Robin Hood in popular culture Robin Hood novel, standing at almost half-a-million words, is Pierce Egan the Younger's "Robin Hood and Little John; or, The Merrie Men of Sherwood Forest" (serialised 1838-1840). As in "Ivanhoe", Robin is a Saxon, although he is not actually outlawed in the novel until nearly the end of the first book. The novel traces Robin's life from birth to death. Egan's text was translated into two French books, "Le prince des voleurs (The Prince of Thieves)," and "Robin Hood le proscrit (Robin Hood the Outlaw)", by Alexandre Dumas, between 1863–64. Dumas' works were then retranslated back into English by Alfred
Robin Hood ballads. The third (the "Curtal Friar") and the fourth (the "Butcher"), also probably have late medieval origins. Some ballads, such as "Erlinton", feature Robin Hood in some variants, where the folk hero appears to be added to a ballad pre-existing him and in which he does not fit very well. He was added to one variant of "Rose Red and the White Lily", apparently on no more connection than that one hero of the other variants is named "Brown Robin". Francis James Child indeed retitled Child ballad 102; though it was titled "The Birth of Robin Hood", its clear lack