托尔金为我们勾勒了一个中土世界，在这个世界中有人类、矮人、精灵、巫师等各种物种，充满贪婪与狡诈，却仍有那么一群人为正义和善良而战。

　　Frodo: I can’t do this, Sam.

　　佛罗多：我办不到，山姆。

　　Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights, we shouldn't even be here. But we are.

　　山姆：我知道，这不公平;我们本来就不该来。但是我们来了。

　　Sam: It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was, when so much bad had happened?

　　山姆：这就像我们听过的精彩故事，歌颂伟大的事迹，充满了黑暗和危险。有时候你不想知道结局，因为怎么可能有快乐结局?发生这么多可怕的事，这世界怎么回到从前?

　　解析：How could the world go back to the way it was, when so much bad had happened?后一句为过去完成时，用来指在另一个过去行动之前就已经完成了的事件，表示“过去的过去”，“可怕的事”发生在前，所以世界无法回到从前。

　　Sam: But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now.

　　山姆：但是最后可怕的阴影终究会消失，就连黑暗也会消失，崭新的一天将会来临，太阳也会散发更明亮的光芒。这才是让人永生难忘、意义非凡的成人故事，纵使你太年轻不明白为什么;但是我想我明白了，我现在明白了。

　　解析：1)shine out 本意为“照射出去”，可以延伸为“出色的”: He shines out among the crowd。(他在众人中脱颖而出)

　　2)stay with 和…住在一起：I’m going to stay with my family.

　　坚持做：It’s a difficult book to get into, but stay with it and you’ll enjoy it.

　　留在…的记忆中：His words stayed with her all evening.

　　3)even if , even though

　　两个词组大致意思相同，但强调的侧重有所不同。

　　Even if 一般引导把握不大或假设的事实

　　Even though 一般引导事实

　　Even if he knows it, he’ll not let out the secret. (不确定他是否知道这个秘密)

　　Even though he knows it, he’ll not let out the secret. (他知道这个秘密)

　　Sam: Folk in those stories, had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going,because they were holding on to something.

　　山姆：这些故事里的主角，有很多机会半途而废，但是他们并没有，他们决定勇往直前。因为他们抱着一种信念。

　　解析：1)turn back 往回走：She turned back toward home.

　　(无法)回头，反悔：Once you have made a promise, there is no turning back.

　　2)hold on 等待：Hold on! Let me get my breath back!

　　抓牢：He was struggling to hold on a rock on the face of the cliff.

　　hold on to 保有：This picture is worth holding on to.

　　保持：hold on to one’s lead 保持领先

　　He held on to his belief that… 他坚持认为…

　　Frodo: What are we holding on to, Sam?

　　佛罗多：我们抱着什么信念?

　　Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it's worth fighting for.

　　山姆：这世上一定存在着善良，值得我们奋战到底。

　　Sam: I wonder if we'll ever be put into songs or tales.

　　山姆：我想也许我们会被编成诗歌或故事。

　　Frodo: What?

　　佛罗多：什么?

　　Sam: I wonder if people will ever say, "Let's hear about Frodo and the Ring." And they'll say, "Yes! That's one of my favorite stories. Frodo was really courageous, wasn't he, Dad?" "Yes, my boy. The most famousest of Hobbies. And that's saying a lot."

　　山姆：我想也许以后会有人说：“咱们听听佛罗多和魔戒的故事”。另一个人会说：“是啊，那是我最爱听的故事。佛罗多真的很勇敢，对吧，爸爸?”“是啊，孩子。他是最有名的霍比特人，真了不起。”

　　Frodo: Well, you've left out one of the chief characters: Sam Wise the Brave. "I want to hear more about Sam."

　　佛罗多：你忘了一个重要人物：勇士山姆·怀斯。“我想再听听山姆的故事。”

　　解析：leave out 忽略： The cake will taste awful if you leave the sugar out.

　　Leave it out! 行啦!(=stop doing that!)别逗了!(expressing disbelief)

　　to feel left out 感到受冷落

　　Frodo: "Frodo wouldn't have got far without Sam."

　　佛罗多：“佛罗多没有山姆就走不远。”

　　Sam: No, Mr.Frodo, you shouldn't make fun. I was being serious.

　　山姆：不，佛罗多先生，别开玩笑了，我是认真的。

　　解析：口语“我是认真的”多种表达：

　　- Are you kidding me?

　　- No, I’m serious./ I’m dead serious./ I mean it.

　　Frodo: So was I.

　　佛罗多：我也是。

　　《指环王》中，山姆不是主角，只是一个默默陪伴的朋友，但在诸如精灵王、咕噜等多人未曾抵御住魔戒诱惑时，这一霍比特人却抵制住了这一巨大诱惑。身份、长相等外在条件，并不能决定一个人内心的尊卑。

（编辑：何莹莹）