Article Topic: Faeries

Puck, aka Robin Goodfellow, is a well-known star of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. But why did Shakespeare, the majority of whose work recounts the deeds and tragedies of kings, princes, and emperors, choose to write about the denizens of the Faerie world? Kenny Klein, author of Through the Faerie Glass, recounts Shakespeare's upbringing, rife with Faerie lore, and the five faeries of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

The lore of the faery realm has, like the world of humans, traditionally focused on love—both tales of faery lovers and of fey beings who have fallen in love with mortals and sometimes tried to keep them forever in their faery kingdoms. These stories, whether perceived as pure lore or used as a way of explaining past mortal occurrences, tell the tales of true love, of faery temptresses, of lover's quarrels, and more. Cassandra Eason, author of The Magick of Faeries, explains the possible history behind these tales.