One of the most recognisable creatures from fantasy and folklore is the unicorn, so much so that you can show a picture to any small child, and there's a pretty good chance they know what it is. This isn't too strange, considering it's remained as a symbol in numerous pieces of art, heraldry, and fables, essentially cementing itself in popular culture.
While there have been fewer stories that feature this creature, that doesn't mean it has lost its popularity, or that isn't a useful storytelling tool anymore. In fact, the unicorn is still a powerful, well-known image, which can add a certain mystique to your story, should you choose to.
So, I will be talking about ways you can include this creature in your writing.
General Description:
A unicorn is traditionally shown as a beautiful, white horse, with a straight, spiralled, silvery horn sticking from her forehead, and long, billowing manes and tail.
It is also known to be extremely rare and delicate, appearing skittish and unapproachable by humans, to the point where it won't be tamed by anything or anyone.
The only one who can calm down a unicorn to the point of even touching it, was believed to be young, virginal maiden. This is because the unicorn is considered a symbol of purity and grace, and so will only be touched by someone considered as pure as itself.
Many paintings from the Renaissance era, and beyond, will contain portraits of young women holding a unicorn, in order to show how innocent, kind, and virginal they were because of this.
The horn of the unicorn was also believed to able to cure any poison, and so 'unicorn horns' were often bought by rich families to soak in their water, grind up into powder, in order to rid their food and drink of any impurities.
So, fables will often either include a hunter looking to take the horn, either to heal someone they know, or for personal glory, or a young maiden lost in the woods, either looking for home or escaping something, only to encounter a unicorn.
Uses and Symbolism:
There are a number of ways in which a unicorn can be used in your narrative, based on its symbolism and what it typically represents as a creature, especially its nature as a rare, pure figure, appearing in the woods, and running from humans
The most overt would be as a foil to the corruptive qualities of humans, where it won't allow to let itself be touched or even be seen by anyone, no matter how much they look for it. This approach also lends itself to well to starting and progressing a character arc, For example: your character is unable to find the unicorn, because they have too much of a corruptive self, or, alternatively, they used to be able to find the unicorn, but have since lost their innocence and purity, and do can't find it anymore.
However, it doesn't necessarily have to be used as a foil, but instead, a unicorn can help showcase the more positive qualities of humanity. It traditionally only appears to virginal, young maidens, another figure used to illustrate the purity of humans. Still, the meaning of 'purity' can vary from culture to culture, and person to person. For some, it means keeping oneself away from what they consider corruptive influences, such as lust and greed. For others, it means staying true to one's original self, with no double agendas or false masks.
Seeing a unicorn can act as a confirmation or reward for the character choosing to keep themselves pure and uncorrupted. You can even choose to have them be carried away by the unicorn, never to return to a world where they might loose those qualities.
This last possibility can act as another use for the unicorn, one that lends itself well if you choose to write a story centring around someone finding themselves in another, more magical world than the one they know.
Since it's considered a mythical creature that isn't tied to human civilisation, it can show that the character has entered another world, such that of the Fae or other folklore and myth. The unicorn being so skittish of humans, and the desire said humans often have to catch it, can lead your characters astray from forest paths, and their own society, only to find themselves lost or in the grips of an Otherworld.
Going back to our own reality, the unicorn can not only represent a more magical side of our world, but can also be used in a narrative about the uncorrupted parts of nature we know today.
This is a creature removed from humanity, considered a complete rarity and only present in dense woods. So, it's a figure which can easily be used in stories about unspoiled parts of the planet and eco-system, untouched by humanity. Whether it actually makes an appearance or is simply used as an image is up to the author, but it can nonetheless add an extra bit of symbolism to the narrative
On top of that, the fact that its horn has a history of being sought after as medicine and anti-poison can work well as a story-telling tool for someone wanting to write a story about humans exploiting nature for their own benefits.
The unicorn can therefore not only be used as a mythical figure in a fantasy-based story, but also as an allegory for the uncorrupted parts of humanity in nature, whether this is under threat in the story, or glorified.
I hope this has helped in some way, and if you have a creature you would like me to cover, leave a comment!
Goodbye, lovelies!
Comments