A Study on the Continuing Presence of Robin Hood in Western Society

Abstract

This paper examines the unshaken popularity of the medieval myth of Robin Hood. It argues that the continuing usage of the myth is based upon the tale’s traditional popular narrative structure, and its ability to adapt to contemporary social demands. Using the theories of Claude Lévi-Strauss and Graham Seal, the study substantiates this claim in two ways. Firstly, it constructs a narrative framework for Robin Hood, and applies the structure to two adaptations: Pierce Egan’s Robin Hood and Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood. In this way, the study establishes that within the Robin Hood tradition, there is a principle narrative. Secondly, it argues that within Robin Hood’s adaptations, contemporary social and political affairs are addressed. Therefore, narrative regularities and irregularities found in the selected adaptations are put into perspective with their social and political context. The results of these analyses outline the myth’s composition of a traditional narrative framework that allows a contemporary representation of social rebellion. In its conclusions, the thesis motivates that the popularity of Robin Hood can therefore be explained through the convergence of the myth’s accessible structure, and the ongoing presence of social conflict in society.