Hagtale: A Macbeth Origin Story
O’Reilly’s rich literary fable, set in medieval Scotland, relates a version of the origins of Macbethad mac Findláech, king of Scotland from 1040 to 1057. In a Midlothian abbey in 1354, Rowan is the gardener, although before the plague, he was a dedicated scriptorium scribe. Thanking God for his recovery from the illness, he longs only to be outdoors with his hands in the dirt. The natural sheltered freedom speaks to his soul.
Rowan is ordered by the prior to journey to a distant monastery to preserve the records that are disappearing into Albion’s (Britain) history, by copying Alba’s (Scotland) king-line. Teetering on the shores of a loch which floods regularly, Saint Medard’s has been a deserted ruin since the plague swept the country. Brother Kenneth, a younger, belligerent, military type, is Rowan’s sole companion. He forces Rowan to observe the canonical hours of prayer despite the rugged and hostile environment they face. Kenneth’s blinkered obedience to his vocation causes theological dissent, which presents itself at the monastery. Reclusive and gentle Rowan, however, is awestruck by the beauty of God’s creation all around him.
Three hundred years earlier, a young wolf-girl wakes alone and ventures out to satiate her hunger. In the forest she meets Cailleach, Berthe and Merrow. Despite having suckled at a wolf-teat since babyhood, the witches smell human, and the girl must therefore become human to fulfill her destiny and the witches’ prophecy. They name her Wulva, nurture and educate her, and send her to live with the MacDuffs.
O’Reilly’s reimagining of Macbethad is stunning. Language, time frame, descriptions, plot and character are brilliant. Connections between Rowan and Wulva are preternaturally curious. O’Reilly takes historical liberties, describing her story as unusual and strange. Unusual, yes, but ethereally strange and otherworldly. A gift to the expanding literary world of Macbeth.
