Eoin Colfer's magical fairies : the depiction of fairies in Artemis Fowl compared to folklore and other literature

Abstract

The name fairy has been surrounded with mystery and excitement for as long as people have been telling stories about strange and supernatural beings. This essay endeavours to find similarities and differences in the magic and portrayal of fairies created by a present day author, Eoin Colfer, compared to the fairies of Celtic legends and Victorian beliefs. In order to fully understand the length of Colfer’s imagination his fairies will be compared to creations from a few of the fantasy genres biggest names: J.R.R Tolkien, James Barrie and William Shakespeare. In addition this essay aims to discover peculiarities and other distinguishing features in an advanced technological society living just a few kilometres below our feet, where the fairy residents do everything they can to keep mankind from knowing they exist.Validerat; 20101217 (root