the Erl-King

The Erl-King

How does Carter use symbols in this narrative?

Carter uses symbols in her short story to convey her opinions without having to state precise meanings. she uses the birds as women and preluding their eventual reformation they are objects the man collects and presents as prizes. They are reified into less than human and moulded into exactly what the Erl-King wants as their own identity is stripped away as they are reduced to birds who simply sing to entertain men. A feminist critic would look at how this process follows the one that has been executed for hundreds of years, where by a woman's sense of self ownership and own character is stripped away by her husband-or any other man who has power and control over her life. The symbol of cages is a metaphor for the restraint and confinement of women as they are trapped and excluded from main stream society where the men rule the patriarchy and women are expected remain caged and never question their restrictions.

How does the Erl-king connect to other "The Bloody Chamber" narratives?

In broad terms the theme continues with women being empowered by her loss of innocence and gaining of knowledge usually through the loss of virginity. The pointed teeth the Erl-king has prelude to the vampire stories still to come in Carters series, and the werewolf beastly tales that have already been told. As with the title story the male lead in the story is not what he first seemed, also like with The Bloody Chamber women are saved by other women rather than men as many stories usually go. Keeping with this idea the gender binarys are being broken down more and more drastically with the male in this story being the one who lives privately cooking and taking care of the home, whereas the woman is active eventually killing the man in an ultimate act of heroism. The idea of a man being something more than human is a theme also explored in The Tigers Bride and The Courtship Of Mr Lyon.

How is the narrator presented?

The narrative voice of the story interchanges between first, second and third person narrative. But for the majority of the story it is told from the perspective of a female protagonist who is seen initially as a young and innocent seeming girl as most of the girls in Carters stories are first presented. The unnamed narrator at multiple places in the story questions the validity and purity of the Erl-Kings love for her "do me grievous harm" however the girl was still not knowledgeable enough to see through any facade the Erl-king could have been presenting. As with many young and impressionable girls their willingness to trust people based solely on the fact they are told they should eventually comes back to hurt them. The narrators perceptiveness in noticing the birds and who they truly are shows her inquisitive nature and how not being so trusting actually managed to save her life. Her activness at the end of the story when she kills the Erl-king with his own hair displays her breaking down gender binarys in instead taking charge of herself and protecting other women in the process. She is one of the strongest women in Carters short stories as she not only had the ability to save herself but also freed others.

How does Carter use allusion to tell the story?

The Erl-king draws from many influences the main one being many European tales and ballads. The character is always an antagonist one who historically captured and killed young children in the forests he haunts. Carters exchange from small children to girls still keeps the story close enough alike while also possible being perceives as a commentary by Carter on how many women are treated as children due to their trusting natures, inexperience and naivety. Christina Rossettis Goblin Market was another influence where two sisters fight and defeat goblins with their sisterly love a story where girls mange to defeat antagonists by themselves would here been an alluring feminist factor for Carter and an influence on the end of the story where the female protagonist saves the other trapped girls. The Little Red Riding Hood was a clear influence for setting and the initial introduced to the story. The Green Man was an character that appears to have been used as a motif throughout the story and although heis often associated with kindness and his unity with nature being a symbol of peace it still works as a recurring theme to act as a juxtaposition with who this character really is. The story even seems to draw from some of Shakespeares work in particular Othello and the "green eyed monster" and the greenness not of not only of the Erl-Kings eyes but also the surroundings that seem to envelope her being a symbol of deep envy.

 How is the Erl-King presented? (Analyse the quotations on the worksheet to answer this question)

The Erl-King is presented initially as a green man at one with nature making his seem soft and gentle, but when his teeth are revealed to be 'pointed' it creates an image of vampirism gothic tales that speak of vampires often end with the corruption or death of women by stronger supernatural men the story alluding to him being like a vampire also makes them seem even further apart with his power and her innocence. the description of him being 'an excellent housewife' breaks away from binary gender roles where the woman is usually the private one found in the kitchen, and the man out in public earning. when the female narrator and the Erl-King first engage sexually she says 'his touch both consoles and devastates me.' showing that although she finds herself having and a trust and lust for the Erl-King she still addresses the fear most women feel preluding sex.