Concerning the Gaffer - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Birdland · 05-02-2002, 09:18 PM

I think the Gaffer did really love his son. His attitude towards him is actually a reflection of the English class system that Tolkien grew up with.

"Elves and dragons! Cabbages and taters are more for the likes of us!" (quoting off the top of my head.) The Gaffer, in a way, is protecting his son, by reminding him that, while he may play and work with members of the Hobbit "gentry", he is still of the lower class. The class system in England (and by reflection the Shire) may have seemed to have looser boundries than those of other societies, but there WERE boundries. And people were taught from the time they were young just where the line was drawn, and the consequences for crossing those lines.

The Gaffer was afraid that Bilbo's teachings and tales might lead Sam to believe that he could achieve more and be more than he was. Lead him to "put on airs" and think he was the "same as his Betters." By tearing Sam down as he did, he was reminding him of the realities of life, as he saw it, and trying, in his own way, to spare him from disappointment. He was reminding him of his "place."

After all, Sam may have played with the Tooks and Brandybucks when he was young, but he would never be able to walk up to The Old Took and ask for the hand of his daughter.

Tolkien saw this class system finally break down with the advent of WW I, when the gentry and working class fought together in the trenches, and many men of humble birth proved themselves in battle and rose through the ranks to prominence.

You can see this also happening to Sam, as his role in the War of the Rings earned him the respect of the people of Middle Earth, and more importantly, the Shire, and led to the Gamgees becoming one of the most prominent families in the land.

Though he did not do it for fame or glory, Sam, through his actions, had finally "arrived". [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

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05-02-2002, 09:18 PM	#5
Birdland Ghastly Neekerbreeker Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: the banks of the mighty Scioto Posts: 1,751	I think the Gaffer did really love his son. His attitude towards him is actually a reflection of the English class system that Tolkien grew up with. "Elves and dragons! Cabbages and taters are more for the likes of us!" (quoting off the top of my head.) The Gaffer, in a way, is protecting his son, by reminding him that, while he may play and work with members of the Hobbit "gentry", he is still of the lower class. The class system in England (and by reflection the Shire) may have seemed to have looser boundries than those of other societies, but there WERE boundries. And people were taught from the time they were young just where the line was drawn, and the consequences for crossing those lines. The Gaffer was afraid that Bilbo's teachings and tales might lead Sam to believe that he could achieve more and be more than he was. Lead him to "put on airs" and think he was the "same as his Betters." By tearing Sam down as he did, he was reminding him of the realities of life, as he saw it, and trying, in his own way, to spare him from disappointment. He was reminding him of his "place." After all, Sam may have played with the Tooks and Brandybucks when he was young, but he would never be able to walk up to The Old Took and ask for the hand of his daughter. Tolkien saw this class system finally break down with the advent of WW I, when the gentry and working class fought together in the trenches, and many men of humble birth proved themselves in battle and rose through the ranks to prominence. You can see this also happening to Sam, as his role in the War of the Rings earned him the respect of the people of Middle Earth, and more importantly, the Shire, and led to the Gamgees becoming one of the most prominent families in the land. Though he did not do it for fame or glory, Sam, through his actions, had finally "arrived". [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]