Hero

In the era of the Tolkien revival - he during‑and‑after‑the‑movies period - it became a familiar apple of discord among fans: Who was the real hero? Frodo, the Ring‑bearer? Or Sam, who carried him to Mount Doom and saved him from Shelob?

Many fans insisted that Sam was the only true hero, often overlooking Frodo’s immense burden and the Ring’s corrosive influence on him.

I would put that argument to rest: both played indispensable roles in the destruction of the cursed jewel, and neither could have succeeded without the other. They were bound not only as friends but as Ring‑bearers. Both fought the Ring - and both prevailed.

Frodo bore the Ring the longest, and it carved a wound into his spirit that never fully healed. Yet he carried it without complaint, even as it weakened his mind and body. He continued forward when he could have turned back, relying on Sam, yes - but it was Frodo who shouldered the greatest burden. The Ring blinded him to Gollum’s treachery and nearly killed him, yet after Sam rescued him from the orcs, Frodo once again took up the One Ring and carried it until he could walk no farther. If that is not heroism, I do not know what is.

But Sam - Sam was a different kind of hero, and his bravery deserves to be seen in full.

Sam was the active hero, the one who fought not only the dangers around them but the Ring’s influence itself. His courage was alive, visible, and relentless. He stood between Frodo and Gollum’s malice long before anyone else sensed the danger. He faced Shelob - a monstrous terror of the ancient world - with nothing but a sword, a phial of light, and the sheer force of his love for Frodo. He charged into her lair alone, believing Frodo dead, and still fought on.

He infiltrated the orc tower of Cirith Ungol by himself, a single hobbit against an entire garrison, driven by nothing but loyalty. He carried Frodo up the slopes of Orodruin when Frodo’s strength finally failed. And when Frodo claimed the Ring for himself, Sam did not turn away in anger or despair - he stayed, steady as ever, ready to protect him even then.

Sam’s bravery was both physical and moral. He resisted the Ring when it tempted him. He kept hope alive when all light seemed gone. He never abandoned Frodo, not even when the world around them collapsed into ash and fire.

Perhaps Sam is often seen as the only hero because his heroism is easier to witness - especially in the films. Frodo’s courage lived deep within him, quieter but no less real. But Sam’s bravery blazed like a torch in the darkness.

Both were essential. Both were brave. And only through their combined effort - their working as one - was the Ring destroyed. They were both heroes of the Third Age, and both deserve to be remembered as such.