[Corwyn Celesil]

To get back to the original idea of this thread (though the discussion of Faramir and co. is quite grand!), I just realized that Sam also had the chance to take the Ring, an even better chance than did Faramir. Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and even Boromir's chances to take the Ring were few, given the checks and balances of all the members of the Fellowship, but both Faramir and Sam were put in a place where the Ring was before them, tempting them, and both refused. Faramir had almost total power over the fate of Frodo and Sam in that moment, but in no situation did anyone have the power that Sam did when he had the chance to take the Ring. Frodo was unconscious or near-dead; no one else was around; how easy it would have been for Sam to just leave, taking the Ring with him. But Sam had already built up a strength of character and virtue that could overcome temptation. So had Faramir. Someone mentioned the psychological depth thread in relation to all this, and I agree that it is very applicable (I encourage all of you who are having fun analyzing Faramir to read the thread) here. Those good characters such as Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Gandalf, Galadriel, Sam, and Faramir, who can 'easily' withstand the temptation of the Ring, don't do so because they are simply good and without the depth of inner struggle but because they have already worked through their struggles and come to a foundation of virtue and strength. It's not that the temptation is light or that the Ring is without power; it is that they have already overcome that within them that might have surrendered to the temptation. Which was the thought I was originally trying to work out when I started this thread.