Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon my Darlings. Today’s post is about how we can view Robin Hood as a Green Man figure in his legends! Basically, I am going to go over a bit of how Robin and Maid Marian can be seen as Faery figures in the legends. Without further ado, let’s look at the Faery nature of the Robin Hood legends!
ROBIN’S PUCKISH ENERGY
~Robin’s whole ideal of happily stealing from the rich to give to the poor feels incredibly puckish to me. Now, calling something puckish can be confusing for some people. So, let me explain, I am using the term puckish to refer to Puck from A Midsummer Night’s Dream who is the Hobgoblin who uses his magick and some floral magick to create chaos. To me, this chaotic energy of Puck is very present in how Robin interacts with the Sheriff of Nottingham! This also presents Robin as a sort of Trickster Green Man, hence the title of this post. Robin has the energy of the Green Man because he is ruling over and protecting Sherwood Forest, much as the Green Man is ever present in the Woodlands in general. It is the puckish energy, and willingness to steal and cause chaos that leads to a bit of a trickster vibe. Not to mention, another name for Puck is Robin Goodfellow, and I think that serves to link the two etymologically!
MAID MARIAN AS FAERY MAIDEN
~Maid Marian is more than just Robin’s love interest. She is a true Faery Maiden, helping to test the Merry Men to see if they are worthy to be part of Robin’s troupe. She is also the Faery Maiden whose relationship with Robin proves that he is a true Nobleman and defender of the poor! Marian is truly a very fun character, a woman who could have easily stayed in the comforts of the Court of King John, who instead chose to leave those comforts to live in the forest with the man she loved. She is very much a nurturer and supporter of the Merry Men, and I see her as the unofficial Merry Woman. In many ways, she gives this activist vibe, as does Robin Hood, as they are of Noble stock but choose to fight against the corrupt monarchy to help the peasants! The fact that they have activist energy and live in the Forest also lends to a very Faery vibe about them, in my opinion.
ROBIN AND MARIAN AS FAERY ROYALTY
~Now, I definitely see Robin and Marian as a sort of Faery Royalty ruling over Sherwood Forest as its King and Queen. With the Merry Men as their Knights, they are the true defenders of the Woodland sanctuary and of the poor who are so often forgotten! I think this is why we see Robin Hood and Maid Marian so often depicted on Celtic-based Tarot cards since they have such a powerful energy and an important place in both British folklore and the collective unconscious.
~I hope you have enjoyed this short look at Robin Hood’s Faery energy. What is your favorite aspect of Robin Hood? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Note on Image: The Image at the top of the post is a stunning artwork of Robin and Marian. I found the image on https://albaillustration.tumblr.com/post/76237016972/art-by-elisabeth-alba-robin-hood-and-maid-marian.
LINK TO AVALONIAN ROSE FAERY MYSTERIES PATREON: https://patreon.com/AvalonianRoseFaeryMysteries?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink
Tarot Note: I have a page offering tarot and oracle readings for those interested in these services! I am very happy to be offering these readings to my treasured readers at White Rose of Avalon! Link to page: https://whiteroseofavalon.life/tarot-and-oracle-readings/
Further Reading
- The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle