Research
Folk History
Fairy lore had several origins across European countries, and while specific beliefs may differ between countries, there was a general consensus that fairies were malevolent, otherworldly, and generally negative beings. While fairies have several subspecies, for the purpose of this analysis, all will be included, though not necessarily referenced explicitly. A common belief was that charms and talismans were needed to ward off fairies and their mischief. Common charms and talismans included the four-leaf clover, bells, gifts, iron, baked goods, and rowan trees. Some of these charms acted as a ritual, which are "performance that are repeated and patterned and frequently include ceremonial symbols and actions" (Sims and Stephens 2011, 99). Though these were not a performance, they were highly symbolic, repeated actions that were performed in relation to the cultural belief of fairies. One example of this is that some individuals would carry bread in a pocket when traveling at night to act an an offering to fairies, and therefore protect them from malice.
Early European folk tales were primarily shared orally, through shared tales and superstitions. Superstitions of fairies surrounded fear of insulting them in some way. Fairy forts were to be left undisturbed, else death may fall upon whoever tampers with the fairy's home. Fairies were known to travel along regular paths, which should be avoided altogether, or at the very least, shouldn't be blocked. If one's house was on the fairy path, homeowners would knock down corners so that the path
wasn't blocked. If a house was built on a path, people would often align the front and back doors on the path, then leave both open at night so that the fairies could travel through the house, not having to break off the path.
Fairies were often associated with nature, leading to the lore of fairy mounds and fairy rings. Fairy mounds, or forts, are large circular hills or stone circles in which fairies reside. Similarly, fairy rings are smaller circles of mushrooms or flowers that can be found where fairies spend time or live. It was advised that these locations be avoided, as they may transport the individual into the fairy realm.
Fairies were described as mischievous beings who would prank humans. These pranks were often mildly inconvenient and ultimately harmless. Fairy locks were a common prank in which fairies would tangle the hair of sleepers. House fairies are a distinct type of fairy that resides in a humans house. These fairies often help homeowners with tasks with the expectation of reward. While these fairies would aid homeowners, if their work went without reward, or they were displeased with the one they received, they were said to steal items from homeowners.
Fairies were also known to disorient travelers through illusion and misdirection. Fairies would make illusions of a new path, or appear as a will-o’-the-wisp, to pull travelers off the true path. Will-o’-the-wisps are described as being a ghostly light that appears in the near distance at night. Travelers would follow this light, possibly mistaking it for another traveler, but the light would disappear or move when approached, leaving the traveler in unfamiliar, remote, and even dangerous territory. While fairies were often used to explain minor daily disruptions, they were also used to explain serious ailments such as sudden illnesses (most commonly tuberculosis) and death, and birth defects. Eberly (1988) explains that changelings refer to the belief that fairies will swap human children with one of their own, to leave behind a less desirable substitute. They were used to explain sudden changes in a child's demeanor or appearance, and in other cases they were also used to explain physical birth defects. They were explanations for what we now know to be developmental disorders, disabilities, or illnesses.
Influences of Shakespeare and Others
Shakespeare revolutionized the depictions of fairies through his works The Tempest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. While both works had mentions of fairies, A Midsummer Night’s Dream had a plot centered around fairies, so that will be our focus.
Shakespeare had two primary influences on the lore of fairies.
First, Shakespeare works altered the public perception of fairies. Shakespeare made an effort to use fairies as lighthearted, tension-quelling, protagonists. This utilization of fairies shifted their perception from malevolent and otherworldly to lighthearted mischievous beings. While Shakespeare did utilize European superstitions, he used them in a lighter tone. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the role of the changeling is used to create conflict between King Oberon and Queen Titania. This character embodied the European folk tales of changelings, as he was a boy kidnapped into the fairy realm. Shakespeare used this role to create conflict between the King and Queen, yet despite its darker themes and origins, the play remained a comedy.
Shakespeare references the fairy realm throughout A Midsummer Night's Dream, describing it as separate from the mortal realm. He uses the superstition of travelers getting lost in the woods and stumbling into the fairy realm, which mirrors the beliefs surrounding fairy rings and fairy mounds, and fairies leading travelers astray. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, the forest is the area in which fairies inhabit/dwell, and mortals who come across these places can be trapped or transported into the fairy realm.
Robin Goodfellow, or Puck, is the most notable fairy figure in Shakespeare’s work. Shakespeare uses Puck as a comic instrument to create confusion and chaos between the human and fairy characters. Puck’s mischievous nature is established in A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 2 Scene 1:
“Either I mistake your shape and making quite,
Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite
Called Robin Goodfellow. Are not you he
That frights the maidens of the villag’ry,
Skim milk, and sometimes labor in the quern,
And bootless make the breathless housewife churn,
And sometime make the drink to bear no barm,
Mislead night wanderers, laughing at their harm?
Those that “hobgoblin” call you and “sweet Puck,”
You do their work and they shall have good luck.
Are not you he?”
While Puck is a complex and morally gray character, despite his disruptions, the public ultimately viewed him as a primary comedic element. While he did meddle with humans, his motives were not malicious, rather it was shown that he found the effects of his pranks to be humorous.
Second, he was the first mainstream author to emphasize the small stature of fairies. In both A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Tempest, Shakespeare relates fairies to the flower cowslip (pictured above). They were described as being small enough to “Creep into acorn-cups and hide” (Shakespeare 1600). This is the most noticeable visual influence Shakespeare had on fairies. Before his works, fairies were assumed to be human-sized, but Shakespeare exaggerated their small size to minimize their malevolence.
Shakespearean fairies were not depicted as having wings, though Puck was described as being able to move “swifter than the moones sphere,” or faster than the moon's orbit (Shakespeare 1600). While his fairies, and other fairies of the time, weren't winged, artists commonly depicted fairies using birds and insects as mounts. This further emphasizes Shakespeare's influence on fairies' small stature. This was then transformed into fairies having wings themselves in the Victorian era; Often, fairies are shown as having butterfly or dragon wings, showing how this visualization morphed.
Fairies in Contemporary Media
Contemporary depictions of fairies fall in two main categories: folk and popular culture.
While aspects of high culture are still prevalent, contemporary depictions are adapted to fit a modern audience, making them fall into popular culture. A main focus point for folklorists is how these types of cultures interact. In the case of fairy folklore, folklorists examine the way that popular and folk culture interact, noting that many groups use these fictional depictions to shift and explain their worldview. Whether an individual interprets these depictions as true fiction, or as non-fiction and canonical, it is clear that these fictional adaptations of folk history both inspire and are inspired by folklore.
Modern adaptations of folk tales largely reflect the attitude shift Shakespeare accomplished. Common fairies such as the tooth fairy reflect the folk cultural belief that some fairies will exchange favors for payment, but this modern archetype largely neglects the aspect of revenge and pranks if fairies weren't satisfied with their offering. Common contemporary fairy tales adapt historical superstitions and romanticize them to weave a tale of adventure, fun, and love.
Modern depictions of malevolent or rude fairies are few and far between. The most prominent example of the malevolent fairy is The Wicked Fairy, Maleficent, in Sleeping Beauty who cursed Aurora to die on her 16th birthday out of revenge. While evil depictions are harder to find, the mischievous and meddlesome nature of fairies is far more common; These depictions show the neutral if not good nature of fairies. These examples include Tinker Bell from Peter Pan, the Fairy Godmother archetype, and the tooth fairy. Other specific examples include cornish pixies which are depicted in Harry Potter (Rowling 2000). They are shown as being mischievous, as shown in the following scene:
Gilderoy Lockhart: "Yes. Freshly caught Cornish pixies. Yes?"
Seamus Finnigan: "Well, they're not — they're not very — dangerous, are they?"
Gilderoy Lockhart: "Don't be so sure! Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!"
Fairies are briefly shown in the 1986 film Labyrinth, where they are shown to be small,
beautiful flying creatures, but their looks are deceiving, because they bite.
The modern depictions of fairies have been highly altered by Shakespeare’s and other artists works, as they too have emphasized fairies' size and their good but mischievous nature. Fairies are no longer viewed as otherworldly creatures that are to blame for life's peculiar or serious circumstances. Rather, they act as a tool to aid humans, and though they may be pranksters, they are fundamentally working in a way that is good for the humans involved. Visually, they are small, and often winged, though that is not always the case. Certain-type of fairies appear more human-like than others; Commonly, they have an ethereal, whimsical beauty, though some don't have this appearance.
While fairies were used to explain the unexplainable and unfamiliar aspects of the human condition, now fairies are used as a fantasy element, with the most common tropes being used to grant human characters their desires, whether that be love, beauty, status, or money. Changelings are no longer used as frightful tales, but the concept of getting lured or kidnapped into the fairy realm can still be seen in some media (e.g. The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa). While some film and literature depictions of fairies do utilize other aspects of folk history, such as charms, fairy weaknesses, and specific pranks, these are not used as canonical pieces of information, rather they are used to further the plot and act as an Easter egg for those familiar with fairies folkloric origins. Many of these modern depictions show fairies in conjunction with other fantasy creatures, which often misinterprets and hides the folkloric accuracy of these creatures. On a macro scale, fairy depictions in popular culture no longer “[relate] to any specific religious and spiritual values” (Wood 2006, 292). Viewers interpret fairies as a preservation of innocence and a carrier of humanistic values; While these values may not be largely associated with spirituality or religion, they are still a highly metaphorical depiction of our “unreachable” desires and are used as escapism.