Sam Black Crow Character Analysis in American Gods

A half-Native American young woman who hitchhikes across the Midwest and meets Shadow during one of his drives away from Whiskey Jack’s house to Cairo. Sam later encounters Shadow in Lakeside while visiting her half-sister, Marguerite, and supports Shadow when his past as a convict is exposed. Sam does not believe in any official pantheon or specific gods, but she does revere the place of belief in human minds and sees the divinity in American life. Her statement of belief is seemingly closest to Gaiman’s own beliefs. She encompasses Buffalo Man’s advice to “believe everything,” and is incredibly tolerant of other people and their beliefs though she has no sympathy for the New Gods and current popular American culture. Sam is also portrayed as either lesbian or bisexual, with a girlfriend named Natalie, increasing her status as someone who embraces diversity and the changing face of America.

Sam Black Crow Quotes in American Gods

The American Gods quotes below are all either spoken by Sam Black Crow or refer to Sam Black Crow. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Mythology, Belief, and Community Theme Icon

"Okay. As soon as they say Odin's name, the reed transforms into a spear and stabs the guy in the side, the calf intestines become a thick rope, the branch becomes a bough of a tree, and the tree pulls up, and the ground drops away, and the king is left hanging there to die with a wound in his side and his face going black. End of story. White people have some fucked-up gods, Mister Shadow."

Related Characters: Sam Black Crow (speaker), Mr. Wednesday (Odin), Shadow Moon (Baldur)

Page Number and Citation: 152

Explanation and Analysis:

While Shadow is driving down to Cairo, Illinois, he picks up Sam Black Crow, a half-Cherokee woman who hitchhikes around the Midwest while attending school at UW Madison. Sam tells her favorite story from her class on Comparative Religions, describing how a ritual sacrifice dedicated to Odin—which was meant to be merely symbolic—became real as soon as the necessary motions were made and Odin’s name was spoken. This foreshadows the symbolic gestures that become important later in the novel, as when Mr. World wants to dedicate a battle to Odin by throwing a stick that will transform into a spear Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaq

"I can believe things that are true and I can believe things that aren't true and I can believe things where nobody knows if they're true or not. I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and Marilyn Monroe… I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone's ass…”
…
"Would you believe that all the gods that people have ever imagined are still with us today?"
" …maybe."
“And that there are new gods out there, gods of computers and telephones and whatever, and that they all seem to think there isn't room for them both in the world. And that some kind of war is kind of likely.”

Related Characters: Sam Black Crow (speaker), Shadow Moon (Baldur) (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 348

Explanation and Analysis:

When Sam encounters Shadow in Lakeside, she demands to know the truth about who he is, assuring Shadow that she can believe all kinds of crazy things so that he will tell her his strange tale of gods in America. Sam’s two-page long monologue (excerpted above) lists all kinds of things that she believes in, both serious and irreverent. She lumps together Santa Claus and Marilyn Monroe, exemplifying Gaiman’s argument that Americans find new celebrities and culture heroes to be just as sacred as the old myths and legends. Sam also shows the updated perception of these old tales by Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi s

Sam Black Crow Character Timeline in American Gods

The timeline below shows where the character Sam Black Crow appears in American Gods. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Plurality and the Power of the Individual in America Theme Icon

...window, asking if he is all right. Shadow gets out of the car and meets Sam, who clarifies that she is a girl Sam, not a boy Sam. Sam says she’s... (full context)

The Sacredness of American Land Theme Icon

Sam asks Shadow why he went to prison. Shadow explains that he hurt some people badly,... (full context)

As they eat, Sam asks Shadow what he does. Shadow tells Sam that he is going to Cairo to... (full context)

Shadow and Sam finish eating and pay. While walking out to the car, Shadow asks Sam if she’s... (full context)

Life, Death, Desire, and Sacrifice Theme Icon

Sam begins to tell her favorite story about gods: a Viking king who decides to sacrifice... (full context)

Shadow stops in El Paso and makes sure that Sam gets safely into her aunt’s house before driving away. Shadow keeps driving, until at 11... (full context)

A man in a suit named Mr. Town knocks on Sam Black Crow’s door. When Sam answers, Mr. Town asks if Sam knows anything about the... (full context)

Marguerite calls her sister, Sam, telling her about her new next door neighbor who does coin tricks and the strange... (full context)

...son Leon is watching “The Wizard of Oz” when Shadow comes in. A minute later, Sam comes in with some groceries. With Marguerite busy putting the groceries away, Shadow asks Sam... (full context)

At dinner, Marguerite and Sam explain that they are half-sisters, with their Cherokee father in common. Sam asks Shadow to... (full context)

On the way to the bar, Sam asks Shadow to explain his alternate identity, and she tells him that a Mr. Town... (full context)

...figure this all out, obviously reluctant to distrust Shadow after months of being his friend. Sam steps up and insults Audrey, then kisses Shadow in a display of support, rather than... (full context)

...Hinzelmann controls who comes into and out of Lakeside, angrily asking Hinzelmann if he brought Sam Black Crow and Audrey Burton here on purpose so that Wednesday would be forced out.... (full context)

After sending Chad to see Marguerite, Shadow drives south to Madison, Wisconsin. Meanwhile, Samantha Black Crow closes up the coffee shop she works at, putting away the leftover pastries... (full context)

...reported strange dreams lately. As the two of them walk out of the coffee shop, Sam admits that she sometimes has odd dreams of people falling from the sky, a woman... (full context)

Shadow parks near the Madison capital building and calls information to find out where Sam will be. He finds the coffee shop where Sam works and waits for her, but... (full context)

Sam Black Crow Character Analysis

Sam Black Crow Quotes in American Gods

Chapter 7 Quotes

Chapter 13 Quotes

Sam Black Crow Character Timeline in American Gods