I’ve always been a reader. When I was young, I would sit and listen to teachers read, and it was my favourite part of the day. There was one book in particular that I remember vividly and whenever the teacher brought it out, I would sit, cross-legged and wait patiently for her to begin with those words I knew and loved so well. It began in a dark, dark wood, leading the reader to a dark house, a dark room, a dark cupboard, and finally, that dark box that had us all holding our breaths to find out what could be hidden inside. But it all began with those dark, dark woods, and to my young self, nothing was more fascinating than those looming trees and the secrets they held in their dark, dark shadows.
For as long as stories have been told the forests have played an important role in the telling. A place of foreboding, of warning and consequence… of fear. But they’ve also been a guardian and protector, a place of solace for the hero or a place that would lead them to their doom. An entity all its own with the power to aid the characters on their journey or to throw danger upon their path. And are they not sometimes both? Throughout literature we have seen this time and time again. Why is it that we are so drawn to the forest? What is it about this setting that creates such an enchanting atmosphere for its reader?
To me, the forest has never just been a setting in a story. It becomes a character all its own. No matter the trees that inhabit these dense woodlands, or which corner of the world they hail from, we feel something come over us at the mere mention of them. We feel the calm take over as our protagonist’s feet, cushioned by fallen pine needles, enter the quiet of the forest. We catch the scent of freshly fallen rain on dry soil, the sound of the natural world that is mostly hidden by the dense foliage, and stare in wonder and awe at the life that creates, mends, communicates, and departs in a way that is so similar and yet so foreign to our own. Suddenly, we find that we are no longer reading, we are there, embracing the solitude we so often crave. We are there, walking the dark, dark path, and awaiting, expecting, our own great adventure and wanting to become one with this enchanted place.
Writers have found in these woods an endless source of inspiration. Just as the reader is willing to become lost amidst the pages of a book, so too is the writer captivated and able to draw inspiration from the world around them. From stories of long ago, of trees that encompass nine worlds, trees that move and roam freely, that conceal and protect, that lead you astray, your path suddenly disappearing before you, into the very heart of danger. With each writer comes a new telling of the story, and it is their stories, their inspirations and imaginations, their creations of worlds new and old that should be explored. Because these stories are trying to tell us something within the telling. These trees, so ancient and wise, have their own tales to tell. They guard a secret, and it is one that I believe we will never fully understand or discover.
‘Inevitably they find their way into the forest. It is there that they lose and find themselves. It is there that they gain a sense of what is to be done. The forest is always large, immense, great and mysterious. No one ever gains power over the forest, but the forest possess the power to change lives and alter destinies.’
When we think of a fairytale, the first thing that may come to mind is the enchanted forest. It’s hard not to when we grew up with tales like Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel. The setting for these tales has always been significant, so significant that it has the power to control the narrative. It is a place where the characters are potentially in great danger; a wild and uncivilised place where you can encounter fearsome beasts dressed as a beloved grandmother who might eat you up whole. A place of violent and strange folk that lure children to their sugar-filled deaths. It is a place that operates by its own set of rules where the path is cloaked in shadows and has the power to disappear altogether, leaving the protagonist lost, alone, and abandoned in an unfamiliar world.
Yet, even though there are many tales where the forest can be cold, sinister, and unyielding, there are just as many that reflect it as a place of peace and refuge. Where the great oaks offer shelter to those of pure heart and protection against evil forces. Snow White, who escapes the confines of her jealous stepmother, finds solace in the woods when she happens upon the seven dwarfs, even though the hunter believed the forest would do his work for him.
One thing we know for sure is that while some are able to wander into the unknown and find a home, family, and new beginnings, others are not so fortunate and may never leave the canopy of the forest alive. This is the power of fairytales. This is the power of the enchanted forest. A place that teaches us to tread lightly, to heed its warnings and above all, to learn from the mistakes of those who never left.
‘In Sherwood, the trees are our shelter, and the animals are our companions. We are all children of the forest.’
— The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood.
Robin Hood, the legendary outlaw of England, first appeared in English Folklore during the 13th and 14th centuries. He is the heroic rebel who lived in disguise to steal from the rich and give to the poor, a renowned figure who detested the tyranny of authority, those who unjustly enforced it and those who were corrupted by its greed and power. He saw a system that was unequal and sought to remedy it by giving his life to a cause. One that, along with his brotherhood of other societal outcasts, would take from those who would turn their backs on those most in need.
Sherwood Forest, one of the oldest forests in English Folklore, is steeped in legend. It is a sanctuary where Robin and his Merry Men could escape the corruption of the outside world and live in relative peace and safety. The forest offers Robin and his band of outlaws protection from those who sought to harm them. And they knew the forest well, knew each and every corner and made it a home. A place of shelter that was alive with music, song, and friendship. The men, clad in their Lincoln green, represented unity among one another and unity with the forest itself, giving them the ability to blend in with their environment. It has become a symbol of strength and endurance and, above all, the very concept of freedom: a freedom so often sought and yearned for but unattainable in the structured societies they opposed.
‘In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself within a dark wood where the straight way was lost. Ah, how hard a thing it is to tell what a wild, and rough, and stubborn wood this was, which in my thought renews the fear!’
― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
In Dante’s The Divine Comedy, we find ourselves once more amidst the haunting setting of a dark wood, the ‘selva oscura’, where Dante embarks on his journey. A journey through the afterlife where he finds himself utterly and terrifyingly lost.
This epic poem spans over 14,000 lines, using the dark wood not only as a physical setting, but as a profound metaphor for a man – and by extension, all humanity – who find they have lost their way in life with the right path nowhere to be seen.
In the poem, the woods are dense and shrouded in darkness, a place of danger and uncertainty where Dante feels overwhelmed and unable to find his way out. The dark woods symbolise the human condition of being ensnared by worldly temptations and the consequences of sinful behaviour. Dante encounters various inhabitants of the woods, threatening creatures, such as a leopard, a lion, and a she-wolf, which allegorically represent different types of sins and vices that hinder his spiritual progress and attempt to push him further away from redemption and back into the dark uncertainty of the forest.
‘Straight through the forest is your way now. Don’t stray off the track! —if you do, it is a thousand to one you will never find it again and never get out of Mirkwood; and then I don’t suppose I, or any one else, will ever see you again.’
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit
I am endlessly captivated by the treasure that is Middle Earth. In fact, our first issue is set to contain quite a few Tolkien references, including an incredible essay by Claudia Riiff Finseth. But how could we possibly explore Enchanted Forests in Literature without delving a little into Tolkien’s forests?
In Tolkien’s tales of Middle Earth, we see the ‘forests’ yet again transcend their role as mere settings and emerge as an ancient, mythical realm, one that inspires a sense of mystery and wonder that leaves us in complete awe. But just as with most fairytales, the presence of a terrible danger that awaits all those who dare to enter is also lurking. Tolkien’s world building has long been a source of inspiration for fantasy writers since its first publication in 1937 and has lived on in the hearts and minds of readers ever since.
Fangorn Forest, home to the wise tree herders, the Ents who stand tall against the encroaching darkness. Old Forest, where our brave Hobbits face the malevolent spirit of Old Man Willow and Tom Bombadil. Mirkwood, where dense shadows and oppressive atmosphere reflect a darker aspect of nature, a place transformed by ancient magic warping into a place of darkness with its labyrinthine paths, enchanted streams that induce sleep, and sinister creatures.
There is a much deeper connection between the author and his forests. Mordor is mostly bare of any expansive vegetation; Saruman’s destruction of Fangorn Forest; the destruction of the woods and of nature in the Scourging of the Shire; the overall feeling of turning away from nature and towards industrialisation, destroying all that is good about humanity. It is almost a theme in itself where Tolkien shows us time and time again that evil, true evil, is closely associated with the lack of a forest.
We are yet again able to see that forests in literature are so much more than mere backdrops to a story. They are an integral part of the storytelling itself, representing the mysterious and the unknown. Where characters find themselves embarking on new adventures, ones fraught with danger and uncertainty, facing challenges and struggles along the way and emerging from them transformed, forever altered and ready to begin anew.
When the tale is told and the adventure long past, when the children have been put to bed, dreaming their grand dreams, there is but one constant that will always remain. One ever-present character who forever lives on, patiently awaiting to decide upon the fate of the next traveller that enters through their domain. Because at the very core of all the stories ever told, it is the forest who rules. It is the forest who is the oldest, wisest, and most revered character that was ever created. It is the forest, both in the world of imagination and our own reality, that will, and must, forever live on.
We invite readers to further explore the seen and unseen beauty of the enchanted forest. Within the pages of Fabled we hope you will find that which melds reality with imagination. Step into the unknown with us, into the deep dark woods, and see where the path takes you.
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