Adele Treskillard's Blog — Bringing Alive Epic Tales Of The Ancient Past™

You’re reading Part 1: King Robin from Manx legend

Just recently, I found a fascinating song from the Isle of Man concerning Robin Hood’s wooing, and reminiscent to the extreme of Robin and Jenny Wren rhymes. This is not the first time I have found survivals of the Robin Hood legend in Manx. Manx is a type of Gaelic which is practically the same as normal Irish and Scotch Gaelic, only unfortunately (Manx, forgive me) misspelled.

The difference between Irish spelling and Manx spelling would be closest to the distinction between

English spelled as I am here spelling it, (with all the accumulated sounds in each word which we have stopped pronouncing, but which used to be pronounced, so that “enough” was originally pronounced “enouc")

and

English spelled phonetically, so “of” would be “uv”

I therefore have been bucked by Manx before. This time, however, I was able to translate it into proper Gaelic and improve the English translation, both of which you may read here:

Fhaigh thu toppeachann deirge
Is riobainnan “green”
Mo Bhetsidh bheag dhilis
Ma bhios thu leam fhein

Robin y righ
Robin y righ
Ridlan, abuth, aban, fal dy ridlan
Robin y righ
Robin y righ

=> Read more!

Read Part 1: King Robin from Manx legend

You are reading Part 2: Cock Robin’s similarity to King Robin

As we remember from my post on Robin Hood’s original audacity, Robin’s first lady, Moggy, betrayed him to his foes and deserted him. After recovering from this, Hood became desperately taken with a girl variously known as Jenny, Janet, Joan or whatever.

You will notice, in all the Cock Robin and Jenny rhymes below, that Robin is more human than bird:

(I have emphasized the parts which correspond best to the Manx above, and also the point in which Cock Robin has a horn)

‘Twas on a merry time,
When Jenny Wren was young,
So neatly as she danced,
And so sweetly as she sung,
Robin Redbreast lost his heart,
He was a gallant bird,
He doffed his cap to Jenny Wren,
Requesting to be heard.


“Oh, dearest Jenny Wren,
If you will but be mine,
You shall feed on cherry pie
And drink new currant wine,
I’ll dress you like a goldfinch
Or any peacock gay,
So if you’ll have me, Jenny, dear,
Let us appoint the day.”

=> Read more!

Read it from the beginning:
Part 1: King Robin from Manx legend
Part 2: Cock Robin’s similarity to King Robin

You’re reading Part 3: Cock Robin’s explicit links to Robin Hood.

Here is, first of all, Cock Robin’s help to an ill Jenny, and then a parallel from two children’s games in which we are blatantly dealing with Robin Hood gone wooing. The wren’s name is Jenny, which is also the name of Robin Hood’s love.

The wren scho lies in care’s bed, (she lies sick)
In care’s bed, in care’s bed
The wren scho lies in care’s bed,,
Wi’ mukle dule and pain, O. (great discomfort)

When in cam’ Robin Redbreist,
Redbreist, Redbreist
When in cam’ Robin Redbreist,
Wi’ sugar-saps and wine, O

“Now, maiden, will ye taste o’ this,
Taste o’ this, taste o’ this
Now, maiden, will ye taste o’ this,
It’s sugar saps and wine, O?

=> Read more!

McCain, if you ever read this, I cried when you lost the election. I did everything I could at the end, and I talked to everyone at our poll from 7:00am to 7:00pm and you were on top in the backwoods of St. Louis where I dwell. Your concession speech absolutely broke my heart. Thanks for your noble example. Thanks, John McCain. You’re a true American. You would’ve led America in good and right. I said you had character. The way you spoke in defeat proved that. And I don’t care what the media says.

Here, Obama, I drink to your health! It is very bitter tasting.

As we have seen my previous post below, Robin Hood’s original audacity was not robbing the rich to give to the poor.

So, we have Obama.

So, we have Obama.

So, we have Obama.

So, we have Obama.

So, we have Obama.

Obama promises us extra money cut from the pockets of the wealthy. ‘From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.’ (Marx) He also promises free rein to our degrading culture of death, doesn’t he? Like same-sex marriage and murder of the unborn?

First of all, Obama does not seem to like free market capitalism.

Obama says:

"[McCain's] philosophy says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down … they call it the ownership society but what it really means is that you’re on your own.”

Give more? Uh-oh, really the idea is “take less". Are we so alone in the capitalistic system that we must surrender our persons and rights to the government?

Here’s more of what he says:

"And we know the results. You feel it in your own lives. Jobs that disappear, people's life savings have been put at risk, millions of families face forclosure and millions more have seen their home values plummet. The cost of everything, from gas, to groceries, to healthcare has gone up, while the dream of a college education for our kids and a secure and dignified retirement for our seniors feels like it's slowly slipping away. These are the struggles that Americans are facing. This is the pain that has now trickled down."

“So let’s be clear. What we’ve seen in the last few days in nothing less than the final verdict on an economic philosophy that has completely failed.”

“It is time to put an end to the broken system in Washington.”

And he plays off our fears, blaming the economic difficulty on capitalistic policies. The problem instead springs from liberal ideals of everyone with a home, so everyone gets a loan, so a lot of people can’t pay it, so the banks go under. These “economic policies” began under Clinton.

So what is Obama’s new philosophy?