The Daemon Lover
Encyclopedia
"The Daemon Lover", also known as "James Harris", "James Herries", or "The House Carpenter" (Roud
14, Child 243) is a popular English ballad
. It tells the story of a man (usually the Devil
), who returns to a former lover after a very long absence, and finds her with a husband (usually a carpenter) and a baby. He entices her to leave both behind and come with him, luring her with many ships laden with treasure. Together they board one of his ships, (which in many versions she is surprised to find does not have a crew) and put to sea.
She soon begins to lament leaving behind her child, but is heartened by spying a bright hill in the distance. Her lover informs her that the hill is heaven, where they are not bound. Instead he indicates a much darker coast, which he tells her is hell, their destination. He then breaks the ship in half with his bare hands and feet, drowning them both. In other versions, the ship is wrecked by a storm at sea.
This ballad was one of 25 traditional works included in Ballads Weird and Wonderful (1912) and illustrated by Vernon Hill
. The New York Times review of Hill's illustrations accompanying this ballad was noted as a particular highlight of his illustrations thus:
A popular American
version is called "The House Carpenter".
Shirley Jackson
's collection The Lottery and Other Stories
was originally intended to be titled The Adventures of James Harris; several of the stories include slightly sinister or mysterious men, not obviously the same man, with this name.
Roud Folk Song Index
The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of 300,000 references to over 21,600 songs that have been collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world...
14, Child 243) is a popular English ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
. It tells the story of a man (usually the Devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
), who returns to a former lover after a very long absence, and finds her with a husband (usually a carpenter) and a baby. He entices her to leave both behind and come with him, luring her with many ships laden with treasure. Together they board one of his ships, (which in many versions she is surprised to find does not have a crew) and put to sea.
- "But if I should leave my husband dear,
- Likewise my little son also,
- What have you to maintain me withal,
- If I along with you should go?"
- "I have seven ships upon the seas,
- And one of them brought me to land,
- And seventeen mariners to wait on thee,
- For to be love at your command."
She soon begins to lament leaving behind her child, but is heartened by spying a bright hill in the distance. Her lover informs her that the hill is heaven, where they are not bound. Instead he indicates a much darker coast, which he tells her is hell, their destination. He then breaks the ship in half with his bare hands and feet, drowning them both. In other versions, the ship is wrecked by a storm at sea.
- "O what a bright, bright hill is yon,
- That shines so clear to see?"
- "O it is the hill of heaven, " he said,
- "Where you shall never be."
- "O what a black, dark hill is yon,
- "That looks so dark to me?"
- "O it is the hill of hell," he said,
- "Where you and I shall be."
This ballad was one of 25 traditional works included in Ballads Weird and Wonderful (1912) and illustrated by Vernon Hill
Vernon Hill (sculptor)
Vernon Hill was a sculptor, lithographer and Illustrator.-Biography:Vernon Hill was born in Halifax and undertook formal training in print-making from an early age, being apprenticed as a lithographer in his early teen....
. The New York Times review of Hill's illustrations accompanying this ballad was noted as a particular highlight of his illustrations thus:
... the design of Satan rushing down through the waves with the boat containing
the faithless wife, is tremendous. Satan himself has one of the most graceful and
beautiful human bodies ever drawn; the rhythm of the whole is thrilling, and the
conventionalized waves are splendid.
A popular American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
version is called "The House Carpenter".
Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson was an American author. A popular writer in her time, her work has received increasing attention from literary critics in recent years...
's collection The Lottery and Other Stories
The Lottery and Other Stories
The Lottery and Other Stories is a 1949 short story collection by American author Shirley Jackson. Published by Farrar, Straus, it includes "The Lottery" and 24 other stories. This was the only collection of her stories to appear during her lifetime...
was originally intended to be titled The Adventures of James Harris; several of the stories include slightly sinister or mysterious men, not obviously the same man, with this name.
Recordings
Versions of the song, under its several titles, have been recorded by:- Alasdair Roberts
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External links
- James Harris (The Dæmon Lover): Child Ballad 243
- The Tall Man in the Blue Suit: Witchcraft, Folklore, and Reality in Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, or the Adventures of James Harris: A Study of the use of Child ballad 243 in Shirley Jackson's story collection The Lottery by Norwegian scholar Håvard Nørjordet