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Robin Hood: Outlaw or Greenwood Myth
First mentioned by William Langland in the late fourteenth century, Robin Hood comes down to us through ballads and folksongs, old chronicles and plays, medieval allusions, folklore and place-names. Today Robin Hood folksongs are found in the USA as well as in England and Scotland, and place-names and traditions are widely located in England.
The earliest stories are centred on Barnsdale in Yorkshire, but later the emphasis shifts to Nottingham and Sherwood Forest. Originally a yeoman, Robin was upgraded to aristocrat in the sixteenth century, but he remains essentially a champion of the poor and oppressed and social nonconformer.
How far Robin hood was based on a historical character and how far he is an archetypal outlaw or a Greenwood myth (who must withdraw from society and commune with nature) is the subject of the Doel's wide-ranging study. The book is complete with a Gazetteer of Robin Hood sites, an annotated Filmography and almost 50 illustrations (including performances by present-day mummers).
Fran Doel and Geoff Doel are part-time Lecturers in the Faculty of Humanities, University of Kent and at Birkbeck College.
The earliest stories are centred on Barnsdale in Yorkshire, but later the emphasis shifts to Nottingham and Sherwood Forest. Originally a yeoman, Robin was upgraded to aristocrat in the sixteenth century, but he remains essentially a champion of the poor and oppressed and social nonconformer.
How far Robin hood was based on a historical character and how far he is an archetypal outlaw or a Greenwood myth (who must withdraw from society and commune with nature) is the subject of the Doel's wide-ranging study. The book is complete with a Gazetteer of Robin Hood sites, an annotated Filmography and almost 50 illustrations (including performances by present-day mummers).
Fran Doel and Geoff Doel are part-time Lecturers in the Faculty of Humanities, University of Kent and at Birkbeck College.
- GenresHistory
128 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 29, 2021
A good, short overview of the origins and development of the Robin Hood legends. Easy and pleasant to read despite the dry, scholarly style. However, it does end rather abruptly which means it feels incomplete.
August 1, 2019
A discussion on the facts and fiction of a famous 'outlaw'.
I found this book incredibly dry / dense.
Overall rating 2.5.
Reading time around ninety minutes.
I found this book incredibly dry / dense.
Overall rating 2.5.
Reading time around ninety minutes.
at-library-paper
January 28, 2013Very scholarly and a little dry.
I only made it through a couple dozen pages before putting it aside in favor of something else. It's theoretically interesting, but I really feel like I need a better grounding in the original Robin Hood tales before attempting to read this again. As it stands, I have only seen a few movie adaptations and read a few book versions of the story, so I was a bit lost.
I only made it through a couple dozen pages before putting it aside in favor of something else. It's theoretically interesting, but I really feel like I need a better grounding in the original Robin Hood tales before attempting to read this again. As it stands, I have only seen a few movie adaptations and read a few book versions of the story, so I was a bit lost.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews