Rhiannon

Pic: White Horse of Uffington from Google Earth, coordinates 51.577460N, 1.565589W


Ford's introduction describes Rhiannon as strongly tied to horses as a fertility goddess, since her name "comes from an earlier form Rigantona, that means "great queen goddess" (Ford, 5). Ford also suggests that among continental Celts, she was called Epona, who among the Romans "was associated in the calendar of feasts with the hippomorphic sea god and fertility deity" (5).

While Pwyll waited near the Mound of Arberth, Rhiannon appeared - riding a white horse and wearing a gold brocade dress, at a mound where it is rumored that one will either be wounded or see a marvel (Ford, 42). This clearly marks her as otherworldly, due to the location where she appeared - a mound, which were often sacred to Celts, and the fact that her horse is white, a color that denotes otherworldly creatures in the Celtic tradition (Ford, 35-36). Rhiannon also seemed to be riding at a slow, steady gait, yet no one could catch up to her. This reminds me of Arwen's first appearance in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, since she comes to help Strider and the hobbits riding a white horse, surrounded by a white light, and seems to move slowly when in reality shes moving very quickly. In the case of Arwen, I think Jackson choose this to set her apart as otherworldly, like Rhiannon, since she is the first elf the hobbits meet, and to emphasize her immortality, giving more weight to her choice to live a mortal lifespan.

I think it's very unique that Rhiannon's first words are to tease Pwyll. He sent someone else after her three times, and each of them failed. Then, he pursued her himself for some time before he asked her to wait for him, to which she retorts, " 'I will wait gladly...and it had been better for the horse if you had asked it long ago' "(Ford, 44). Considering that the original manuscripts may have come from the 11th century, although the tales would most likely be older, I think it's unusually to find a female character who is as strong-willed and outspoken as Rhiannon. She also scolded Pwyll for agreeing to grant a stranger whatever he wants with no exceptions, since the stranger is Gwawl, the man whom Rhiannon was promised against her will. She even called Pwyll "feeble-minded". I think she gets away with this because she's saying what the court is thinking, and due to being from the Otherworld, and therefore not used to human society.

Rhiannon is also exceedingly clever, and concocts her own escape from having to be given to Gwawl. She also seems willing to humble herself too. When she was suspected to have killed her child, Rhiannon accepted her punishment - to tell her story to visitors and carry them on her back from the gate to the court. This too links her to horses, since she has to act like a beast of burden by carrying people. I think this isn't a move of defeat, but rather, she is willing to submit to the punishment because she knows she's innocent and will eventually be proven as such.