When Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott was first published (1819) it was very popularly received. It’s popularity was sustained, influenced both UK and American literature and is still held in high regard. This book has made the top 100 inspiring novels from the BBC in 20191 , used to be required reading in the USA23 and inspired the character Robin Hood and his tropes4.
That’s all well and good but when I read it, I didn’t get the same feeling at all! Am I missing something? Come on, let’s go through the good, the bad and the ugly of Ivanhoe.
“Our fathers would not know THY ways
and THOU has left them to their own”
- Rebecca of York, Ivanhoe Ch 39
The Good
The influence of this book cannot be denied. The tropes of the good ol’ Merry England with horrible King John. You’re reading the source of the Robin Hood figure and the horrible King John where it started and where it was popularized. Ivanhoe, is also a love story. It takes a bit to get going but when it does, reading about the love triangle form with Ivanhoe, Rowena and Rebecca was delicious. And the influence on language reflecting the class system in that time eg: Cow and beef5.
And that’s it, which leads us onto the next section.
The Bad
It’s a hard read. The language is from almost 200 years ago by a historian and novelist; so what did I expect? In addition to that, the story dragged with it’s language, slow pace and repetition. For example, in Chapter 28, the author explains the awesomeness of Rebecca’s ability to nurse and heal people. Then the very next paragraph, the character Isaac repeats, out loud, what was stated before.
The mix of old english, needless repetition and slow pace makes this book a challenge to read.
The Ugly
Ivanhoe has been referenced as the book that highlights and explains the Anglo-Saxon and Norman class separation through linguistics67. Why do we have a different name for the animal and the meat? Why the etymology is explained in Ivanhoe. The animal name was used by the peasant Anglo-Saxons, while the prepared meat was served to the Norman aristocracy using French. But this was all not entirely true!
I found out that the reasoning presented in the book is a lie! I saw a video from LetThemTalkTV saying that it was incorrect89! This book published in the 1800’s from a historian has overshadowed the real etymology of the distinction of animal and the meat that we eat. And this rule only applies to some meat, not all10. Like cow and beef, pig and pork and deer and venison. Other meats where this doesn’t happen, where there is no distinction between the animal and meat are: chicken, salmon and duck.
Admittedly I was excited to read Ivanhoe to ingest this evidence direct from the source. But, with this realization, my eyes have been marred and now I have to deal with the cold reality. What an ugly thing to realize but, now I know.
Yet it would be enquiring too curiously to ask, whether the recollection of Rebecca’s’ beauty and magnanimity did not recur to his (Ivanhoe) mind more frequently than the fair descendant of Alfred(Rowena) might altogether have approved. - Sir Walter Scott Ch 44
Fin
If is not some required reading or for an assignment, you do not need to read Ivanhoe. It’s a classic piece of literature yes, but, in the time between it’s publication to now, we have other stories inspired by Ivanhoe, expanded on it and have done better. The linguistic significance of the book is being dispelled to reflect the evolution of language better.
I think dear reader that, like myself, you’ll get much more pleasure and entertainment from watching, rather than reading Ivanhoe. Next month I will be looking at the best film adaptations of Ivanhoe.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/494P41NCbVYHlY319VwGbxp/discover-100-amazing-novels-with-brand-new-bbc-sounds-podcast
https://www.drmetablog.com/2006/12/what_we_read_in.html
https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Ivanhoe/things-you-didnt-know/
https://reynolds-news.com/2016/02/27/walter-scotts-ivanhoe-1819/
https://medium.com/adams-notebook/walter-scott-ivanhoe-1819-59bb2086c77e
https://www.britannica.com/video/look-words-some-language-English-Norman-Conquest/-206809
https://medium.com/beyond-reason-fellowship/why-beef-is-not-a-cow-fec9cf61c999
Enjoyed that!