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Author
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Comment
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Welonheadmoo
Unregistered User
(9/11/05 9:17 am)
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Glamour Repellents
I was just wondering what would dispell faeries and their glamour and why. I already know a couple, like iron, salt... but that's basically all, and I'm wondering if anyone knows why faeries are abhorrent toward them.
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Random
Registered User
(9/11/05 1:09 pm)
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Re: Glamour Repellents
I believe silver might be another one of those things the fey can't handle, on account of its purity or something, and mirrors in stories have a tendency to reflect the truth (which might count as glamour-dispelling). A Google search with a few of these things (I searched for 'fairies iron salt') turns up a couple more, such as fire and, apparently, oatmeal.
As to why these are reputed to be effective, it may be that they are, for the most part, readily available and help keep people from feeling entirely powerless (similar to children believing that being under the covers will protect them from the monster under the bed). Why these objects specifically, though, I don't know. Perhaps it has to do with their down-to-earth qualities?
Anyway, hope other people can help more than I can.
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kristiw
Unregistered User
(9/11/05 5:39 pm)
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fairy repellant
In Irish folklore, at least, the things repellant to fairies are the things which are fundamentally human, or symbols of culture. The control of fire, particularly, has long been imagined as something dividing humans from animals; iron working is up there on the list of milestones in human cultural development; salt, at least in Ireland, isn't something you can scrape off the ground, but something you have to get through another human achievement: long distance trade.
I've never heard oatmeal (I do know one story where porridge was turned down because it was made with salt), but I can imagine the symbol of cultivation would extend to that: oats as a symbol of agriculture and settled communities.
One thing I'm at a loss to explain, though, is the color red. It's supposed to be an effective fairy repellant ('rowan twig and red threid' and all that) because it reminds them they haven't enough red blood in them to get into heaven (according to some stories), but it's also something they're often associated with wearing (red caps). Thoughts?
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Welonheadmoo
Unregistered User
(9/14/05 3:53 pm)
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mirrors and faeries
Hey, thanks guys. Right now, though, I'm particularly interested in the relationship between fariries and mirrors. Does anyone happen to know anything else?
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Crceres
Registered User
(9/16/05 1:29 pm)
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Re: mirrors and faeries
I'm not sure if you would accept Pratchett's Discworld as an acceptable source of folkloric information (though the books are stiff with it--in a good way!) but in Witches Abroad a mirror is used by the villain for magic...I can't recall the details, sorry.
A mirror is one of those things that can be used as a portal between this world and the next, depending on your definition of "next". I think they are mostly seen as a portal for information--e.g. light a candle at midnight and see your true love--with the accidental summoning of evil spirits as a major downside. The modern version, Bloody Mary, has been discussed extensively in some past threads on Surlalune.
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AliceCEB
Registered User
(9/16/05 6:36 pm)
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Re: mirrors and faeries
In Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell mirrors are a doorway to Faery, if used with the proper magic.
Best,
Alice
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MmusicOfTheNight
Unregistered User
(9/23/05 10:29 am)
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Religion
In some stories, especially medieval ones, fairies are defeated by anything associated with religion. Church bells, crosses, and other similar items can usually break a fairy's power. Some experts believe that this is because the stories about fairies originate from stories about pagan gods, and Christianity defeated these gods in Europe.
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