Robin Hood

[dumbledore11214]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/robinhood/

So I started watching BBC series and after first three episodes I am loving it so far.

I wonder though, Robin Hood in all its reincarnations had always been one of my favorite stories, but recently I read that this story is very anticapitalistic and I wonder how you guys feel about Robin Hood in general.

I mean

Comments

[ms_arithmancer]

I'm not familiar with the BBC version, but other versions (the film with Errol Flynn, the one with Costner, and the Mel Brooks one) all have him being of noble birth, just the "wrong kind" (i. e. Saxon, not Norman). Though...as a historical fact, John may well have been the first King of England who spoke English, I seem to recall from my reading...

I like the Robin Hood story. Romance, adventure, villains...what's not to like? I disagree it is "anti-capitalist", since it is set in a feudal, pre-industrial society. And the stealing bit is always framed in terms of justice, anyway. The taxes on the poor being too high, because John is so greedy, yadda yadda. If anything, I'd say it seems pro-ideals of the American Revolution rather than anticapitalist. ("No Taxation without Representation", lol).

[dumbledore11214]

Hee, I agree with you about how the morales of the story is framed and what it looks like to me anyways, justice, etc. But here is the interesting thing. As I mentioned, I certainly familiar with the versions of the story where Robin Hood is a noble, but my first knowledge of Robin Hood comes from the book of I guess retold english legends or something like that. The book was in russian and hee, Robin Hood was not a noble, but just as poor as the men he was in charge of.

See, now I strongly suspect that the story was Sovietized to put it mildly by erasing the fact that Robin Hood was noble too. Because you see, nobles cannot be seriously concerned about wellfare of their charges, really. They are ALL bad, you know? LOLOL, it seems to be another accident of too free translation with ideological purpose in mind.

Alla

[horridporrid]

See, now I strongly suspect that the story was Sovietized to put it mildly by erasing the fact that Robin Hood was noble too.

Hee! So in my checking of wikipedia (I seriously love that site) I skimmed through the Robin Hood page, and apparently he originally started out as a commoner. I don't doubt the USSR would grab hold of the legend with both hands to better support their own philosophy. But I think in this case, there was a grain of truth (well, accuracy to the story -- I don't think Robin Hood himself is based on a real person) there as well.

[dumbledore11214]

Oh of course, it is not like every bit of foreign legend was sovietized either, but I did notice several incidents of erm... very free translation of some of my beloved childhood pieces, so I was ready and willing to accept this one. It is good to know that it is how legend started. Thanks dear!

[horridporrid]

IIRC, Robin Hood was born as a "replacement king" myth, rather than an "anti-capitalist" one. (As ms_arithmancer points out, Robin Hood was actually a noble doing what nobles were supposed to do: look after the lower classes). Especially as, in the story, King John is a usurper

[seductivedark]

Richard spent about six months of his entire reign in England. The rest of the time he spent on crusades to the Holy Land. IMO, as an absentee king, he could be forgiven the excesses of government as happened in the Robin Hood stories, the excesses being handed on a platter to the people who actually ran and oversaw the country. I'm not sure if the people of the times stood behind their bravely crusading king - most people bought the idea that the Holy Land needed to be "saved" from the "infidels" - or if they wished he'd sent Little Bro off in his stead.

[seductivedark]

*gah* Ought to add that Richard should still have shared in any discontent with his representatives, but Truman hadn't yet said "The buck stops here."

[dumbledore11214]

Interesting, I did not know that Richard spent THAT little in England. And I agree that as absentee king he can be forgiven the excesses of his government, I think Horridporid questions whether the fact that he IS an absentee king could be forgiven, or did I misread her?

[seductivedark]

I think the Robin Hood story could be framed as anti-capitalistic. I don't think it originally was. As ms_arithmancer said, capitalism as we know it is a fairly new concept and the ideals of the American Revolution hold up well against Robin's stealing - he took the money back from people who took the money wrongly in the first place. It was never a redistribution of wealth, no "from each according to his abilities to each according to his need." The money Robin reclaimed was stolen via marginally legal, but not moral, means and he was only giving it back to its rightful owners.