Goblins In Fiction

Some of the best fiction has been about goblins. I should know, I was once enthraled, and still am by them, whether they’re good, bad, ugly, or just misunderstood. My favourite goblin story of all time was “The Princess and the Goblin”. A long time ago, when VHS was booming, and DVD’s were a thing of science fiction, my grandmother and a very spoiled, smaller version of myself, were walking through the story. I saw the animated film, and without the slightest bit of hesitation, picked it up and dropped it in the cart when my grandmother wasn’t looking. When we got to the checkout, I got that special look from my grandmother that said, “I would spank you, but the movie is cheap, and you’re just so cute.” So of course, I got the movie. And it has remained a favourite of mine now for more than a decade. Below are some more classic goblin fiction, as well as the original “The Princess and the Goblin” –author and a bit of plot, for those of you who missed out on a great movie and book, find it soon!

• The Goblins, a comedy play by Sir John Suckling (1638 England) – A bit like Robin Hood, — a troupe of goblins terrorize a forest, and deal out their own version of justice to the deserving. A little bit of “The Tempest” and a bit of “Romeo and Juliet” mixed in for good measure.
• Goblin Market, a poem by Christina Rossetti (1859 England) – Written during the Victorian era, the story was not received very well. The plot revolved around two sisters, –one who ate the fruit of the goblins, and one who could hear their voices. When the first sister lay dying from consuming the goblins’ fruit, the second attempted to buy more fruit with coin, in order to save her sister. The goblins were enraged, and attempted to make the second sister eat the fruit by coating her in seeds and pulp. However, none got in her mouth. The sister returned home and instructed her ill sibling to eat the fruit off her skin. When doing so, she was cured. During the Victorian era, some of the poem’s scenes were a bit too explicit for women of “delicate” upbringing.
• The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald (1872) – My favourite. A princess and a young boy must somehow defeat an army of subterranean goblins, threatening to overthrow the kingdom, somehow, with the help of the princess’s ghostly grandmother. You can get the full book, free and legally here: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/708
• The Hoard of the Gibbelins in The Book of Wonder by Lord Dunsany (1912) – A short story about the adventure of a certain paladin who must destroy the evil “gibbelins”, who use their massive wealth in order to lure humans to the tower, –which is how they get their food.