Why This Is The REAL Hero Of The Lord Of The Rings

it's me it's your son the Lord of the Rings is a story about an unlikely hero vanquishing an unimaginable Evil by destroying a magic ring it's a classic hero's journey but we all know there's more to it than that starting with the fact that our hero is not the ring bearer nor is it the steward who gives his life for the cause or the wizard who returns from the dead it's not even the rightful King of the land it's the gardener and no it's not just because he literally carried the plot on his back as with the rest of the Lord of the Rings there's more to Sam's heroism than that don't you leave him samse gji and I don't mean to we'll get into the details in just a second but for now consider hitting the like button and subscribing to nerdstalgic so you don't miss out on our latest releases when you think of Sam's most heroic moments in The Lord of the Rings your mind probably goes to his battle with sheilo his oneman Siege on the tower of kirth unle or his Oscar worthy moment on Mount Doom or maybe you are book purist and you think about that one time he yelled at a tree for trying to drown and suffocate his friends the point is that Sam's heroic stunts are wellknown and well documented across both the books and the movies if it weren't for his intervention at multiple points in the story froto May well have died or the ring could have easily been lost and the plan would have been in ruin this willingness to run into danger makes him a valuable member of the fellowship and a perfect Ward for Frodo as he assumes the role of ring bearer and hero of the tale or at least that's what we led to believe the truth of the matter is that Frodo is not the center of this story I don't usually old with foreign food but the selfish stuff it's not bad nothing ever dampens your spirits does it Sam Sam fills those roles of protagonist and hero more readily and more easily than Frodo or any other member of our fellowship surprisingly the stunts he performs are the least important bit of evidence as to why Sam's heroism actually has way more to do with who he is as a character and how the story is structured around him so let's start from the beginning the first time he's brought up in token's writing we are told that Sam's father worked for Bilbo and froto as a gardener while many other Hobbits found the residents of bag in to be odd and socially Outcast the gamg befriended them anyway bbo even taught Sam to read which is typically seen in hobbiton as a peculiar hobby meant only for the wealthy and when his father grew too old and tired to maintain baggin's Garden Sam took up the responsibility of toiling away in the dirt though his name is only mentioned in passing readers are given a strong sense of Sam's character in just those few short paragraphs this is a young Hobbit whose loyalty and kindness know no bounds and he's also happy to quite literally get his hands dirty as the story progresses we learn he is much more quiet and shy than his compatriots but when everyone around him gives up hope Sam is there to pick up the slack with an almost naive amount of optimism just a bit of seasoning I thought maybe if we was having a roast chicken one night or something roast chicken you never know Bilbo fills his head with Adventure and while he Marvels at the idea of seeing elves one day his oversized feet are planted firmly in the soil of his home the idea of venturing beyond what is safe and known literally gives him pause if I take one more step it'll be the farthest away from home I've ever been until Frodo coaxes him forward a role typically reserved for the mentor of a story not the protagonist thanks to the Brilliance of Peter Jackson Philip aboyans and Fran Walsh Sam's character remains largely consistent in The Lord of the Rings film Trilogy played by the immensely talented sha Aston Sam retains all of his base elements from the books his optimism his modesty and most importantly his loyalty are all there in full force to his credit Shan Aston really became Sam in his early interviews both Aston and Elijah Wood talk about their onset Bond and how Aston would often take care of wood whenever he needed help that friendship really shows up on screen and it helps to carry the story and strengthen the hearts of both characters as an audience we feel it more deeply when Sam asserts himself over the powerful people at the Council of Elon or when he risks drowning in order to get to Frodo or when he's sent away after fighting with golum only to return of his own valtion to bravely rescue his friend this is a bashful and unassuming Hobbit who becomes the bravest member of the fellowship when faced with the possibility of losing his friends so by the time we get to Sam's speech to froto at the foot of Mount Doom we've come to see him as much more than the ring bearer's faithful Guardian while Sam looks around at the impossible situation they found themselves in and looks down at his nearly unconscious friend he speaks of his home he reminds froto of the natural beauty of the Shire and the taste of strawberries and still froto is ready to give up that's when we get what is quite possibly the most iconic line in the entire franchise I can't carry it for you but I can carry you as Sam carries his friend to what they both believe to be their demise we are reminded of how far he has come through all of this he was content with his place in the world a simple Gardener with distant and unattainable dreams of adventure looking for nothing more than a simmering pot over a fire and yet he left his idilic home experienced the Wonder and Majesty of the elves firsthand suffered through extraordinary hardships and when he had no more strength left he still persisted all for the love of his friends in this way Sam represents the themes of The Lord of the Rings better than any other character in the series his loyalty and love for his companions his wavering optimism in the face of world-ending threats and his humble status as a simple Gardener enforc tolkien's main points that friendship and fellowship are Paramount true power comes from strength of character and life is worth living but there's some good in this world Mr ferle and it's worth fighting for this alone would make for a strong case to call Sam the hero of the story but we're not done yet because we haven't even gotten to the end of our tale if not for for Sam sauron's forces would have overtaken Middle Earth and all the goodness and beauty of the world would have been snuffed out instead because of the strength of a single Hobbit everyone gets their happy ending Bilbo and Frodo go into the West with Gandalf gadriel and Elon Aro and marri's Aragorn who is crowned king of Gondor gimle and legus are there and the rest of the hobbits get to return to their lives so in Sam's hero's journey the one he began by leaving the Shire taking on Supernatural challenges defeating ultimate Evil and returning home forever changed obviously several members of the fellowship follow their own hero's journey over the course of The Lord of the Rings this is especially true in the movies where the story's conflict is dialed up to 11 Aragorn goes from rejecting his Birthright to becoming King Frodo's Journey most closely mirrors Sam yet he's framed as the protagonist because of his possession of the ring but it's really Sam's story it's Sam's actions that drove the plot forward it was Sam's character who best embodied the themes of the story and grew for from his original shy demeanor into a brave Adventurer and at the end of both the books and the movies it's Sam who we follow home to hobbiton his face his words and his loving family are the notes we go out on because Sam is our hero he's our protagonist and if you've sat through this whole video and still find yourself disagreeing maybe tolken himself will convince you since he also considered Sam to be the chief hero of the Lord of the Rings as expressed in one of his many letters I think the simple rustic love of Sam and his Rosie nowhere elaborated is absolutely essential to the study of his the chief Heroes 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 but I will say no more that's all we have for you today thank you so much for watching this video all the way to the end if you liked what you saw hit that Thumbs Up And subscribe to nerdstalgic for more content just like this [Music]

Channel: Nerdstalgic

Views: 121,993

Keywords: Lord of the Rings, Lord of the Rings Samwise Gamgee, Lord of the Rings Frodo, Lord of the Rings Movies, Lord of the Rings Extended Edition, Nerdstalgic, Lord of the Rings Hero, Lord of the Rings Gollum, Lord of the Rings Books, Lord of the Rings Peter Jackson, Lord of the Rings Rings of Power, Lord of the Rings Heroes Journey, Lord of the Rings TV Show, Lord of the Rings Video Game, The Hobbit, The Hobbit Movies, The Hobbit Trilogy, New Rockstars, Corridor Crew, Screen Crush

Id: Mej9f1pGuMg

Length: 8min 7sec (487 seconds)

Published: Wed Dec 20 2023