[JenB]

No, but they're still pretty close. Hmmm, Smeagol's a sneak, a murderer, and a thief, and Gollum is totally corrupted. I think it's a difference of degree.

[Overtaxed]

But Smeagol has some guilt and knows it's wrong to break a promise. He might have reformed if that "nasty, rude, cruel" hobbit Sam hadn't called him a "sneak."