This is the breakthrough Robin Hood fans have been missing. Controversial for questioning standard historical practice, but enticing for shedding new light on a most cherished medieval hero.
Historians tend to point out that there is no historical evidence for the existence of Robin Hood, but there is an incredible amount of folkloric evidence for his existence that has gone overlooked.
Folklorist Michael Reuel delves into the legend in order to assess how much we can learn by studying folklore, without applying the rigid terms of ‘historical’ proof. In the process he discovers that, although folklore does have obvious limitations in terms of what it can prove, the sheer amount of source material on Robin Hood is nevertheless sufficient enough to conclude that the famous outlaw and his Merry Men did in fact exist.
If you are interested to understand how Reuel has been able to arrive at this conclusion, then his research is chronicled here in the ground-breaking ‘Robin Hood Existed’; a study that promises to open a new window upon the story of Robin Hood and the life of thirteenth to fourteenth-century England.
As well as shedding new light upon the story of everyone’s favorite outlaw, Reuel provides a compelling exploration of the nature of storytelling, defining some of the key differences between how truth and myth manifest in the human psyche, and highlighting many factors that lead to certain peoples and stories becoming overlooked or dismissed by historians.
Historians tend to point out that there is no historical evidence for the existence of Robin Hood, but there is an incredible amount of folkloric evidence for his existence that has gone overlooked.
Folklorist Michael Reuel delves into the legend in order to assess how much we can learn by studying folklore, without applying the rigid terms of ‘historical’ proof. In the process he discovers that, although folklore does have obvious limitations in terms of what it can prove, the sheer amount of source material on Robin Hood is nevertheless sufficient enough to conclude that the famous outlaw and his Merry Men did in fact exist.
If you are interested to understand how Reuel has been able to arrive at this conclusion, then his research is chronicled here in the ground-breaking ‘Robin Hood Existed’; a study that promises to open a new window upon the story of Robin Hood and the life of thirteenth to fourteenth-century England.
As well as shedding new light upon the story of everyone’s favorite outlaw, Reuel provides a compelling exploration of the nature of storytelling, defining some of the key differences between how truth and myth manifest in the human psyche, and highlighting many factors that lead to certain peoples and stories becoming overlooked or dismissed by historians.
