Table of Contents

1. "Many Men Speak of Robin Hood": Versions of the Hero. 2. "Robin Hood in Barnsdale Stood": Images of an Outlaw. 3. "Chief Governour Under the Greenwood Tree": Robin Hood in the Ballads. 4. "A Brighter Gleam of True Nobility": Robin Hood in Performance. 5. "Undying Pastoral Liberty": the 19th and Early 20th Century from Greenwood to Heritage. 6. "We Saxons Just Aren't Going to Put Up With These Oppressions Much Longer": Robin Hood in the Modern World. Appendix: References to Robin Hood before 1600.

About the Author

Stephen Knight is Professor and Head of the Department of English, Media and Cultural Studies at De Montfort University. His previous books include Geoffrey Chaucer (Blackwell Rereading Literature series, 1987), and Arthurian Literature and Society (MacMillan/St. Martins, 1983).

Reviews

"By no means indifferent to the romantic lure of the myth of the outlaw, Stephen Knight here provides an analysis of Robin Hood that is at once sympathetic and critical, warmly humane and politically astute - and remarkably thorough. This excellent book will fascinate and instruct all who have responded to the enduring fantasy of noble lawlessness." Professor Douglas Gray, University of Oxford .
"What emerges very clearly is the extraordinary power and diversity of the material. Again and again the reader is encouraged to look at well-known works in a fresh and invigorating way or to explore unknown but fascinating areas. Knight is open-minded and generous. I find it all very persuasive." Professor Lee Patterson, Yale University. "Knight, s survey of the Robin Hood tradition (from brief 13th-century allusions to recent films featuring Kevin Costner and Mel Brooks) is meticulously thorough, and his attention to secondary sources is judicious." Publishers Weekly .
"Professor Knight's generous-spirited and stimulating book deserves to reach an audience well beyond the universities." Times Literary Supplement .
"Knight's study, which is supported by a useful time line, an extensive bibliography, and a thorough index, makes it a valuable addition to both graduate and undergraduate libraries."Choice.
"Professor Knight's generous spirited and stimulating book deserves to reach an audience well beyond the universities... At the same time, it leaves scholars with much to reflect on."Andrew Wawn, TLS "A superb work on the subject... Stephen Knight's Robin Hodd is truly complete' and must be the last word on a folk hero who represents even today, our very best qualities - love and honour and fairness.." Harry Sayen, The Times.

"By no means indifferent to the romantic lure of the myth of the outlaw, Stephen Knight here provides an analysis of Robin Hood that is at once sympathetic and critical, warmly humane and politically astute - and remarkably thorough. This excellent book will fascinate and instruct all who have responded to the enduring fantasy of noble lawlessness." Professor Douglas Gray, University of Oxford .
"What emerges very clearly is the extraordinary power and diversity of the material. Again and again the reader is encouraged to look at well-known works in a fresh and invigorating way or to explore unknown but fascinating areas. Knight is open-minded and generous. I find it all very persuasive." Professor Lee Patterson, Yale University. "Knight, s survey of the Robin Hood tradition (from brief 13th-century allusions to recent films featuring Kevin Costner and Mel Brooks) is meticulously thorough, and his attention to secondary sources is judicious." Publishers Weekly .
"Professor Knight's generous-spirited and stimulating book deserves to reach an audience well beyond the universities." Times Literary Supplement .
"Knight's study, which is supported by a useful time line, an extensive bibliography, and a thorough index, makes it a valuable addition to both graduate and undergraduate libraries."Choice.
"Professor Knight's generous spirited and stimulating book deserves to reach an audience well beyond the universities... At the same time, it leaves scholars with much to reflect on."Andrew Wawn, TLS "A superb work on the subject... Stephen Knight's Robin Hodd is truly complete' and must be the last word on a folk hero who represents even today, our very best qualities - love and honour and fairness.." Harry Sayen, The Times.