Gay subtext?

[onewhitetree]

The line that always sticks out to me regarding Sam and Frodo is when they are in Shelob's lair, after Frodo has been bitten and Sam goes to attack Shelob, "No onslaught more fierce was ever seen in the savage world of beasts, where some desperate small creature armed with little teeth alone, will spring upon tower of horn and hide that stands above it's fallen mate".

In the Americanized version of the word “mate,” yes, it does have sexual or romantic inclinations. However, look in most dictionaries and you will find that the British use of the word is more synonymous with “friend,” “comrade,” and the like. In other words, not much sexual innuendo. Tolkien, having spent most of his time in England, undoubtedly was familiar with that particular colloquialism.

Frodo and Sam did indeed love each other, very much. Theirs is a most beautiful relationship. However, the fact that they were so dear to each other does not imply that they had any sexual or romantic tendencies. They loved one another; they were not in love with one another.