Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Ivanhoe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Merits of Chivalry
Disguise and Discovery
Inheritance and Displacement
The Vulnerability and Power of Women
History vs. Romance
Summary
Analysis
Gurth tries to hurry back to the Disinherited Knight through the sounds of merriment and disorder in town, but he loses his way and stumbles into a lane overhung by a gnarled old oak tree. A band of robbers seizes him and drags him into a forest clearing. Gurth offers them his 30 gold coins in exchange for his life and his master’s money, which they soon find in his purse. Gurth explains that he’s the Disinherited Knight’s squire, that the Knight ransomed all the challengers’ arms except Sir Brian’s, and that when he tried to repay his master’s debt to Isaac, the Jewish man instead gave him 100 coins. The idea of a moneylender willingly parting from his money in this way astonishes the thieves.
The woodsmen-bandits meet at oak trees because the oak trees symbolize Englishness, and the woodsmen-bandits are primarily Saxons. Bu the trees also symbolize strength and resilience, and these bandits are borrowed from the mythology of Robin Hood and his merry men, who stole from the rich (Norman nobles) and gave to the poor (Saxon subjects) during the lawless interlude of King Richard’s absence on crusade and Prince John’s regency. They make a strong case against the Normans, suggesting that their lawbreaking arises as a direct result of Norman overreach and abuse. And, like other key anti-Norman players (like the Disinherited Knight or the Black Knight), they rely on disguises to hide their identities.
Themes
As the thieves count the money in Gurth’s purse, he takes advantage of their distracted attention to attack their leader, but they quickly subdue him once more. They discuss what to do among themselves. Their leader suggests they let Gurth and his money go, since they and the Disinherited Knight all oppose the likes of Sir Brian. One thief demands the right to fight Gurth first with wooden staves; and after a good fight, Gurth dispatches him with a solid blow to the head. The captain of the band of thieves congratulates Gurth and offers him safe passage, on the promise that he never try to ascertain their identities nor tell anyone that they let him escape. Some of the thieves take Gurth back towards the tournament grounds, where he relays his astonishing adventures to the Disinherited Knight.
A shared antipathy toward Normans—especially cruel and greedy ones like Sir Brian—unites the Disinherited Knight and the woodsmen. The leader’s willingness to return the Knight’s money suggests that there may be honor among thieves. Knights aren’t the only ones with a code to live up to; in the lawlessness and violence of a country that lacks a strong, unifying leader to uphold justice, people cobble together the best ethical and legal systems they can. Thus, though one of the thieves fights Gurth, the band doesn’t hold it against him when he wins.
Themes
