Posted: July 23, 2000 at 23:54:32: by David Freitag
I always figured that the conversation presented in chapter 2 was a condensation of several that Gandalf had with Frodo: he was delivering a very serious message, quite out of Frodo's ordinary experience. His first reaction would be shock and it might take several repititions for the true weight of Gandalf's news to sink in. Sam heard and reported on one (or a couple of) the early conversations, perhaps not with every detail, certainly without the news that Frodo would be leaving the Shire, since it is that decision that leads Sam to gasp or something, which Gandalf hears.
Condensation of this sort is a common literary ploy.
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