"Cursed" is a story for the Colonised

Fae legends have frequently been coded as colonised and oppressed peoples. Perhaps the most famous one of our modern age is JKR's portrayal of goblins—small, large nosed, greedy bankers who care nothing for the rest of the world. Anyone with the slightest understanding of Jewish stereotypes understands the allusion. The orcs in Lord of the Rings are an older stereotype of the 'barbaric' Mongols. The folklore of changelings is now attributed to autistic children. In each case, the Fae are to be reviled, a warning of the evils that the Other could do to the Self.

Yet occasionally, a more subversive narrative is found and the tides turn. We find ourselves rooting for the Fae as the narrative urges one to sympathise with them. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil provided one such rare chance—intended or not, the human queen offers a weak excuse of needing the Fae's lands and resources as a reason to wage war against them, an echo of European Kings and Queens' excuses for colonising the lands to the East and West of them. Cursed offers an even more nuanced take.

Arthurian legends are a glimpse of a pre-Christian, ergo pre-colonial, Britain. Legend or not, the atrocities done in the name of the Bible stick closely in the minds of the colonised. The story of people being killed, children raised to fear God and weaponised against their own people, and the coveting of the resources held by the Other is largely universal in the experiences of the colonised. By pulling from Arthurian legends, the writers already had a subversive anti-colonial story to tell. Rooting the oppression in Christian missionaries who desire to rid the land of the 'Hell-sent' only adds a touch of realness that is incredibly difficult to ignore.

There are 4 villains to note in this retelling: Uther Pendragon, Father Carden, The Weeping Monk, and Sister Iris. The first two are classic villains whose actors brilliantly portray the roles of the absent king and the violent missionary respectively. These are roles necessary towards the colonial narrative, but it is the latter two which truly make the narrative subversive.

The Weeping Monk is a Fae, saved from slaughter by Father Carden so as to be forged as a weapon for the Church. Before we delve into his character and it's representations, I have a brief note of complaint: it was well hinted by episode 4 that the Weeping Monk was Fae, but took until episode 8 for this plot twist. And whilst there is another, far less expected plot twist in the season finale, I wish that they had explored his heritage more as he is, in my opinion, by far the most interesting character.

The Weeping Monk plays a classic role—the traitor to one's kind. His salvation begins when he is shown to grant mercy to a Fae child, Squirrel,

Sister Iris is the nun who wants to rise above her station as a healer and become a warrior for God, eventually (as far as we know) assassinating the Fey Queen. After she burns down the Abbey so that she can find her fate, she's found by Fae children, who promise to protect and look after her. She stays in the Fae encampment and at times looks like she may almost become sympathetic to the Fae cause. The most damning part of her story is the fact that the way she struck Nimue down—using a bow and arrow—was taught to her by a Fae child, Squirrel. It's a classic tale of using the knowledge of a minority group and weaponising it against them.

Although I had so many issues with Cursed, like how literally nobody had any chemistry, I'm incredibly sad that season 2 has been cancelled and we will never see how this allusion will continue.