Sophocleese -- thanks for the heads up regarding the novel Fire and Hemlock.

In my searches for "Thomas Rhymer" on Google, I've found quite a few essays linking this song with "Tam Lin", (Child #39) though, frankly, I don't see much similarity between the two.

Yes, they are both about young men who live with the Faery for 7 years, and then eventually come home. But for the most part, the similarities end there (except for the milk white steed that is shod with silver and gold).

Tam Lin had a spell put on him and was kidnapped. Furthermore, he was kidnapped, it seems, for the sole purpose of being the Faeries' human sacraficial victim to the Devil, and is therefore in need of rescuing. And most importantly, IMNSHO, is the point of view of the story -- it's told from the perspective of Margaret, the lady whom Tam Lin impregnates. It's basically *her* story -- of how she made her choice in Tam Lin, and fought to keep that choicee.

In "Thomas the Rhymer" the Queen of Elfland warns him ahead of time: "If you kiss me, you will be mine for seven years." And Thomas says, in effect, "Well, I don't care -- I'm going to kiss you anyway!" He makes his choice of his own free will, and if I remember the longer version, the Queen sends him home at the end of seven years over Thomas's complaints. This is clearly Thomas Rhymer's story.

And lastly, there is the theological difference between the two songs: In "Tam Lin" the Fairies pay a tythe to Hell; in other words, they are linked to hell. In "Thomas The Rhymer", Elfland is disticntly seperate from Hell -- there is the broad and easy road to hell, the narrow, thorny road of righteousnes, and a *third* road, that winds through the ferny woods (?) to Elfland... I could try to be more clear, but My eyes are closing... more tomoorow, I think....