Marriage!

[Encaitare]

Indeed it is, and I wonder if Sam ever regretted his choice to leave the Shire. Although he was doubtless very happy in the Undying Lands, he left so much behind. I wonder if he ever missed it.

[Azaelia of Willowbottom]

Wow, I'd never though of Sam in quite that light before! Thanks for providing something new to bend my head around!

I like to live in my own happy little world where Sam and Rosie are a very happy couple. I think that Sam would have made a wonderful father and husband... I saw his devotion to Frodo as an indication of his behavior towards anyone or anything that he loved... He was very devoted to saving the Shire, generous with his gift from Galadriel in order to make the Shire a better place and help to bring back some of what was lost in the time under Saruman. I like to think that he would have given Rosie the same love and devotion he gave to everything else he cared about... And Rosie had 13 children with him. I can't imagine her having so many children if she didn't love him back, or felt slighted in any way. I think that if she had felt that she took second priority to Frodo, she would have stopped saying "yes" or suggesting to have more herself. I truly can't see Sam as anything but a devoted, loving, caring husband. He's such a sweet, kindhearted guy.

In the book "Sauron Defeated", part of the History of Lord of the Rings, there is a very nice epilogue that never went into the book (but I like the book just fine the way it is!) that shows Sam with his children recieveing a letter from Aragorn... it's been a while since I read it, but I never saw anything indicating that he gave less love to his children than they deserved, at least that I can remember.

..."Well, I'm back"... What that is to me is an indication that Sam has really come home to stay. An acceptance of the fact that Frodo was gone, and that he would have to be "one and whole" in his life with Rosie...and a willingness to do so, a peace and happiness in his family (Rosie had set Elanor in his lap just before he said that). He didn't say, "Well, I'm back" at any point while Frodo was still around...and it was only after he left that Sam really came home to his family...and they had many happy years together. I think that maybe "Well, I've come back" as mentioned earlier by Mithalwen would have better conveyed that, but "well, I'm back" has a nice ring to it... and for me that sentiment, the feeling behind that of really coming home as he had perhaps not done in the years Frodo was still with him, remains.

[Encaitare]

You provide a great comment as well... it makes me think that "Well, I'm back" is more than it sounds. Seems that it means he's fully back and ready to devote his full attention and love to his family... although he eventually leaves them, it does not mean that he loves them any less.

Originally Posted by Encaitare

Indeed it is, and I wonder if Sam ever regretted his choice to leave the Shire. Although he was doubtless very happy in the Undying Lands, he left so much behind. I wonder if he ever missed it.

One thing that does not seem to have been mentioned is that Sam was a ringbearer, if only for a short time. He probably felt some form of loss when the Ring was destroyed, and for his part he was due some reward in the undying lands when the thing that bound him to middle earth most (Rosie) passed away.

Sam was given the opportunity to sail with Legolas and Gimli (I believe it was with them), Rosie was dead, his children were grown up, he was an old Hobbit, nearing the end of his life, had suffered for his part in the fate of middle earth. I don't see any real betrayal or love of Frodo superior to his love to Rosie in Sam's actions.

I am not a scholar of World War I, but from the few books I have read and plays seen, the common theme of love / respect / friendship / duty between an Officer and his men, following him to certain doom blah blah blah fits the Frodo Sam story of the Lord of the Rings, and the final part must be either the death of the both, or reuniting.

I have jsut had an odd thought, prompted by the above; we know that the hobbits and Gimli are mortal, and thier mortality continues even in the Undying lands, and that Frodo was in serious pain when he left Middle Earth, it is possible that Frodo had passed through his dream of music and his life had passed when Sam arrived. Does not really fit with the conceit of the relationship between them, but is still a possibility.

[Encaitare]

One thing that does not seem to have been mentioned is that Sam was a ringbearer, if only for a short time. He probably felt some form of loss when the Ring was destroyed, and for his part he was due some reward in the undying lands when the thing that bound him to middle earth most (Rosie) passed away.

Well said, shia'tan! He probably did feel a small loss, since the thought of taking the Ring for his own and using it to become powerful (albeit with good intentions) did cross his mind.

it is possible that Frodo had passed through his dream of music and his life had passed when Sam arrived. Does not really fit with the conceit of the relationship between them, but is still a possibility.

Aw, but that's so sad! Well, I looked up the dates and did the math, and determined that Frodo would have been 114 by the time Sam joined him. Since hobbits can live to be well over 100, and living in the Undying Lands would probably bring longer life even to mortals, I think it's safe to say that Frodo was still alive, although very old.