The Cottingley Fairies Analysis

The case of the Cottingley fairies is a hoax that will ignite your inner child. This is a story that involved two young girls who believed in fairies and even seemed to befriend them and create a fluster of attention. 11-year-old Frances Griffiths and her friend Elsie Wright were considered “artistic” and very “creative”, while these are great traits to have, Elsie’s father Arthur who happened to be an amateur photographer, did not appreciate some of the things that she did. One of those actions that she took created one of histories most remembered hoax’s, The Cottingley Fairies. Elsie borrowed her father’s camera to take near the stream that she lived by, Frances accompanying her. The girls came back home about 30 minutes later with Frances behind a bush in the foreground, on which four fairies appeared to be dancing. When Elsie’s father had taken the camera back to the dark room to produce hard copies of the photos they tool, he noticed the abnormal scenery. He was quick to dismiss the picture and make the statement that they were both creative girls and the fairies to be cardboard cutouts. Two months later the girls borrowed his camera again, and this time returned with a photograph of Elsie sitting on the lawn holding out her hand to a 1-foot-tall gnome. Elsie’s …show more content…
"It is funny, I never used to see them in Africa. It must be too hot for them there." (1) Was said in the letter to her old friend. Ironically, Elsie’s mother had a meeting of the Theosophical Society in Bradford to discuss “Fairy life”. Her mother then advertised the two photos that were taken by her daughter and her niece to the speaker of the franchise. After, the photos were displayed at the society’s annual conference in Harrogate, held a few months later. Apparently they came to the attention to the leading member of the society, Edward