Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe is set in Medieval England and follows the story of Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe on his quest to assist King Richard reclaim the throne from his brother, Prince John. Written in the early nineteenth century, the book has been scrutinized by many critics as being historically inaccurate and therefore discreditable. A. N. Wilson, who has conducted an in-depth study of Sir Walter Scott's writings, observes, however, that it is a display of the purely fictional character of the novel as well as a nod to the political and social issues that existed during the time that Scott wrote the novel.I think that the combination of the present and past issues in this book is a very novel idea. The whole idea behind the novel was that the stories being told were new. Unlike the plays and epics of the past eras that depicted historical events or wildly tragic and magical stories, the novel was a way to convey a sense of realism while still creating a story that was fresh. In Ivanhoe we see a blend of these two. While the story is completely fictional, it has ties to real places, people, and events like King Richard and the Crusades, but it also portrays classic fictional characters like Robin Hood and his merry men.
Most people have seen the Disney portrayal of Robin Hood, and last year I was able to visit Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, England. While there is no conclusive evidence to prove the existence of Robin Hood, he has been a part of English legend for centuries. Fortunately I was there in time for the Robin Hood Festival. The experience of exploring Sherwood Forest while there were shops and stops at every turn that made me feel like I was in the middle of Medieval life helps me see why Scott would choose this very distant time period to write about. Exploring themes and traditions of the past—especially ones that are widely debated and even speculated about—open the door to understand history itself while at the same time seeing how history has affected the present.
image credit: public domain images via Wikimedia Commons
Ivanhoe reminds me sort of an odd combination of Gawain of the Round Table and Don Quixote, and I'm not exactly sure why. Perhaps it's the combination of commentary and English knights, but I think the comparison is apt. However, I do think that the book can still be criticized for being historically accurate, after all anything can be criticized for essentially any reason, and accuracy is as legitimate a reason as any.
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