Under the Influence: Charles Altamont Doyle and “The Fairy’s Whisper”
Under the Influence: Charles Altamont Doyle and “The Fairy’s Whisper”

Author(s): Trish Baer
Subject(s): Cultural history, 18th Century, 19th Century
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: Charles Doyle; fairies; alcoholism; Fairy’s Whisper
Summary/Abstract: Did the Victorians really believe in fairies? Scholarly opinions vary. For example, Jeremy Maas suggests that the Victorians “embraced belief in fairies as a reaction to the disenchantment of the world”. Similarly, Charlotte Gere attributes the Victorian interest in fairies as a reaction to “the growing industrialization and materialism of Victorian life”. Carole G. Silver remarks that the Victorians believed fairies were “responsible for the naughtiness of infants”, and, as proof, directs our attention to Charles Altamont Doyle’s illustration “The Fairy’s Whisper.” In Silver’s words, this “sinister” scene depicts “a small adult fairy floating above the head of a large mischievously smiling infant.” Silver quotes, but does not comment on, Doyle’s text below the illustration; “Any body [sic] who has nursed a baby as I have, will recognise the smile I think.” This study establishes that the illustration is a self-portrait. The infant’s expression is inebriated, and the text is a sly self-reference to Doyle’s severe alcoholism. The chapter examines the connections evident in Doyle’s illustrations to 1) his belief that fairies negatively influenced the behaviour of both children and adults; 2) his conviction that his family, due to the whispering of a fairy, was responsible for his incarceration in a mental asylum; and 3) his rationalization that his alcoholism was encouraged throughout his life by a fairy whispering in his ear. Despite his staunch Catholic faith, Doyle’s belief in the corporeal reality of fairies remained steadfast until the end of his life.

• Details
• Contents