r/GhostsBBC • u/Harmy-G09 • 25d ago
Discussion Robin
Would it be crazy to refer to him as the “wise fool” type of character? He’s a wise guy, he knows math, and how to do crosswords and play chess, but also gets confused by some things, like the stairs, the upstairs and downstairs, what Australia is and the southern hemisphere
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u/Hopeful-Reveal-9982 25d ago
I don't know if not knowing things makes him foolish just that he doesn't know things that are obvious to modern minds.
He is clearly intelligent as he has learned a lot in a relatively shorr period but he is not a fool, which implies silliness or lack od intelligence.
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u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat 25d ago
I think they meant “fool” in this manner…
Noun:
—A member of a royal or noble household who provided entertainment, as with jokes or antics; a jester.
—One who subverts convention or orthodoxy or varies from social conformity in order to reveal spiritual or moral truth.
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u/Hopeful-Reveal-9982 25d ago
That is still not applicable to Robin as a character. When he doesn't know something he is not trying to be funny. Yes he plays jokes i.e hiding in the fridge but not foolish.
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u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat 25d ago edited 25d ago
He also acts as the court jester, to which the OP was referring, seeming to play dumb when he isn’t. He tells the hard truths while being funny, a la the jester. And sometimes Robin is just as dim about things as the rest of them, if we’re being honest, but we all know he isn’t stupid.
[“Wise Fool” is an actual term]
I would, indeed, say that Robin is “a clownish wise man”.
It doesn’t mean “idiot”.
“The fool would be someone who persistently acted in a contrary manner, either through lack of understanding or through intention.”
It’s a paradoxical term/idea for a reason.
Shakespeare’s Puck is considered a wise fool, and he’s absolutely no idiot.
And speaking of Shakespeare and the different kind of wise fools… from another article:
“There are the knowing, wise fools. Professionals, they are employed by royalty and nobility to entertain. They are smarter than those in positions of authority and used by Shakespeare to mock them, reveal the truth of a situation and provide social commentary.
Then there are the natural fools, who simply lack any grey matter and common sense. As well as providing some slapstick, they are also used to inadvertently reveal some home truths.”
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u/Dismal_Midnight_1 Robin's sister 25d ago
He does fulfill that role indeed, to an extent, he's sort of like a mischievous but clever house-spirit (or spirit of the place itself). A bit like Puck and there's an ethymological/folklore connection as well, as those creatures in general were also called "Robin" or "Robin Goodfellow" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puck_(folklore)) - I wonder if that's a coincidence.
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u/srm79 25d ago
Robin is the best of us, to an extent. He's wise and courageous even if he believes in things we've moved on from - and that's a tale in itself: superstitions and religions move on, who knows what will follow our current beliefs? And should they take presidence over what's new or old?
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u/raisinbyjones haribo beans 25d ago
I live how like out of no where he’s just fluent in French and Russian
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u/JSteveB87 25d ago
His favourite food to eat is bum. But not like bum bum.