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Fiction Featuring Merlin

Ah, Merlin. The perennial enigma, the wizard who’s been around longer than most geological epochs, and still manages to be… relevant. It’s almost tiresome. You want to know about him? Fine. But don’t expect me to fawn over some ancient, bearded cliché.

Stories involving the mythical figure Merlin

The legend of Merlin, that enigmatic sorcerer woven into the fabric of Arthurian legend, has a grip on the human psyche that’s frankly astonishing. Its popularity didn't just simmer; it boiled over, particularly during the Renaissance, and then, predictably, resurfaced with a vengeance in modern times thanks to a renewed fascination with King Arthur. As Arthurian scholar Alan Lupack so eloquently put it, "numerous novels, poems and plays center around Merlin. In American literature and popular culture, Merlin is perhaps the most frequently portrayed Arthurian character." And frankly, who am I to argue with an expert? Though, I suspect his definition of "frequently portrayed" might be more generous than mine.

Analysis

According to Stephen Thomas Knight, Merlin is the walking, talking embodiment of the eternal tug-of-war between knowledge and raw power. He started as a symbol of sheer wisdom in those early Welsh tales, then morphed into the quintessential king's advisor during the Middle Ages. Now? He’s the mentor, the teacher, the guru to Arthur and countless others in works spanning the globe since the 19th century. It’s a career path with remarkable longevity, I’ll grant him that.

While some contemporary authors paint Merlin in an explicitly Christian light, a neat little bow on the whole narrative, the New Age crowd sees him as some sort of enlightened druid, privy to all the universe's whispered secrets. And don't even get me started on the Francophone artistic scene. They’ve taken to "dechristianizing" Merlin, stripping away the divine to present him as a poster boy for returning to nature, embracing the wild, the pagan. It’s all very… earthy.

But let’s not forget, Merlin isn’t always the benevolent sage. Some modern interpretations gleefully paint him as a villain, a delightful twist on the familiar narrative. As Peter H. Goodrich so aptly observed in Merlin: A Casebook:

Merlin's primary characteristics continue to be recalled, refined, and expanded today, continually encompassing new ideas and technologies as well as old ones. The ability of this complex figure to endure for more than fourteen centuries results not only from his manifold roles and their imaginative appeal, but also from significant, often irresolvable tensions or polarities [...] between beast and human (Wild Man), natural and supernatural (Wonder Child), physical and metaphysical (Poet), secular and sacred (Prophet), active and passive (Counselor), magic and science (Wizard), and male and female (Lover). Interwoven with these primary tensions are additional polarities that apply to all of Merlin's roles, such as those between madness and sanity, pagan and Christian, demonic and heavenly, mortality and immortality, and impotency and potency.

It’s a rather exhaustive list, isn’t it? Makes you wonder if even he knows who he’s supposed to be half the time.

Ever since the Romantic period, the image of Merlin has been pretty much cemented: the wise old man, complete with the flowing white beard. It’s the archetype that launched a thousand fantasy wizards, from J. R. R. Tolkien's Gandalf to J. K. Rowling's Dumbledore. They all owe him a debt, whether they admit it or not. And it’s not just fiction. The man’s everywhere. There’s asteroid 2598 Merlin, the British company Merlin Entertainments, the Merlin handheld console (a quaint notion now), the literary magazine Merlin, the metal band Merlin, and a frankly absurd number of British warships named HMS Merlin. He even got a spot on a UK postage stamp series in 2011. And in 2023, he graced gold and silver British pound coins alongside Arthur and Morgan. Apparently, even paleontology can't escape his influence, with the Ordovician trilobite Merlinia named in his honor. The story goes that broken tail parts of trilobites were mistaken for butterflies turned to stone by Merlin. Charming.

Film

The silver screen has had a… varied relationship with Merlin.

Games

Merlin has also found his way into the digital realm, often as a playable character or a significant plot device.

Literature

Merlin's literary presence is vast, spanning centuries and genres, often reimagining his role and nature.

  • The 1622 play The Birth of Merlin by William Rowley presents Merlin as the son of the Devil, who eventually becomes an advisor to King Uther.
  • Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court initially portrays Merlin as a charlatan satirizing superstition, but later grants him genuine magical abilities.
  • C.S. Lewis incorporated Merlin Ambrosius into his 1946 novel That Hideous Strength, the third book in The Space Trilogy. Here, Merlin awakens after centuries to combat the forces of evil, his connection to angelic powers intact from a time when sorcery was not yet corrupted. Lewis also makes a nod to J.R.R. Tolkien's "Numinor" through Merlin's mention of it.
  • In John Cowper Powys' 1951 novel Porius: A Romance of the Dark Ages, Myrddin Wyllt, or Merlin the Wild, is a central figure and counselor to Emperor Arthur, identified with Cronos, or Saturn. Powys also features Merlin in A Glastonbury Romance (1934) and Morwyn (1937).
  • The 1955 novel Merlín e Familia by Galician author Álvaro Cunqueiro places Merlin in the Galician forest of Esmelle, where mythical figures seek his counsel, blending Arthurian legend with local folklore.
  • Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising series (1965–1977) centers on Merlin as a key figure in the battle between "the Dark and the Light." He is known by various names, including "Gummerry" (Great Uncle Merry) and Professor Merriman Lyon.
  • T.H. White's 1958 retelling, The Once and Future King, presents "Merlyn" as living backward in time, a curious affliction echoed in Dan Simmons' Hyperion as the "Merlin sickness." White's related novel, The Book of Merlyn, was published in 1977.
  • Mary Stewart's Merlin Trilogy (1970–1979) features Myrddin Emrys (Merlin Ambrosius) as the protagonist of the first two books, The Crystal Cave (1970) and The Hollow Hills (1973), drawing heavily on earlier traditions. The latter books focus more on Arthur and Mordred, though still from Merlin's perspective. Stewart posits Aurelius Ambrosius as Merlin's father, making him Arthur's cousin, and ultimately depicts Merlin driven mad by Morgause's poison.
  • Andre Norton's 1975 novel Merlin's Mirror tells the story of a half-human, half-alien Merlin.
  • Robert Nye's 1978 novel Merlin offers a deliberately bawdy and anti-Christian take on the Arthurian legend, recounting Merlin's experiences after being imprisoned by Nimue. It draws from earlier texts and incorporates elements of Kabbalah alongside explicit content.
  • Roger Zelazny's 1979 short story "The Last Defender of Camelot" features Merlin as a modern-day villain. It won the 1980 Balrog Award and was adapted into an episode of The Twilight Zone in 1986.
  • Michael de Angelo's 1979 work Cyr Myrddin, the Coming of Age of Merlin chronicles Merlin's early life and search for destiny.
  • In Tim Powers' 1979 novel The Drawing of the Dark, Merlin, identified as Aurelianus, aids in the reincarnation of King Arthur to battle Eastern forces in 16th-century Vienna.
  • Stephen King references a character named Maerlyn in The Dark Tower series (starting 1982) and the prequel comic The Gunslinger Born (2007). This Maerlyn, an advisor to an alternate Arthur, is depicted as evil, fathering the sorcerer Marten Broadcloak and creating the soul-corrupting Wizard's Rainbow.
  • Marion Zimmer Bradley's 1983 novel The Mists of Avalon retells the Arthurian legend from Morgan Le Fay's perspective. The novel features two successive characters holding the title "The Merlin of Britain," leaders of the Druids.
  • René Barjavel's 1984 novel L'Enchanteur explores the Knights of the Round Table and the quest for the Holy Grail through the lens of Merlin's relationship with the Lady of the Lake.
  • Arthurian scholar Nikolai Tolstoy authored The Quest For Merlin (1985), a non-fiction work, and the historical fantasy The Coming of the King (1988), which depicts Merlin living after Arthur's death.
  • Michel Rio's 1989 novel Merlin portrays Merlin as a strategist and advisor, not primarily a wizard, and later as Morgana's teacher. It's part of a trilogy that includes Morgane (1999) and Arthur (2002).
  • Merlin is a key character in Mary Pope Osborne's Magic Tree House children's book series, appearing in "The Merlin Missions" volumes starting in 1992.
  • Stephen R. Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle series features Merlin (Myrddin) as the narrator in the 1988 novel Merlin and the 1994 novel Pendragon. Lawhead reimagines him as a half-Atlantean king of Dyfed who experiences madness before becoming a prophet, advisor, and bard.
  • Jack Whyte's nine-volume The Camulod Chronicles (1992–2005) offers a naturalistic retelling of the Arthurian legend, providing rational explanations for Merlin's supposed magical abilities.
  • In Robert Weinberg's novels A Logical Magician (1994) and A Calculated Magic (1996), Merlin is presented as a being brought into existence by collective belief, his powers derived from what people believe him to be.
  • Fred Saberhagen's 1995 novel Merlin's Bones is partly narrated from the perspective of a young Merlin.
  • Bernard Cornwell's [The Warlord Chronicles] (1995–1997) depicts Merlin as a druid ruling over Avalon from his seat on Ynys Wydryn.
  • T.A. Barron explores Merlin's youth in The Lost Years of Merlin series (starting 1996) and his adulthood in the sequel series The Great Tree of Avalon.
  • Jane Yolen's Young Merlin Trilogy (1996–1997)—Passager, Hobby, and Merlin—reimagines Merlin's boyhood, detailing his abandonment and discovery of his powers.
  • J.K. Rowling elevates Merlin to near-divine status in her Harry Potter series (1997–2007), calling him "The Prince of Enchanters." The expression "Merlin's Beard" is used as an exclamation. The "Order of Merlin" is an award similar to an OBE. According to Pottermore, Merlin founded the Order to protect Muggles. He's also featured on a Famous Witches and Wizards Collectors card. Albus Dumbledore is noted for his resemblance to Merlin. As is typical, Merlin is positioned as the enemy of Morgan le Fay. Interestingly, Pottermore claims Merlin was a Slytherin, a notion that clashes with his historical placement centuries before Hogwarts' founding.
  • Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files series (starting 2000) uses "Merlin" as both a title (leader of the White Council) and the name of the individual responsible for creating the supernatural prison Demonreach.
  • Robert Holdstock's The Merlin Codex trilogy (2001–2006) chronicles Merlin's adventures across Europe over two millennia, placing him alongside figures like Jason and the Argonauts and Urtha Pendragon. Holdstock also wrote the short novel Merlin's Wood (1994).
  • In Diana Wynne Jones' 2003 book The Merlin Conspiracy, Merlin is a title rather than a person, representing the guardian of a kingdom's magical health.
  • Simon Green's Nightside series (2003–2012) features Merlin Satanspawn, son of the Devil and a friend to King Arthur.
  • The romantic urban fantasy series Enchanted, Inc. (starting 2005) by Shanna Swendson identifies Merlin as the CEO of Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc.
  • Sherrilyn Kenyon, writing as Kinley MacGregor, includes "Penmerlin Emrys" in her Lords of Avalon series (2006–2018).
  • Books based on the British TV show Merlin (2008) focus on an adolescent Merlin in King Uther's Camelot.
  • James A. Owen's The Indigo King (2008), part of the Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica series, presents Merlin as an antagonist and the Cartographer of the Imaginarium Geographica. He is depicted as ambitious and treacherous, banished from the Archipelago of Dreams for attempting to manipulate the future. He later travels to Albion (Britain) and becomes the apparent father of Arthur through the Lady of the Lake.
  • In James Rollins' 2009 novel The Doomsday Key, Bardsey Island is described as the burial place of Fomorian royalty and famous Druid priests, including Merlin.
  • Kristine Papin Morris explores Merlin's childhood in her Merlin of Carmarthen series, featuring Merlin of Carmarthen (2010) and Merlin of Calidon (2013).
  • The Arkwell Academy series by Mindee Arnett (starting 2013) positions Merlin as the main antagonist, seeking a powerful sword.
  • In the High School DxD light novel series, Merlin Ambrosius is credited with founding human magic by studying demon magic, making him the first human magician.
  • Theodore Sturgeon's 1951 short story "Excalibur and the Atom" places Merlin Ambrosius and Arthurian mythology within a science fiction context.
  • In Gabriel Estes's The Seven Deadly Sins, Book 1: The First Hunt (2021), Merlin is a sorcerer in Caerleon who bestows a grimoire upon Exevalathor. He is later revealed to be Satan, the Sin of Wrath, weakened by its presence.

Music, musicals, and operas

Merlin's resonance extends to the auditory arts, with numerous musical interpretations.

Television

Merlin's presence on the small screen is perhaps the most extensive, with countless portrayals across various genres.

Theme parks

Merlin's influence extends to the whimsical world of theme parks.

  • Universal Islands of Adventure once featured "Merlinwood," a medieval section that included the Flying Unicorn and Dueling Dragons roller coasters, and the Enchanted Oak Tavern with Merlin's face on it. This area has since been re-imagined as part of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
  • Disneyland has "Merlin’s Marvelous Miscellany," a souvenir shop filled with Merlin-themed merchandise.
  • Several Disney Parks host "The Sword in the Stone Ceremony," where Merlin magically appears to select a child to pull the sword from the stone, proclaiming them "Ruler of the Realm."

Other cultural references

Merlin's name and legend have permeated various other aspects of culture.

And there you have it. A rather exhaustive, and frankly exhausting, overview of Merlin's ubiquitous presence. He's a character who refuses to fade, constantly reinventing himself for new audiences. It’s almost impressive, in a way. Almost.