The Trickster’s Twist on Scottish History in Liz Lochhead’s Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off

Abstract

Liz Lochhead’s play, Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off (1987), offers a distinctive reimagining of sixteenth-century Scotland. Lochhead challenges the reader/audience’s capacity to attain a clear glimpse of historical truth through the character of La Corbie, a female crow in the play. Crows have long served as symbolic metaphors in literature since they function as intermediaries that deepen our understanding of human nature and the cyclic nature of the natural world. Across diverse cultures, crows are associated with a wide range of meanings, encompassing mystery, intelligence, and wisdom. Given their protean nature and sardonic demeanor, they often embody the archetype of the trickster figure. In the given play, Lochhead draws inspiration from the trickster qualities traditionally associated with crows in (Scottish) folklore with an attempt to corporate these qualities with her feminist and nationalist concerns in one trajectory. Lochhead’s employment of La Corbie and her role in framing the past, challenge conventional historical narratives and cast doubt on the unquestionable authority of historians. This, in turn, paves the way for a more inclusive and diversified comprehension of Scotland’s historiography and national/gender identity. In line with this, this paper seeks to explore how Lochhead liberates Scottish history from historically prevalent anglocentric, androcentric, and anthropocentric perspectives, thereby offering a broader insight on the multifaceted dimensions of Scotland’s history and the complex nature of historical storytelling.

Keywords

• Liz Lochhead
• Scottish Literature
• Scottish history
• History
• Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off