“Robin Hood - Legend or fiction?”
методическая разработка по английскому языку (8 класс) на тему

Municipal Autonomous Educational Institution

Secondary Comprehensive School №17 with advanced studying

of Several Subjects Schelkovo Municipal District Moscow Region

Schelkovo

 “Robin Hood -  

Legend or fiction?”

Students:

Knish Anastasia

Dmitrieva Polina

Ivantsova Ekaterina

                                      Teacher:                                                                Avtandilian  

Amaliya  Mihailovna

2015-2016

Introduction

The name of Robin Hood already in the Middle Ages became nominal. But disputes on the original identity of Robin don't cease still. Whether collective is the image which really existed on a historical scene or is the hero created by a national muse? Where and in what period he lived? Whether he fought for justice or was the most ordinary robber?

Purpose

To find out whether Robin Hood was a realistic person.

Tasks

1. To look up information about Robin Hood in fiction, movies, animated films, etc.

2. To study the existing legends about Robin Hood.

3. To compare and generalize the found facts.

4. To present the results at scientific and practical conference.

Hypothesis

For hundreds of years of menestrelas sang of the legendary robber from Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire possessing almost supernatural ability to shoot a bow. A set of serious research works tend to prove that Robin Hood really existed and was a historical person, but it doesn't have convincing proofs. But nevertheless is he a real or fictional character?

Who was Robin Hood?

We tried to find out the truth. In the 11th century the "forest laws" forbidding on pain of the death penalty to ordinary people of England have been issued to hunt in the woods as all the wild fowl living there belonged to the king or feudal lords.

In consciousness of the people still storing memory of former freedom, such life was represented by a celebration of the forces of evil over humanity and justice. And priests and monks repeated that the world is arranged perfectly, according to will of god, and the simple person should reconcile to the fate.

Courts, policemen, soldiers, prisons and gallows forced peasants to hide the anger and offenses. But it is impossible to put all people behind bars or to throw under the executioner's axe. They lived in hope for the best times, for protection of a kind and noble person, invincible in fight against the evil. So the legend of Robin Hood — the defender of the oppressed was born.

The origin of the name “Robin Hood”

The simplest and obvious explanation is "Good" - from English "good" - «хороший». According to another version Robin Hood - English Robin Hood – Робин Капюшон.

Prototypes

Version  one:

He was Willan of the count Warren. The illegitimate son of a certain knight, the possessor of the village of Loksli, given on education to the miller's family.

Version two:

A certain Robert Goud or  Goode or Hod, who was born about 1290. He rised in revolt against the king, but the revolt was suppressed, and its participants were outlawed. And Robin found a shelter in  Sherwood Forest.

Version three:

There is a judicial document which says that a certain Robin Goud ran away from justice of the king. But afterwards  he was caught  and hung up.

Version four:

Robin Hood lived at the time of Richard 1, Ionn 1 and Heinrich 3. He was lawless for a long time and became famous so that his name became nominal and was used in relation to other famous robbers whose acts then were summarized.

Robin Hood is one of the few, along with king Arthur, legendary heroes of the English ballads who have become important cultural reality. Literary works are written about him, plays are staged, numerous movies, cartoons etc. are shot.

Robin Hood in literature.

Robin Hood's image meets in literature, songs, ballads, movies, animated films.

• Alexandre Dumas, "Robin Hood. King of robbers".

• Alexandre Dumas, "Robin Hood in exile".

• Donald Engus, "Robin Hood. Robber".

• Stephen Lokhoud, "Robin Hood. King of Ravens".

• Diana King, "Robin Hood"

• Ascot Lin, "Robin Hood and his cheerful friends"

• Mikhail Gerzhenson, "Robin Hood".

• Leonid Filatov, "Big love Robin of Goode".

• Walter Scott, "Ivanhoe".                                

Films

• The Adventures of Robin Hood
• The Bandit of Sherwood Forest
• Rogues of Sherwood Forest.
• The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men.
• Sword of Sherwood Forest
• Ivanhoe (USA, 1982) with David Rob starring.
• Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (USA, 1991) with Kevin Costner starring.
• Robin Hood: Men in Tights (France, USU, 1993) with Cary Elwes starring.
• Beyond Sherwood Forest (Канада, 2009).
• Robin Hood: Ghosts of Sherwood.

Songs

•Robin Hood and the Tanner, Sherwood group, 2010

• Group Karmen "Robin Hood"

• The song "Robin Hood" German power-metal group Edguy.

• Group - Marco Polo, an album - Alexandria (2015) - Robin Hood

• V. Vysotsky, "Ballad about free shooters"

Similar persons and characters

"Robin Hood" became nominal in relation to people who plundered (robbed) the rich and distributed money to the poor, and in this regard enjoyed wide popularity with the people. In the history there are persons who have received similar glory during their lifetime:

Hon Gildon is the illegitimate son of the Korean yanban who at the end of the 16-17th century went to the wood with a gang of fugitives and fighted for the rights of poor people. "The legend on Hon Gildona" became the character of the classic medieval Korean tale of Huo Gyong.

Isikava Goemon is the Japanese robber of an era Adzuti-Momoyama (1568-1603) who allegedly plundered(robbed) Samurais and distributed money to peasants. After an unsuccessful attempt of attacking the governor (sikken) Toyotomi Hideyosi, he was cooked alive on August 10, 1594. Though no reliable historical data about his life have remained, he became the hero of national legends.

Salvatore Giuliano (Gilyan) is the Sicilian bandit and the separatist of the middle of the 20th century, the legendary fighter for independence of Sicily of Italy. He  has gained huge popularity in Sicily for distribution of the stolen food and money to the population. Salvatore Giuliano is one of the main characters of the book Mario Puzo "Sicilian".

Michael Kolchaas (Michel Kolchause) is the German burgher (the dealer of  horses) who was fighting against violence and requisitions of knights in vicinities of Dresden, and, like the famous Englishman, also disappearing in the wood in the middle of the 16th century.

Kotovskiy Grigory Ivanovich, the hero of Civil war in Russia, has gained popularity due to the fact that at the beginning of the 20th century he burned down landowners’ manors in Bessarabia and enjoyed the support of peasants. In the song of the group “Forbidden Drummers “ Kotovskiy  is compared to Robin Hood.

Vasily Fyodorov, or Manchaara (06.1805 — 8.11.1870) is  the Yakut national hero who  opposed the oppression of local feudal lords. He was a widely famous storyteller and leader, master of improvisation. Manchaara's image is met in the Russian, Yakut and Soviet literature.

Mysterious Robin Hood 702 is the professional player from Las Vegas for large sums. He uses his talent for game to help the needing families to get out of debts. He called the website Robinhood702.com since he takes money from  rich casinos and gives to people in need, and 702 because it is the code of Las Vegas. The anonymous benefactor helps families which can't get out of debts. 

Robin Hood Nowadays

Investigating the history of this robber it is almost impossible to separate the real facts from fictional ones. So, we suppose that Robin Hood is only a collective character who has all qualities so necessary for the noble protector of the poor of that time. But Robin Hood still lives in the hearts of people. Now in the County of Nottinghamshire, in Sherwood Forest, there is Robin Hood's museum. Also in Nottingham the monument to Robin Hood is put. Annually there takes place the festival in memory of Robin Hood - Robin Hood Festival. The Nottingham castle changes to a medieval village where everyone can return to the past see historical performances and, of course, test his good luck in archery.

Conclusion

Finishing our work we have understood that it doesn’t matter at all if Robin Hood was a real character or a fictional one. The name "Robin Hood" has become nominal for people. This image is out of time and nationality.  And it seems to us that there is Robin Hood's particle in each of us.

Question 1.   Who was Robin Hood?

• a person who took away money from the rich and gave it to the poor - 60%
• a person shooting a bow, and dressed in green clothes - 40%

Question 2.  Where did you learn about him?

• from books and movies - 60%
• from English lessons - 40%

Question 3.  Do you consider him as a positive or negative character?

• positive - 99%
• negative - 1%

Question 4.   Was he a realistic or imaginary character?        

• really existed - 76%
• imaginary - 24%

Sources

• www.altritter.ru/articles/istorija/134.html
• https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Робин_Гуд
• www.uhlib.ru/yezoterika/tainy_drevnih_civilizacii/p7.php
• slovo.ws/geroi/576.htm
• mycelebrities.ru/.../robin_gud/115-1-0-785
• www.pravda.ru/science/mysterious/past/21-09-2012/1126629-robin...
• Вальтер Скотт, «Айвенго».
• Александр Дюма, «Робин Гуд — король разбойников»