Reading Notes: Robin Hood, Part B
For this week's reading, I chose the stories of Robin Hood, as seen in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads by Francis James Child (1882-1898). Of these stories, my favorite was The Bishop of Hereford as I love a story where a hypocrite gets their due.
The Bishop of Hereford:
In this tale, Robin Hood notices that the Bishop of Hereford is traveling his way, so he decides to play a trick on the greedy, immoral man. Robin and his men make it so that the bishop and his entourage must pass by them, at which point the bishop notices that Robin has killed a fat deer. The bishop accosts Robin and his men for killing one of the king's deer, especially when there are so few of them to eat it. He declares that he will take Robin before the king for punishment. Robin asks for mercy, to which the bishop replies that he will not grant Robin or his men any mercy, that they must go before the king for punishment for poaching a deer. Robin then summons the rest of his men so that the bishop and his men are outnumbered, at which point the bishop then begs Robin for mercy. Robin replies that he will not grant the bishop any mercy, though he does not allow Little John to decapitate the man. Instead, Robin takes the bishop to a nearby town, Barnsdale, and drinks and eats with him while Little John steals money out of the bishop's portmanteau. The bishop is simply glad that he did not lose his head.
I really like the stories with the bishop as Robin Hood cannot stand him due to his hypocrisy. The bishop shows no mercy and is a greedy, perverted man despite his position as a religious authority and spiritual leader. Robin makes easy work of him and ends up the winner, which I found satisfying, even though I am not a huge fan of Robin Hood, either. If I retell this story, I would have the bishop recounting his woes to the king, complaining about Robin Hood and his thievery, to which the king merely laughs and points out the hypocrisy of the bishop, much to the bishop's embarrassment. I think this could be a funny exchange, with the bishop trying to look like the innocent victim while unwittingly showing his hypocrisy and greed (I am assuming that the bishop would have expected some kind of reward from the king for turning in a poacher, but I could be wrong about that). The bishop is a particularly interesting character--he is always portrayed as living in the lap of luxury, as being immoral, greedy, and perverted despite being a man of God.
The Bishop of Hereford:
In this tale, Robin Hood notices that the Bishop of Hereford is traveling his way, so he decides to play a trick on the greedy, immoral man. Robin and his men make it so that the bishop and his entourage must pass by them, at which point the bishop notices that Robin has killed a fat deer. The bishop accosts Robin and his men for killing one of the king's deer, especially when there are so few of them to eat it. He declares that he will take Robin before the king for punishment. Robin asks for mercy, to which the bishop replies that he will not grant Robin or his men any mercy, that they must go before the king for punishment for poaching a deer. Robin then summons the rest of his men so that the bishop and his men are outnumbered, at which point the bishop then begs Robin for mercy. Robin replies that he will not grant the bishop any mercy, though he does not allow Little John to decapitate the man. Instead, Robin takes the bishop to a nearby town, Barnsdale, and drinks and eats with him while Little John steals money out of the bishop's portmanteau. The bishop is simply glad that he did not lose his head.
I really like the stories with the bishop as Robin Hood cannot stand him due to his hypocrisy. The bishop shows no mercy and is a greedy, perverted man despite his position as a religious authority and spiritual leader. Robin makes easy work of him and ends up the winner, which I found satisfying, even though I am not a huge fan of Robin Hood, either. If I retell this story, I would have the bishop recounting his woes to the king, complaining about Robin Hood and his thievery, to which the king merely laughs and points out the hypocrisy of the bishop, much to the bishop's embarrassment. I think this could be a funny exchange, with the bishop trying to look like the innocent victim while unwittingly showing his hypocrisy and greed (I am assuming that the bishop would have expected some kind of reward from the king for turning in a poacher, but I could be wrong about that). The bishop is a particularly interesting character--he is always portrayed as living in the lap of luxury, as being immoral, greedy, and perverted despite being a man of God.
Photo of a statue of Robin Hood, taken by Phil Catterall. Source: Wiki Commons
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