Gollum as Guide
Gollum ate nothing, but he accepted
water gladly.
`Soon get more now,' he said, licking his lips. `Good water
runs down in streams to the Great River, nice water in the lands we are going
to. Sméagol will get food there too, perhaps. He's very hungry, yes, gollum!'
He set his two large flat hands on his shrunken belly, and a pale green light
came into his eyes.
A. What does that pale green light signify? It shows up so often! (And in
real life, eyes don’t give off light—what effect is Tolkien describing?)
They were not going quick enough
for Gollum. By his reckoning it was nearly thirty leagues from the Morannon to
the cross-roads above Osgiliath, and he hoped to cover that distance in four
journeys.
B. When Gollum was interviewing with Tolkien for the job of antihero and
chief ghoul, wasn’t he told there was to be “no math”?
Sam found it difficult to do more
than doze, even when Gollum was plainly fast asleep, whiffling and twitching in
his secret dreams.
C. Is this the only mention of Gollum dreaming? What does “whiffling and
twitching” imply? How do Gollum’s dreams here relate to Frodo’s dreams?
In Ithilien.
the fragrance of the air grew as
they went forward; and from the blowing and muttering of Gollum it seemed that
he noticed it too, and did not relish it.
…sweet odours rose about them. Gollum coughed and retched;
After reading up on the plants involved (full discussion on them tomorrow), I’m
convinced that walking the glades of Ithilien was like being in a Sephora
showroom that’s been hit by a truck.
D. Is Sam’s laugh, or Gollum’s retch, the more realistic reaction? Realism
aside, what is it about the scents that repel Gollum?
Frodo, Sam e Gollum in Viaggio per Mordor, by Andrea
Rivola
A domestic drama of Gollum and Sam.
This time try to re-read the same scenes, from Gollum’s point of view.
Act I
`Hi! Gollum! ' said Sam. `Where are
you going? Hunting? Well see here, old noser, you don't like our food, and I'd
not be sorry for a change myself. Your new motto's always ready to help.
Could you find anything fit for a hungry hobbit? '
`Yes, perhaps, yes,' said Gollum. `Sméagol always helps, if
they asks - if they asks nicely.'
`Right!' said Sam `I does ask. And if that isn't nice
enough, I begs.'
Gollum disappeared. He was away some time,
Frodo's face was peaceful, the marks of fear and care had left it; but it
looked old, old and beautiful… Gollum returned quietly and peered over Sam's
shoulder. Looking at Frodo, he shut his eyes and crawled away without a sound.
Sam came to him a moment later and found him chewing something and muttering to
himself. On the ground beside him lay two small rabbits, which he was beginning
to eye greedily.
'Sméagol always helps,' he said. `He has brought rabbits,
nice rabbits. But master has gone to sleep, and perhaps Sam wants to sleep.
Doesn't want rabbits now? Sméagol tries to help, but he can't catch things all
in a minute.'
Sam, however, had no objection to rabbit at all, and said
so.
Act II
'Now, Gollum,'
he said, 'I've another job for you. Go and fill these pans with water, and
bring 'em back! '
'Sméagol will fetch water, yes,' said Gollum. 'But what
does the hobbit want all that water for? He has drunk, he has washed.'
'Never you mind,' said Sam. `If you can't guess, you'll
soon find out. And the sooner you fetch the water, the sooner you'll learn.
Don't you damage one of my pans, or I'll carve you into mincemeat.'
Gollum returned, carrying the pans carefully and grumbling to himself.
He set the pans down, and then suddenly saw what Sam was
doing. He gave a thin hissing shriek, and seemed to be both frightened and
angry. `Ach! Sss - no!' he cried. `No! Silly hobbits, foolish, yes foolish!
They mustn't do it!'
`Mustn't do what?' asked Sam in surprise.
`Not make the nassty red tongues,' hissed Gollum. `Fire,
fire! It's dangerous, yes it is. It burns, it kills. And it will bring enemies,
yes it will.'
'I don't think so,' said Sam. `…. I'm going to risk it,
anyhow. I'm going to stew these coneys.'
'Stew the rabbits!' squealed Gollum in dismay. `Spoil
beautiful meat Sméagol saved for you, poor hungry Sméagol! What for? What for,
silly hobbit? They are young, they are tender, they are nice. Eat them, eat
them!' He clawed at the nearest rabbit, already skinned and lying by the
fire.
`Now, now! ' said Sam. `Each to his own fashion. Our bread
chokes you, and raw coney chokes me. If you give me a coney, the coney's mine,
see, to cook, if I have a mind. And I have. You needn't watch me. Go and catch
another and eat it as you fancy - somewhere private and out o' my sight. Then
you won't see the fire, and I shan't see you, and we'll both be the happier.
I'll see the fire don't smoke, if that's any comfort to you.'
Act III
Gollum withdrew grumbling, and
crawled into the fern. Sam busied himself with his pans.
`Gollum!' he called softly. `Third time pays for all. I
want some herbs.' Gollum's head peeped out of the fern, but his looks were
neither helpful nor friendly. `A few bay-leaves, some thyme and sage, will do -
before the water boils,' said Sam.
`No!' said Gollum. ` Sméagol is not pleased. And Sméagol
doesn't like smelly leaves. He doesn't eat grasses or roots, no precious, not
till he's starving or very sick, poor Sméagol. '
`Sméagol'll get into real true hot water, when this water
boils, if he don't do as he's asked,' growled Sam. `Sam'll put his head in it,
yes precious. And I'd make him look for turnips and carrots, and taters too, if
it was the time o' the year. I'll bet there's all sorts of good things running
wild in this country. I'd give a lot for half a dozen taters.'
`Sméagol won't go, O no precious, not this time,' hissed
Gollum. `He's frightened, and he's very tired, and this hobbit's not nice, not
nice at all. Sméagol won't grub for roots and carrotses and - taters. What's
taters, precious, eh, what's taters?
`Po-ta-toes,' said Sam. 'The Gaffer's delight, and rare
good ballast for an empty belly. But you won't find any, so you needn't look.
But be good Sméagol and fetch me the herbs, and I'll think better of you.
What's more, if you turn over a new leaf, and keep it turned, I'll cook you
some taters one of these days. I will: fried fish and chips served by S.
Gamgee. You couldn't say no to that.'
`Yes, yes we could. Spoiling nice fish, scorching it. Give
me fish now, and keep nassty chips! '
`Oh you're hopeless,' said Sam. 'Go to sleep!'
This is trickier, because the scenes are written from Sam’s perspective. Still,
try to think like Gollum for a bit.
E. Why is Gollum so helpful at first?
F. Does Gollum really expect the hobbits to eat raw rabbit?
G. Why is Gollum already grumbling when he returns with the water, before he
sees the fire?
H. Is Gollum reacting to the fire because of the pain that fire causes, or the
risk of drawing attention? Why does he hate fire so?
I. Why does Gollum show an interest in what ‘taters’ are, in the middle of
refusing to look for them? What does Gollum think of “roots”?
J. Was there any chance here that he and Sam might have come to a better
relationship, judging from Act I? Who is more at fault for the debacle of Act
II? Why does the reconciliation of Act III fail?
Gollum as prey.
‘Twill be nigh at hand. In the
fern, no doubt. We shall have it like a coney in a trap. Then we shall learn
what kind of thing it is.’
…
‘Where is the third of your company?’
‘The third?’
‘Yes, the skulking fellow that we saw with his nose in the
pool down yonder. He had an ill-favoured look. Some spying breed of Orc, I
guess, or a creature of theirs. But he gave us the slip by some fox-trick.’
J. What does Gollum look like, that these Men seem in some doubt if he is
human?
K. Summary: Instead of focusing on ‘good and evil’, use this chapter’s
extensive passages to discuss Gollum in terms of emotion and intellect, or
childishness and maturity. How smart is he? How good are his people skills?
What part of Gollum is ‘normal’?
Text of this
chapter
Everyone is laughing for heart's ease, now that they're in Ithilien! Join me in the Reading Room this week for a squireific topic-oriented discussion of Chapter 4, Book IV of The Two Towers: "Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit".
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