The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood

Part 3 consists of three adventures that take place over a single day and add three new members to the Merry Men: Arthur a Bland the Tanner, Will Scarlet, and Midge the Miller.

Of the three newcomers, Will Scarlet is the most distinctively drawn character. As Robin watches him walk by, he mocks his daintified manner and wants to pick a fight with him. His attitude is akin to a schoolyard bully. Robin’s comments have an air of ethnic prejudice and reflect the social friction between the Saxons and the Normans, the main groups in England at this time. The Saxons, who had inhabited England since the 6th century, tended to resent the Normans, the raiders from northern France who had invaded England and imposed their rule in 1066. Robin, who sees himself and his companions as stalwart Saxons, implies that Will Scarlet’s prissy manner indicates that he is a Norman “lordling.”

Robin’s companions point out that “yon fellow’s hair is over light for Norman locks” (102) and that he appears strong and muscular; they urge Robin not to fight. But Robin does not heed these warnings. He gets his comeuppance when Will gives him a sound beating. Robin turns out to have been wrong on every count: Not only is Will a Saxon and remarkably strong, but he is Robin’s own nephew, whom Robin has not seen since he was a child. The scene shows, in a humorous way, the absurdity of social prejudice and points up Robin’s foolish and rash qualities.

Quite different is Robin’s assessment of Midge the Miller when he and his companions first see him: “A good honest fellow, and such a one as is a credit to English yeomanrie [sic]” (118). Again, Robin makes a huge misjudgment. When they pretend to rob the Miller, he throws his flour in their faces and gives them a thrashing in one of the most uproarious scenes in the book. In all, Part 3 shows Robin in a more fallible and comic light. We are aware of his prejudices and the foolishness of his hotheaded nature. Even though he had upbraided Little John for his misadventure with the Tanner, Robin himself has two misadventures of his own. At the same time, we are meant to learn from Robin’s foibles and ask ourselves if we might have similar tendencies.

In Chapter 3, after the four companions eat, and before they meet the Miller, they sing songs, a favorite pastime. Will Scarlet and Little John sing songs about spring and love. The song sung by the Tanner is a variation on the story of Beauty and the Beast. It inspires Will Scarlet to draw a moral about confronting adversity.