Goblins

A gathering of goblins.

The Goblins are the most prominent race to inhabit the Labyrinth, and are ruled over by Jareth, the Goblin King. They feature in both the Jim Henson film Labyrinth and its manga sequel, Return to Labyrinth.

The Terry Jones and Brian Froud book The Goblins of Labyrinth is a catalogue of many of the concept drawings that served as inspiration for the goblins seen in the film. The book names each goblin depicted in Froud's illustrations, and gives them a back-story.

Description

The goblins are a remarkably diverse race, ranging from only a few inches to several feet in height. They also have drastically different physical features, displaying a diverse range if physical characterstics. Some goblins have small eyes while others have huge, potruding ones, some have horns and wild, unkempt hair while others are completely bald.

The origin of the goblins is unclear. When Jareth is outlining to Sarah what will happen to her infant brother if she fails to rescue him, he says the baby will become "one of us" if she does not reach him in time. This can be taken to mean the baby would have been turned into a goblin had Sarah lost, which in turn implies that the goblins may have once been human children themselves.

Contrary to the suggestion the goblins were once human children, Return to Labyrinth indicates that Jareth found the goblins dwelling in a swamp in a dank forest over a 1000 years prior to Sarah's wishing her brother away to him. Jareth decides to make himself the King of the goblins as he finds them amusing.

Most of the goblins are shown to be extremely stupid, to the point of idiocy. In the film they are generally used for comic effect, and are shown lounging aimlessly around Jareth's throne room, tormenting chickens and consuming alcohol. The Goblin Army appears highly incompetent, and fails to present any real threat to Sarah and her friends as they approach Jareth's Castle.

In Return to Labyrinth and The Goblins of Labyrinth, goblins are shown to have a variety of careers outside the military, occupying positions as cooks, shoemakers and musicians. There are goblins of higher intelligence, such as Mayor Spittledrum who is competent enough to manage the bureaucratic running of The Goblin City.

History

Thousands of years ago the goblins were ruled by members of their own species. The goblins were governed by a democratic government, whose figureheads were said to be "modest, self-effacing creatures, whose only desire was to promote the happiness and well-being of their fellows." Every goblin in government had to take an Oath of Anonymity to ensure that none of the deeds they carried out were for the sake of their own glory. This oath came to be abused, as the goblins in government started assuming pseudonyms that they became terribly vain about and wished to be preserved for posterity. This abuse resulted in The Great Collapse of Good Governance in the Labyrinth.

The goblin society descended into anarchy, and unemployment and unruliness were widespread. At some point following the Collapse of Good Governance in the Labyrinth, Jareth assumed the role of King of the Goblins and made them subject to his whims.

King Jareth was an autocratic ruler, and had absolute control over the Labyrinth and all its inhabitants. He maintained control over the goblins through his superior intelligence, and ability to intimidate them into submission.

Dissent started to stir among the goblins following Sarah Williams' time in the Labyrinth, as in the wake of her victory Jareth's powers started to wane and he grew progressively more disinterested in affairs of state.