Goblins, Fairies, House-Spirits & the Imagination

By Craig: The world is full of legends, myths and folk tales that become imbeded in a regions cultural history. In the days of old, people were at a loss as to explain certain aspects of the natural world that they did not understand. They explained these mysteries using the only means in which they had been endowed. They accomplished this through reason and experience. Often times they would come up with erroneous conclusions based on their limited scientific ability. Naturally, they would turn to the spirit world where such mysteries must (according to them) come from. Each culture has its own legends that often times transcend the bounds of reason. These legends do not have to fit in with the corporeal world of mere mortals. They belong to another realm where something greater than mankind dwells. A place where the fragile human is reduced to being a subject of interest, or a plaything for these superior beings. These beings might take the shape of omnipotent Gods like Zeus, or Odin. They might appear as great warriors such as the Irish hero Cuchulainn, or the Sumerian King, Gilgamesh. However, they may appear in a more innocuous form, at least at first, before beguiling the unwary human. Some of these beings issue forth as goblins, fairies or house spirits.

  A Domovoy

     When I was a small child living in the backwoods of rural New England my brother and I would often times form exploratory parties and venture off into the woods to see what we could find. I can still recall the feeling that I would get when I noticed or heard something that I did not yet understand. One time, during the autumn, when the leaves had fallen from the trees in thick, brown,red, orange and yellow piles, I heard a sound close by that I had not previously heard in my short life. It was a creaking sound, as if something heavy was being moved. I immediatly scanned the forest looking for a giant, or ogre who might suddenly appear above the tree tops wielding a large club. I then thought that I heard heavy footsteps crushing the brittle leaves. Even after I finally determined that the creaking sound was coming from a dead tree swaying in the cool autumn breeze I still made leaps and bounds over fallen logs, and boulders as fast as my little legs would carry me back to the safety of our house. My brother, of course, reaching the safety of the backdoor yards ahead of me. I bring this up only to show that the human mind can imagine and invent many things. It can create something out of little or nothing. This is how legends start.

       House spirits have been a part of folklore for centuries. The English house spirit is commonly referred to as a Brownie. In Russia it is called a Domovoy, and the Germans call it a Kobold. Typically, these spirits are guardians of a house, barn, or stable. They are generally benevolant spirits that merely guard the residence and protect it from evildoers. Traditionally, the resident of the house give these spirits an offering of some kind. Usually this is in the form of a block of cheese, some bread, a bowl of milk, or some other edible. There are, however, other fairies that are not so nice, and in fact are associated with mischief of some kind, and sometimes downright terror. There is the Irish Banshee that howls or cries outside of a bedroom window at night. This is usually taken as an omen that the occupant of that room will soon die. Probably one of the most terrifying fairy legends has circulated among the English countryside for centuries. It is a water spirit that haunts the creeks, marshes and brooks of old England and goes by the name of Jenny Greenteeth. This wretched monster is an old ugly hag, usually green and slimy looking with long hair and sharp teeth. It crawls out of the water grabbing unsuspecting children and carries them into the watery depths to an early grave. This legend probably arose from an innate fear that parents had of their children drowning.
"Watch out for Old Jenny, or she'll pull ye down into a watery grave!"

                                                     The Shakespearean Goblin Puck
      
         Goblins have a long history, especially in Europe. There is Redcap who lurks in the ruins of old houses and castles and preys on the unwary traveler who might cross his path. His cap is suppose to be dyed red in human blood. Probably the most famous of goblins is the English, Puck. Puck resides in the forest, and often times makes mischief by raiding farmers barns, toppling things from shelves, and opening stable gates. He makes an appearance in William Shakespeares play A Midsummer-Night's Dream.

Puck: Fairy, thou speak'st aright;

           I am that merry wanderer of the night.

           I jest to Oberon, and make him smile

           When I a fat and bean-fed horse beguile,

           Neighing in likeness of a filly foal:

           And sometimes lurk in a gossip's bowl,

           In very likeness of a roasted crab;

           And, when she drinks, against her lips I bob

           And on her wither'd dewlap pour the ale.

  
   Another well known goblin, or fairy like creature comes from either a German, or Dutch legend called Rumpelstiltskin. A certain miller brags to his king one day that his daughter can weave straw, or hair into gold. The king imprisons the girl and threatens to cut off her head if the room she is in is not filled with gold by the next morning. The girl, of course, does not know the secret of alchemy, however she is saved by the sudden appearence of Rumpelstiltskin. He emerges from the shadows and agrees to fill the room with gold if the miller's daughter gives him her ring. She readily agrees, and the next morning the room is filled with gold, much to the satisfaction of the greedy king. The king then  demands that she fill the room with gold again or lose her head in the morning. If she succeeds he will marry her. Once again, Rumpelstiltskin comes to the rescue. This time, however, he demands that she is to give up her first born son to him as payment. She agrees, and the next morning the king returns to see more gold, and keeps his promise by marrying the girl. Some time later, the girl has her first born son, and Rumpelstiltskin returns for his payment. She refuses him outright, but he swears revenge. He tells her that she can keep the boy if she can find out what his name is within three days. She sends a spy to the goblin's cottage where he is seen dancing around in his parlor repeating a chant.
                                Today I'll brew, and tomorrow I'll bake.
                                And the child away I will take.
                                For little knows the queen.
                                Rumpelstiltskin is the name!
Rumpelstiltskin returns to the queen and demands his due, but she shocks him by divulging his name. He becomes so mad that he stomps his feet on the ground causing a great crack in the earth where he falls in never to return.

     Rumpelstiltskin was one of my favorite stories from my childhood. It brought out the imagination, and I would often believe that I would meet up with a goblin-like character on one of my forays into the woods where the Nipmucks had trod centuries before. Perhaps I would even enter into a fairy circle and join them in a dance, never to return to the world I knew. Of course, the circle that I encountered was nothing more than a whirlwind, turning the crisp autumn leaves into a funnel in which I soon entered...It was the whirlwind of youth, a time when you could enjoy the freedom of imagination.

    

                (A Fairy Circle) From which it is said that if one enters one may never return.