fallen angels and demigods
Debate continues over what exactly fairies are, including fallen angels, demigods, and human spirits, with some seeing precedents in things like Lilith. Lilith, probably of Mesopotamian origin, was adopted into some Jewish folklore as the first wife of Adam, who was expelled from Eden in search of an equal. She has sex when the man is asleep in order to get pregnant. Lilith is often associated with the Greek mythological figure Lamia. Lamia also seduces men and, like Lilith, steals babies, which is common behavior for fairies.
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when or why fairies began their transformation from the whimsical, frightening beings of folklore to the glittering-winged, joyful do-gooders that many think of today. According to Simon Young and Ceri Holbrook’s book Magical Folk: From British and Irish Fairies of 500 AD to the Present, the first fairy wings “did not appear in paintings until the late 18th century, and It was more an invention of a cabal of British artists than a feature of folklore. It took another 70 years before fairy wings were mentioned in fairy tales, and then another 50 years before people made the first claims of seeing winged fairies.”
AlamyThe book notes that belief in fairies declined from the mid-19th century with the advent of the industrial age, perhaps as a result of urbanization and the decline of rural-like places favored by dwarfs, or as a result of increased scientific knowledge and skepticism of folk superstition. Perhaps improved infant mortality rates also contributed to the decline of fairies.
JM Barrie’s Tinker Bell from Peter Pan represents, in some ways, both old and new traditions. Although she resembles a cute fairy in appearance, she is chaotic, cruel, and sexually jealous of Wendy.
Source: BBC Culture – www.bbc.com
