Robin Hood: Chivalry Or Outlaws?

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The legend of Robin Hood is without a doubt one of the most talked about legends to this day. Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men were, contrary to popular belief, actually a group of outlaws. They were outlaws because even though they were attempting to help the poor, they were in fact constantly breaking the laws of the land. However, despite being outlaws Robin Hood and his men frequently displayed the characteristics of chivalry. This is shown in The Adventures of Robin Hood(1938). One could even argue that Robin Hood and the Merry Men were more like knights than outlaws through their protection of women and children, their choice of granting mercy to enemies in battle, and with how they were always honorable to opponents in battle. One part of the code of chivalry that Robin Hood and his men frequently displayed was their will to protect/be courteous to women and children. An example of this is when one of Prince John’s men grabs the server girl and Robin shoots him to protect the girl. This is showing that Robin simply will not stand for the mistreatment of women. Another example of this is with how Robin treats Lady Marian throughout the movie. He is consistently warming and kind to her with an example of this being how he …show more content…

For example, Robin Hood does not injure or maim Friar Tuck after he disarms him during their fight in the river, and in fact ends up recruiting Friar Tuck to his band. This shows that Robin Hood is gracious and kind. Another example of Robin Hood displaying honor to opponents in battle is giving Sir Guy his sword back after he loses it, instead of just killing him while he was unarmed. This shows that Robin Hood is willing to fight honorably in battle. Robin Hood and his men always showed honor to opponents in battle and that is one of the reasons why they are closer to being knights than to