In Peter S. Beagle’s novel, The Last Unicorn, we find a multitude of representations of heroism and the complicated nature of the hero. It is a novel written in the nature of the Romantic movement, but it transcends movements, time and culture to reflect the notions of heroism as something achievable by the common man, regardless of the age in which he dwells. In my essay, I will explore the very nature of heroism and the tendency of it to be reflected as a natural quality of masculinity, while being something the common man desires in his pursuit to be something more than ordinary. Finally, I will show how the common man, as represented by Schmendrick, the bungling magician, is the true hero of the novel and solidifies the transcendence of the ordinary while firmly rooting heroism in masculinity.

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          Although the fantasy story is centered around the last remaining unicorn, often a metaphor for feminine purity, Beagle’s novel only gives an illusion of heroism centered in femininity. The novel starts with the trope of introducing a hero, the female unicorn, who is then presented with a conflict of self when she sees two hunters discussing how they have never seen another of her kind (Beagle 2-6). This leads to her conclusion that she, “is the only unicorn” (Beagle 6) and it proceeds to the hero quest in her need to disprove the hunters and her own doubts.

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          The unicorn fills the role of a mythical animal that is prevalent in fairy tales and fantasy, but she is introduced as an integral hero in the story with the traits that one expects in such heroes for “she had killed dragons…and healed a king…and knocked down ripe chestnuts for bear cubs” (Beagle 2). Again, all these feats are centered around the very notion of what a hero is; however, it should be noted that the last two feats are linked to femininity and illustrate the notion of feminine heroism as often done through caregiving.

 

          One interesting point is that the hero quest is not given at the very beginning of her journey but only occurs when the unicorn is told by the butterfly, “You can find your people if you are brave. They passed down all roads long ago…the Red Bull ran close behind” (Beagle 15). This gives some indication that the unicorn is not the hero in several ways. First, the quest journey is not complete. There is no indication of direction, which is an important quality of all quest journeys. For instance, in the Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, Frodo understands that he needs to travel to Rivendell as the first leg of his quest journey (Tolkien 100); however, roads stretch in all directions for the unicorn, giving her a directionless path. Second, she only becomes aware of that direction after Madame Fortuna tells her the Red Bull belongs to King Haggard (Beagle 37). Third, in one of her first interactions with Schmendrick, he says, “It’s a rare man who is taken for what he truly is” (Beagle 40), foreshadowing that a seemingly common man will transcend the constraints of the ordinary and become something exceptional — the true hero of the story.

 

          And this is reflected in the notion of heroism as a natural trait of masculinity, which occurs several times throughout the novel. Although the unicorn is central to overcoming King Haggard and returning his castle to the sea (Beagle 264-269), she is powerless to achieve that feat without the aid of two men: Prince Lir, who fits the ideal heroic knight, and Schmendrick, who fits the idea of the common man. Although Schmendrick journeys with the unicorn, joined later by Molly Grue, as a helper, it becomes clear that the unicorn cannot overcome the challenges without his aid.

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          Schmendrick as the common man and hero is seen when he summons Robin Hood out of nothing in Captain Culley’s camp and is introduced to his own “Maid Marion” in Molly Grue (Beagle 77-89). While it appears that Molly Grue is an aged and bitter helper of the unicorn, her journey is through her relationship with Schmendrick where she starts as a critic of the magician (Beagle 99) before becoming his love interest after Schmendrick has thrown off his cloak of the common man to become the true hero of the story. Molly’s beauty and youth are restored so the hero has a “princess” befitting his own stature (Beagle 291). Furthermore, it ties femininity into the transformation of the hero as Molly bolsters Schmendrick’s happiness when she “stayed close to the magician, taking his hand as she had been used to touch the unicorn when she was lonely” (Beagle 252). The shift from the feminine hero of the unicorn to the masculine hero of the magician is in that moment where Molly’s alliance, and comfort, is found in Schmendrick. This shift enables him to overcome his self doubt to finally embrace what is spectacular within himself.

 

          Furthermore, we see this notion of the common man as the hero in the many times Schmendrick saves the unicorn. First, from the cages of Madame Fortuna’s carnival (Beagle 48-49). Second, when the Red Bull is chasing the unicorn down the long roads, taking us back to the foreshadowing of the butterfly and casting her as a damsel in distress as Schmendrick, using magic he cannot control, turns her as the literal damsel of the story instead of the hero she once was (Beagle 142-143). And third, when Schmendrick returns her to her true form as the unicorn (Beagle 257-260). Through many of these accomplishments, Schmendrick is illustrated as the tool and the magic does what it wants; however, it illustrates the notion of heroism being a trait that needs to be unlocked. While the common man may blunder through some acts of heroism, when all else will be lost, he will rise to become truly heroic and the center of the story.

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          This shift in understanding of the common man as hero in the story is very subtle and done through point of view within the tale itself. While the tale starts from the point of view of the assumed hero, the unicorn, it begins to shift slowly from page 65 to Schmendrick, Molly and Prince Lir until the final pages where it is only Schmendrick, who completes the story and reveals himself as the true hero (Beagle 65-294).

 

          It is important to note that even as the common man is transcending through Schmendrick’s journey, Beagle creates a second false narrative in the ideal hero of Prince Lir. Beagle follows fairy tale tropes in the relationship of Lady Amalthea, who is the unicorn in human form, and Prince Lir to set up the discourse of the heroic knight and the princess in distress. Prince Lir achieves his heroism through his feats to win the hand of Lady Amalthea, which links the former to the prophecy that only a citizen of Hagsgate could destroy Haggard’s reign, the power of the Red Bull and restore the unicorns to the land (Beagle 175-224). Prince Lir is the ideal hero but he, along with the relationship with Lady Amalthea, is a red herring that draws the attention away from the true hero who is busy distracting King Haggard as a bungling, common magician. Even though Prince Lir is central to the unicorn’s success, he is linked to an understanding that for a feminine hero to overcome evil, she must have the aid of a noble knight.  

 

          This lack of feminine autonomy to overcome evil and see to her own safety and success is an important theme in the final battle with the Red Bull. When the unicorn is transformed from damsel back to the hero, we see a final push of heroism as masculine. The unicorn is defeated after that transformation. Her horn does not glow. Her head is lowered in defeat. All hope is lost while she tries to flee the Red Bull, the trio —Molly, Schmendrick and Prince Lir, are left to watch the last unicorn be driven into the sea (Beagle 260-263). She is not the hero, and Prince Lir turns to the true hero and asks, “What use is wizardry if it cannot save a unicorn,” where Schmendrick replies, “That’s what heroes are for” (Beagle 263). Schmendrick uses the words of a leader, making him a hero who leads other heroes, and encourages Prince Lir to prove his bravery and love by stepping in front of the Red Bull at his peril. His death revives the fight of the unicorn, and she overcomes the Red Bull to release the trapped unicorns in the sea (Beagle 268); however, without the help of two men, the unicorn would not have succeeded, which is a common notion around feminine heroism—that it is only possible when male heroes are present.

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          In conclusion, while The Last Unicorn is a vibrant story of hope, love, bravery and overcoming self doubt to become more than what one seems, it mirrors and relies heavily on the notions around the trait of heroism being solely masculine, while building up the belief that even a man can become more than just common. 

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Works Cited

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Beagle, Peter S. The Last Unicorn. Ace, 2022.

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Tolkien, J. R. R. The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of the Lord of the Rings. Houghton Mifflin Co, 1986.