Essay Questions

What did the Unicorn’s transformation into Lady Amalthea symbolize?

The Unicorn’s transformation from her unicorn form to her human form is a metaphor for maturity. It marks a movement from fantasy and childish whimsy, to reality, the more “adult” pursuits such as romance and personal development. In her natural form she is immortal; completely alien and indifferent to matters that concern humanity---hopes, aspirations, worry, and even love---these things simply don’t matter to enchanted creatures. All this changes however when she is transformed into a human woman. Her experience of humanity however changes her through the experience of a wide range of human emotions and the very real possibility of death as she is now mortal. In addition to this her human form is every bit as beautiful and she attracts the attention of Prince Lír and she is exposed to romantic love.

Magic is a constant theme within the novel. What does magic symbolize?

Magic in the novel though does not produce the awesome cinematic effects one typically associates with magic; especially magic that is wielded by immortal wizards or sentient magical beasts. For real, spectacular, life-changing magic to happen the wielder must be willing to give up their immortality. This condition that needs to be fulfilled is an assertion of two things: one, the wielder of magic, true magic, must be willing to put their lives and safety on the line, second, it is only when stakes are that high that real power can be plied. Using this logic one can draw the conclusion that magic is used as a metaphor for the human will and/or human grit needed to make things happen.

What does the Red Bull symbolize in the story?

The Red Bull, for reasons not clearly disclosed, seems to cause a mad, mindless panic in the unicorns. Despite their magic they can do nothing but flee from it, allowing them to be herded into the sea for King Haggard’s pleasure. Later, The Unicorn/Lady Amalthea is able to defeat the Bull by herself, proving that there was no reason to have been that frightened of it in the first place. The Red Bull, in that regard, can be said to embody fear of many kids, particularly the fear of change and/or the fear of uncertainty. It is also interesting to note that The Red Bull, though a powerful and menacing enchanted creature, is actually blind and completely under King Haggard’s control.