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The Green Man of Knowledge is the titular villain of the Scottish folk tale "The Green Man of Knowledge". Like many folk-tales there are many variants of the story told since antiquity but one of the more popular versions was collected in 1954 (though not published until 1958), in the academic journal Scottish Studies.
The Green Man of Knowledge is himself based on even older mythology, such as the Green Man (a type of nature spirit found in many world folklore) and the fairies (who traditionally wore the color green in Celtic mythology).
Biography[]
The Green Man of Knowledge is a mysterious figure from a magical land known as the Land of Enchantment and is known as a cunning figure by its residents. The 21-year-old hero of the story (who was described as a fool seeking his fortune for the first time) stumbles across the Green Man when he is at a village inn and plays a game of cards with him, winning and thus is invited by the old man to visit him in a place "east o' the moon and west o' the stars".
The hero decides to do just this, despite a warning from the inn-owner that the Green Man will try to lead him to his death.
Upon arrival at the Green Man's castle the hero manages to win the heart of the Green Man's youngest daughter, who is also a talented shape-shifter. She thus helps the hero to survive via transforming into various items and animals in order for him to win a number of exceptionally dangerous tasks set by the Green Man (seemingly for his own amusement).
Eventually the Green Man grows tired of the hero constantly outwitting him and opts to kill him off regardless. The youngest daughter once again comes to her lovers' aid in disguise, this time as a magical mule, who the hero rides (despite it also being lame). Via magic the hero produces a number of fantastical items by which to slow down the pursuing Green Man, forming a lake, then mountains and finally a fire by which to ultimately burn the villain and end his reign of terror.
While the hero would then go on to forget about the daughter who saved his life, years later they would be reunited and with his memories restored he would wed her (while her murderous father had long since ceased to be).
Trivia[]
- The Green Man of Knowledge, like many fairy tale creatures, has differing forms depending on the region it is told; in many he is a magician or fairy folk but in a few he is narrowed down to a bodach, a type of bogeyman.
- The "Green Man" is a world-wide folklore figure found in many cultures and believed to symbolize rebirth and nature. Despite sharing a name, the pair have little in common as the Green Man of Knowledge is quite malevolent while the "Green Man" spirit is usually seen as a benevolent force.
- The story is classified under international Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index as (folk) tale type ATU 313, "Girl Helps the Hero Flee" or "The Magic Flight".
