "The Fellowship of the Ring", Merry and Pippin is said to be younger than both Sam and Frodo, so Sam's birth year must be in T.A. 2980, since Merry was born in T.A. 2982.]
character_departure = ME-date|FA|62
character_death = Fourth Age
Book(s) = "The Fellowship of the Ring"
"The Two Towers"
"The Return of the King"

Samwise Gamgee, later known as Samwise GardnerAppendix C to The Lord of the Rings] and commonly known as Sam, is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium.

Literature

Sam is first introduced in "The Fellowship of the Ring". Sam is Frodo Baggins' gardener, having inherited the position as Bag End's gardener from his father, Hamfast "Gaffer" Gamgee. At the time of the War of the Ring, Sam was living in Number 3, Bagshot Row with his father.

As "punishment" for eavesdropping on Gandalf's conversation with Frodo regarding the dangers of the One Ring, Sam was — at his own request — made Frodo's first companion on his journey to Rivendell. They were joined by Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took, Frodo's cousins, and journeyed together to Rivendell where the Council of Elrond took place.

When the fellowship was split up at the Falls of Rauros, Sam refused to give up his responsibilities to Frodo; he insisted on being allowed to accompany him. He carried most of the luggage, cooked, kept watch at night whenever he could, and rationed the food so Frodo had enough for the journey. It was then they encountered Gollum, who quickly became their guide. Sam never trusted the creature, and rightly, as he eventually led them to the lair of Shelob in an attempt to gain the ring after they were eaten by her. Sam was able to wound Shelob, defeating her, but not before she had stung Frodo, paralyzing and apparently killing him.

To continue the mission, Sam was forced to take the ring himself, and briefly became a Ring-Bearer. Unique among the Ring-Bearers, he was able to throw off the Ring's promise of power with barely a moment of temptation, and used its power of invisibility to rescue Frodo from the Orcs who held him captive. The two then journey alone, through many dangers, encountering Gollum again, to the eventual climax of the story and the destruction of the ring at Mount Doom.

After the hobbits' return home and the Battle of Bywater, Sam travelled the length and breadth of the Shire replanting trees that had been cut down during Saruman's brief reign of terror. He used the gift of earth given to him by the Lady Galadriel, which caused the saplings he planted to grow at an accelerated rate. The small amount remaining he took to the Three-Farthing Stone (roughly the centre of the Shire) and cast into the air, prompting the bountiful period of growth starting in the spring of the year 1420 (Shire Reckoning). The greatest wonder was a young "mallorn" tree sprouting in the Party Field: "the only "mallorn" west of the Mountains and east of the Sea" (grown from an acorn included as part of Galadriel's gift).

After the War of the Ring, Sam married Rose "Rosie" Cotton and moved to Bag End with Frodo. Sam and Rosie had thirteen children: Elanor the Fair, Frodo, Rose, Merry, Pippin, Goldilocks, Hamfast, Daisy, Primrose, Bilbo, Ruby, Robin, and Tolman.

After Sam and Rose's first child was born it was revealed that Frodo would leave Middle-earth, along with Bilbo (Sam's old hero), Gandalf and most of the remaining Elves, for the Undying Lands. Before Frodo left, he gave the estate of Bag End to Sam, as well as the Red Book of Westmarch for Sam to continue, hinting that Sam, too, might be allowed to travel into the West eventually.

After the death of his wife in the year 62 of the Fourth Age (Shire Reckoning 1482), Sam entrusted the Red Book to Elanor and left the Shire. He was not seen again in Middle-earth, but Elanor and her descendants preserved the tradition that he went to the Grey Havens and sailed into the West. As the last of the Ring-bearers, he was entitled to sail across the Sea and be reunited with Frodo in the Undying Lands.

Characteristics

At the start of "The Lord of the Rings" Sam, typically for a hobbit, had never before ventured far from the immediate area where he lived. Unusually for a hobbit, however, since childhood Sam was fond of legends and other fantastical stories. Sam was particularly interested in the Elves, and always hoped to one day see one. Sam was literate, having been taught by Bilbo and Frodo, which was atypical for most hobbits due to their rustic culture. Sam often showed a skill in poetry, one occasion being when in Lothlórien after Gandalf fell to his apparent death, Sam added to the poem that Frodo had made about him.

Tolkien called Sam the "chief hero" of the saga in one of his letters: he places special emphasis on Sam's "rustic love" for Rosie, In the long summary-letter sent to Milton Waldman, an extract of which was published in "the Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien" as #131 and was reproduced in its entirety in "". It read "I think the simple 'rustic' love of Sam and his Rosie (nowhere elaborated) is absolutely essential to the study of his (the chief hero's) character, and to the theme of the relation of ordinary life (breathing, eating, working, begetting) and quests, sacrifice, causes, and the 'longing for Elves', and sheer beauty." - J. R. R. Tolkien letter dated 1951] a union that serves to establish a family in which allusions to Elvish wonders (embodied in Sam's daughter Elanor) are combined with the best qualities of traditional Shire-life. Sam and his descendants also become the keepers of the Ring-war history and uphold the memory of events that most 'ordinary' hobbits take little interest in.

Sam is one of two Ring-bearers strong enough to surrender the Ring voluntarily (the other being Bilbo Baggins), and the only one to resist the temptation of the Ring's power.

The relationship between Frodo and Sam is, in many respects, at the heart of "The Lord of the Rings".ME-fact|date=June 2008 A strong bond of love and trust grows between them, portrayed most poignantly during the events of Cirith Ungol, where Sam vows to return to his (apparently) dead master, to be reunited with Frodo in death.

Tolkien wrote in a private letter:

"My Sam Gamgee is indeed a reflexion of the English soldier, of the privates and batmen I knew in the 1914 war, and recognised as so far superior to myself" ("The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien", ed. Humphrey Carpenter).

Names and titles

In the appendices of "The Lord of the Rings", Tolkien says the "true" or Westron form of Sam's name is "Banazîr Galbasi" (also spelled "Galpsi"). "Banazîr" comes from elements meaning "halfwise" or "simple". "Galbasi" comes from the name of the village "Galabas". The name "Galabas" uses the elements "galab-", meaning "game", and "bas-", corresponding somewhat to "-wich" or "-wick". In his role as "translator" of the Red Book of Westmarch, Tolkien devised a strict English translation, "Samwís Gamwich", which develops into "Samwise Gammidgy" and eventually comes to "Samwise Gamgee" in modern English.

Frodo affectionately dubbed him "Samwise the stouthearted". [ME-ref|ttt] The Appendix of "The Return of the King" says that in F.A. 7 (S.R. 1427), Sam was elected "Mayor of the Shire" for the first of seven consecutive seven-year terms.

Concept and creation

Tolkien took the name "Gamgee" from a colloquial word in Birmingham for cotton wool. This was in turn derived from Gamgee Tissue, a surgical dressing invented by a 19th century Birmingham surgeon named Joseph Sampson Gamgee. Tolkien originally used it as a nickname for a man living in Lamorna Cove, England before adapting it into his stories:

"There was a curious local character, an old man who used to go about swapping gossip and weather-wisdom and such like. To amuse my children I named him Gaffer Gamgee... The choice of Gamgee was primarily directed by alliteration; but I did not invent it. It was caught out of childhood memory, as a comic word or name. It was in fact the name when I was small (in Birmingham) for 'cotton-wool'. (Hence the association of the Gamgees with the Cottons.) I knew nothing of its origin." ("The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien" #257, ed. Humphrey Carpenter)

Tolkien claimed to be genuinely surprised when, in March 1956, he received a letter from one Sam Gamgee, who had heard that his name was in "The Lord of the Rings" but had not read the book. Tolkien replied on March 18:

"Dear Mr. Gamgee,

It was very kind of you to write. You can imagine my astonishment when I saw your signature! I can only say, for your comfort, I hope, that the 'Sam Gamgee' of my story is a most heroic character, now widely beloved by many readers, even though his origins are rustic. So that perhaps you will not be displeased at the coincidence of the name of this imaginary character of supposedly many centuries ago being the same as yours." ("The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien", ed. Humphrey Carpenter)

He sent Gamgee a signed copy of all three volumes of the book. However, the incident sparked a nagging worry in Tolkien's mind, as he recorded in his journal:

"For some time I lived in fear of receiving a letter signed 'S. Gollum'. That would have been more difficult to deal with." ("Tolkien: A Biography", Humphrey Carpenter)

After publication of "The Lord of the Rings", Tolkien traced the origin of the name back to Gamgee and eventually the earlier English surname 'de Gamaches'.

Portrayal in adaptations

Film

In Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated version of "The Lord of the Rings", Sam was voiced by Michael Scholes. Billy Barty was the model for Sam, as well as Frodo and Bilbo, in the live-action recordings Bakshi used for rotoscoping. Many critics have pointed out that this portrayal of the character looks and acts as if he is mentally retarded.

In the 1980 animated version of "The Return of the King", made for television, the character was voiced by Roddy McDowall.

In the Peter Jackson movies ' (2001), ' (2002) and "" (2003), Sam was played by Sean Astin. Astin's portrayal of the stout-hearted and loyal Sam is perhaps the most loyal to Tolkien's vision, although some have criticized Sam's tendency to call Frodo by his first name alone in moments of crisis.who?

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(See the stage article: "The Lord of the Rings")

On stage, Sam was portrayed by Peter Howe in the 3-hour long Toronto, Canada stage production of "The Lord of the Rings", which opened in 2006. In the United States, Sam was portrayed by Blake Bowden in the Cincinnati productions of ' (2001), ' (2002), and "" (2003) for Clear Stage Cincinnati. In Chicago, Dale Inghram played Sam in the Lifeline Theatre production of "The Two Towers" in 1999.

Radio

In the 1981 BBC radio serial of "The Lord of the Rings", Sam was played by Bill Nighy. It is not clear whether Sean Astin, who played Sam in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, had heard Nighy's radio performance, but both actors bring very similar characterizations and accents to the role. It is a possibility that both may come from Tolkien's own version from his audio readings.

References

External links

*
* [http://www.tuckborough.net/sam.html Samwise Gamgee] at The Thain's Book
* [http://www.theonering.net/movie/char/samwise.html Samwise Gamgee] at theonering.net