Big Sam Character Analysis in Gone with the Wind

Big Sam is one of Tara’s enslaved field hands. During the war, Scarlett sees him in Atlanta on a crew of enslaved men digging trenches in case the war makes its way to Atlanta. After the war, Big Sam goes north with a colonel who pays him to be his personal servant. When Big Sam later returns to Atlanta, he claims that he didn’t like the North where everyone treated him like an equal and asked him questions about the cruelty of Southern enslavers. Scarlett runs into him again in Atlanta when he’s hiding after killing a white man for insulting him. Later that day, Big Sam saves Scarlett from the two men who attack her on the road. Frank Kennedy then helps Big Sam flee to Tara.

Big Sam Character Timeline in Gone with the Wind

The timeline below shows where the character Big Sam appears in Gone with the Wind. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...them. Rhett stops the carriage and Scarlett looks curiously at the group. She recognizes Big Sam, the foreman at Tara. Recognizing her as well, Big Sam smiles and greets her. The... (full context)

...a tree. Scarlett grabs the pistol, but the frightened man calls out that he’s Big Sam. He comes out from behind the tree, leaps forward, and shakes her hand. She asks... (full context)

Sam says he’d tried out freedom. The Yankee colonel took him North and paid him good... (full context)

Scarlett asks Sam if he’ll be her driver. Sam agrees that it isn’t safe these days but declines... (full context)

Then Big Sam charges the Black man, shouting for Scarlett to run. She whips the horse, and the... (full context)

...to a meeting with Ashley. Scarlett is angry and hurt that Frank is leaving her. Sam told Frank the men hadn’t done more than rip her bodice, and Frank had listened... (full context)