The Werewolf: Past and Future: Lycanthropy's Lost History and Modern Devolution

The Werewolf: Past and Future: Lycanthropy's Lost History and Modern Devolution
Author: Maegan A. Stebbins
Publisher: Justin R Stebbins
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2021-08-27
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9781949227024

Since before recorded history, werewolves have captivated human imagination. Simultaneously, they represent our deepest fears as well as our desire to connect with our primal ancestry. Today, werewolves are portrayed negatively, associated with violence, cruelty, cannibalism, and general malevolence. However, in ages past, legends depicted them not as monsters, but as a range of neutral to benevolent individuals, such as traveling companions, guardians, and knights. The robust legacy of the werewolf spans from prehistory, through ancient Greece and Rome, to the Middle Ages, into the Early Modern period, and finally into present-day popular culture. Over the ages, the view of the werewolf has become distorted. Media treatment of werewolves is associated with inferior writing, lacking in thought, depth, and meaning. Werewolves as characters or creatures are now generally seen as single-minded and one-dimensional, and they want nothing more than to kill, devour, and possibly violate humans. Hollywood depictions have resulted in the destruction of the true meanings behind werewolf legends that fascinated and terrified humans for so many ages. If these negative trends were reversed, perhaps entertainment might not only discover again some of the true meanings behind the werewolf myth, but also take the first steps toward reversing negative portrayals of wolves themselves, which humans have, for eons, wrongfully stigmatized and portrayed as evil, resulting in wolves receiving crueler treatment than virtually any other animal. To revive the many questions posed by lycanthropy, entertainment must show respect to the rich history of so many cultures all around the world - and rediscover the legend of the werewolf.

The Werewolf in Lore and Legend

The Werewolf in Lore and Legend
Author: Montague Summers
Publisher: Courier Corporation
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2012-04-27
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0486122700

The first definitive work on werewolfery incorporates an extensive range of historical documentation and folklore. Written in a Gothic style by a venerable author of occult studies, it's rich in fascinating examples and anecdotes and offers compelling fare for lovers of the esoteric.

Werewolves and Other Shapeshifters in Popular Culture

Werewolves and Other Shapeshifters in Popular Culture
Author: Kimberley McMahon-Coleman
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 213
Release: 2012-05-25
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0786468165

In recent years, shapeshifting characters in literature, film and television have been on the rise. This has followed the increased use of such characters as metaphors, with novelists and critics identifying specific meanings and topics behind them. This book aims to unravel the shapeshifting trope. Rather than pursue a case-based study, the works are grouped around specific themes--adolescence, gender, sexuality, race, disability, addiction, and spirituality--that are explored through the metaphor of shapeshifting. Because of the transformative possibilities of this metaphor and its flexibility, the shapeshifter has the potential to change how we see our world. With coverage of iconic fantasy texts and a focus on current works, the book engages with the shapeshifting figure in popular culture from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.

The Werewolf Book

The Werewolf Book
Author: Brad Steiger
Publisher: Visible Ink Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2011-09-01
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 1578593786

When Darkness Reigns and the Full Moon Glows, Terror Emerges to Stalk the Unsuspecting… From lycanthropic creatures found on television and film such as Teen Wolf, Twilight, and True Blood to the earliest folklore of shape-shifting creatures, The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shapeshifting Beings is an eye-opening, blood-pounding tour through the ages of monsters with the most amazing camouflage capabilities—they hide among us! Along the way, you’ll land at the doorstep of creatures like hirsute mass-murderer Albert Fish, and Fritz Haarman, who slaughtered and ate his victims—selling the leftovers as steaks and roasts in his butcher shop—as well as visits to mythical shamans, sirens, and skin walkers. Covering 140,000 years of legend, mythology, and fact, The Werewolf Book provides hair-raising evidence of strange and obsessional behavior through the centuries. Learn the basics of becoming a werewolf and the intricacies of slaying the beast. A true homage to werewolves and other full moon beasts, it includes topics such as … • Bear, tiger, coyote, and other shape-shifting people • Classic and modern werewolf movies • Gargoyles, totem poles, and Internet depictions • Serial killers and sadistic rulers • Sorcery, spells, and talismans • Television shows, songs, and computer games Werewolf hunters and fans of all ages will appreciate the detailed section on slaying the beast, while potential victims will find the information on detecting and warding away the occasional wayward wolfman more to their immediate liking—if not need. With over 120 illustrations and photos this ultimate lycanthrope compendium is richly illustrated. The Werewolf Book's helpful bibliography and extensive index add to its usefulness.

The Lycanthropy Reader

The Lycanthropy Reader
Author: Charlotte F. Otten
Publisher: Syracuse University Press
Total Pages: 360
Release: 1986-12-01
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 9780815623847

Our understanding of lycanthropy is limited by our association of it with contemporary portrayals of werewolves in horror films and gothic fiction. No rational person today believes that a human being can literally be metamorphosed into a wolf; therefore, in the absence of an historical context, the study of werewolves can appear to be a wayward pursuit of the perversely irrational and the sensational. This Reader provides the historical context Drawing on primary sources, it is a comprehensive survey of all aspects of lycanthropy, with a focus on the medieval and Renaissance periods. Lycanthropes were on trial in the courtrooms of Europe, and on examination in medical offices and mental hospitals; they were the objects of communal fear and pity, and the subjects of sermons and philosophical treatises. In the Introduction to the Reader, Charlotte Otten shows that the study of lycanthropy uncovers basic issues in human life the significance of violence and criminality, the role of the demonic in aberrant behavior, and ultimately the nature of good and evil The implications for modern life are immediately apparent. The Reader is divided into six sections ( 1) Medical Cases, Diagnoses, Descriptions; (2) Trial Records, Historical Accounts, Sightings; (3) Philosophical and Theological Approaches to Metamorphosis; ( 4) Critical Essays on Lycanthropy (Anthropology, History, and Medicine); (5) Myths and Legends; and (6) Allegory . Each section has an introduction that summarizes and interprets the materials.

She-wolf

She-wolf
Author: Hannah Priest
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Total Pages: 237
Release: 2018-07-30
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 071909819X

She-wolf explores the cultural history of the female werewolf, from her first appearance in medieval literature to recent incarnations in film, television and popular literature. The book includes contributors from various disciplines, and offers a cross-period, interdisciplinary exploration of a perennially popular cultural production. The book covers material from the Middle Ages to the present day with chapters on folklore, history, witch trials, Victorian literature, young adult literature, film and gaming. Considering issues such as religious and social contexts, colonialism, constructions of racial and gendered identities, corporeality and subjectivity – as well as female body hair, sexuality and violence – She-wolf reveals the varied ways in which the female werewolf is a manifestation of complex cultural anxieties, as well as a site of continued fascination.

Werewolf Magick

Werewolf Magick
Author: Denny Sargent
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2020-09-08
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 0738764612

Unleash the Wolf Within Raise your confidence, connect to your primal self, and deepen your spirituality with this empowering book of lycanthropic magick. Featuring authentic shape-shifting rituals, spells, meditations, and folklore, Werewolf Magick shows you how to awaken your inner wolf and transform into a happier, braver, and freer person. Denny Sargent leads you on a life-changing journey into the world of primal magick. This practical book reveals how to embrace your fearless Animalself through dozens of hands-on exercises and ancient techniques. Learn to shed the restrictions of modern society and answer the call of your feral being. Master spiritual shape-shifting and meet wolf deities. Discover effective tools, invocations, and symbols to enhance your practice. This ecstatic guide helps bring forth your powerful werewolf self and reach your full, natural potential.

Werewolves

Werewolves
Author: Erin Peabody
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 128
Release: 2020-01-01
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1499805217

Are ferocious, shapeshifting werewolves real, or just a myth? You decide with this new book in the nonfiction series, Behind the Legend! Behind the Legend looks at creatures and monsters throughout history and analyzes them through a scientific, myth-busting lens, debating whether or not the sightings and evidence provided are adequate proof of their existence. In Werewolves, readers learn about all the sightings and "proof" of them, from stories in history of wolves that terrorized towns, such as the Beast of Gévaudan, as well as people (even children!) who were believed to transform into wolves, and other evidence. It also discusses additional history about the monster, such as how werewolves became major figures in popular culture, more recent supposed sightings, and theories on werewolf transformations. Complete with engaging anecdotes, interesting sidebars, and fantastic illustrations, kids won't want to put this book down!

A Concise Treatise on Lycanthropy: With Annotation and Explanation of Werewolfism. Including Rare & Obscure Tracts and Essays.

A Concise Treatise on Lycanthropy: With Annotation and Explanation of Werewolfism. Including Rare & Obscure Tracts and Essays.
Author: Andreas Shibilis
Publisher:
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2019-03-07
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 9781798175071

Of unknown origin, Count Andreas Shibilis is said to have been the King of the Bulgarian Gypsies, sometime in the 19th century. He is also known as a highly skilled practitioner of the black arts. Shibilis disappeared without a trace after allegedly being turned into a werewolf. His other known written works include several monographs on magic and the mystification arts. It is also believed that Count Shibilis authored the mystifying Rohonc Codex, the extraordinary illustrated manuscript which has perplexed scholars since it surfaced in the 19th century in Hungary. There is no record of the birth or death of Count Andreas Shibilis.Concise and precise, with all the facts and data on the subject, laid out simply for the layperson. Put aside all you have read on lycanthropy. Be prepared for a firsthand account of werewolfism. This is a reprint of the singularly unique original monograph by Count Andreas Shibilis. As it is the only known work on lycanthopy written by a lycanthrope. Within this treatise, the reader will learn the ways of becoming a werewolf, methods of defense against a werewolf, ways to lift the affliction of lycanthropy - along with historical accounts, legends and folklore regarding werewolfery. Of particular notoriety, you will read about Edgar Allan Poe - the werewolf, as well as the Count himself. In his own words there is a brief account of how Count Andreas Shibilis became a werewolf and the incredible story of how he relieved himself of the affliction.

Beast

Beast
Author: S. R. Schwalb
Publisher: Skyhorse
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2016-02-16
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 163220780X

Using modern biology and history to investigate a series of grisly deaths in the countryside of 18th-century France. Something unimaginable occurred from 1764 to 1767 in the remote highlands of south-central France. For three years, a real-life monster, or monsters, ravaged the region, slaughtering by some accounts more than 100 people, mostly women and children, and inflicting severe injuries upon many others. Alarmed rural communities—and their economies—were virtually held hostage by the marauder, and local officials and Louis XV deployed dragoons and crack wolf hunters from far-off Normandy and the King’s own court to destroy the menace. And with the creature’s reign of terror occurring at the advent of the modern newspaper, it can be said the ferocious attacks in the Gévaudan region were one of the world's first media sensations. Despite extensive historical documentation about this awesome predator, no one seemed to know exactly what it was. Theories abounded: Was it an exotic animal, such as a hyena, that had escaped from a menagerie? A werewolf? A wolf-dog hybrid? A new species? Some kind of conspiracy? Or, as was proposed by the local bishop, was it a scourge of God? To this day, debates on the true nature of La Bête, “The Beast,” continue. With historical illustrations, composite sketches by the author, on-the-scene modern-day photographs, autopsy analysis, and fictionalized accounts, Beast takes a fascinating look at all the evidence, using a mix of history and modern biology to advance a theory that could solve one of the most bizarre and unexplained killing sprees of all time: France’s infamous Beast of the Gévaudan.