Brush Up on Your Lord of the Rings Lore With These 16 Interesting Facts About Frodo and Sam

• 01
  
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  Bilbo adopted Frodo after Frodo's parents died in a boating accident. Frodo was quite fluent in Elvish and knew a lot about the outside world. He was observed on several occasions meeting with Elves and even with Dwarves in the woods. All of this caused other Hobbits to think of him as odd. 

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• 02
  
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  On Bilbo's 111th birthday, and Frodo's 33rd Birthday (they share the same birthday, being September 22), Bilbo left the Shire, leaving Bag End and the Ring to Frodo. It wasn't until years later that he learned from Gandalf all about the ring. He was 50 years old when he left the Shire with the intention of carrying the Ring to Rivendell.

• 03
  
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  Once in Rivendell, he was glad to be rid of the Ring, but was more than happy to get it out of the Shire. His courage was simple. His overall desire was to save the Shire. This was the main reason why he was so resistant from the Ring's power. He had no desire for the Ring, it could give him nothing that he didn't already have.

• 04
  
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  I personally believe that they cast Frodo too young in the Lord of the Rings movies. He was much older than Sam, who was also older than Merry and Pippin. To make him so young took away some of the almost paternal relationship he had with Sam. Which in my opinion weakened the portrayal of Frodo's character. 

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• 05
  
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  Most of Frodo's heroism was portrayed through his simple courage. You have to think about the fact that Frodo was surrounded by leaders and great heroes during the Council of Elrond, all arguing about what should be done with the ring. Very few besides Elrond and Gandalf wanted to destroy it, but once that was decided as the only option, no one wanted to be bothered. But here was Frodo, who in his mind had saved the Shire, he had done more than his part, but no one else was stepping forward.

• 06
  
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  Finally, in the chapter of The Council of Elrond it says, "A great dread fell on him, as if he was awaiting the pronouncement of some doom that he had long foreseen and vainly hoped might after all never be spoken. An overwhelming longing to rest and remain at peace by Bilbo's side in Rivendell filled all his heart. At last with an effort he spoke, and wondered to hear his own words, as if some other will was using his small voice. "I will take the Ring," he said, "though I do not know the way."

• 07
  
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  Too many people give Frodo crap, because he comes across as whiny in the movies. He was not this way in the books at all. He bore the ring with great courage, he never complained. He took pity on Gollum, which proved fateful, as the ring would never have been destroyed without him. He also resisted Sauron's direct force of will on multiple occasions, something even Gandalf and Aragorn struggled with when faced with the same power.

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• 08
  
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  One of my favorite quotes from Elrond, aptly describes Frodo's courage, "The road must be trod, but it will be very hard. And neither strength nor wisdom will carry us far upon it. This quest may be attempted by the weak with as much hope as the strong. Yet such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere."

• 09
  
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  Frodo set out to save the Shire. Taking the burden of the ring when the eyes of the great refused. Some of his last words to Sam before leaving Middle-Earth were, "I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."

• 10
  
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  Don't discount Frodo as the hero of the story. Not that I don't love Sam, I identify with him more as a character than I do with Frodo, and I'm not saying it's wrong to prefer Sam above Frodo. We all know that Sam was a great hero, and Frodo would not have been able to succeed without him. But Frodo sacrificed everything he loved, so that others could live in peace. Which, for me personally, makes him the true hero of the books. So let's not forget him.

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• 11
  
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  When Frodo is poisoned by Shelob and Sam thinks that he is dead, Sam takes the ring in the hope of finishing the quest, and in so doing, several things occurred. When one holds the ring, it makes them feel more powerful, but it also diminishes courage for the pure in heart.

• 12
  
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  We know Sam was extremely courageous (and dammit he was pure in heart), so when the Orcs came and found Frodo's body, and Sam overheard them saying that Frodo was in fact alive, Tolkien said that if Sam hadn't been carrying the ring, he likely would have rushed the orcs and tried to protect Frodo, getting killed in the process.

• 13
  
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  The ring would have been found, and the quest would have failed. But instead he hid in the shadows, followed them to Cirith Ungol and rescued Frodo. This marks only the second instance of someone willingly giving up the ring (the other instance being Bilbo).

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• 14
  
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  The vision of power the ring used to tempt Sam was of him turning Middle-Earth (including Mordor), into a giant garden. It was only the love of his master, and the resilient nature of Hobbits against magic that helped him to resist the power.

• 15
  
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  After returning to the Shire, Sam and his wife Rosie had 13 kids together. Some of their names include Elanor, Daisy, Primrose, and of course Frodo (Sam being a gardener named his daughters after flowers that he saw in his journeys). 

• 16
  
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  Sam was the mayor of the Shire for 6 terms, but after the death of Rosie, he gave the Red Book of Westmarch to his children, and then sailed to Valinor, fulfilling the fate that all the ring-bearers would eventually leave Middle-Earth. And I don't know about you guys, but the thought of Sam sailing away from Middle-Earth alone after the death of his wife is the most heart-breaking thing I've ever heard.

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