Werewolf

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This article is about the werewolf concept. For other uses of Werewolf, see Werewolf (disambiguation)
You may also wish to see the werewolf article at WikiBestiary

A werewolf in folklore and mythology is a person who changes into a wolf, either by purposefully using magic or by being placed under a curse. The medieval chronicler Gervase of Tilbury associated the transformation with the appearance of the full moon, but this concept was rarely associated with the werewolf until the idea was picked up by modern fiction writers. Most modern references agree that a werewolf can be killed if shot by a silver bullet, although this is more a reflection of fiction's influence than an authentic feature of the folk legends. A nmore realistic approach that seems to be closer to the truth, and has been incorporated into more recent works of fictions and movies, is that, for all the supernatural aspects of these creatures, they are still beings of flesh and blood, so they can be killed with any weapon that does enough damage.

Some people call themselves weres or therians and believe they can physically or spiritually shift into a (were)wolf or other (were)animals, although the therians strongly disagree with the physical side of this and seek to disprove any physical aspect of shifting, making it a purely spiritual phenomenon. This however, is not a subculture within the furry fandom, but rather a separate phenomenon unto itself. Werewolves are also popular amongst transformation fans.

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[edit] Lycanthropy

The ability of a human to undergo transformation into a wolf or werewolf is classically known as lycanthropy (deriving from the Greek words lykoi for wolf and anthropos for man). It is more commonly referred as the transformation of a human into any animal form but is mostly associated with wolves. Technically, the term for the latter is therianthropy.

The term takes its name from an Arcadian king named Lycaon in Greek mythology who, with his fifty impious sons, made an inappropriate sacrifice of human flesh to the god Zeus. The god, displeased with the sacrifice, either killed them all immediately with a lightning bolt or, more popularly in myth, turned the king and his sons into wolves.

In psychology, lycanthropy (referred to as "clinical lycanthropy") is a mental illness diagnosis where the patient believes that he or she is a wild animal. Remus Lupin, from the Harry Potter books, suffers from lycanthropy.

[edit] Werewolves in fiction

Werewolves have been portrayed in many works of fiction in the media of literature, drama and film. Werewolf literature includes folklore, legend, saga, fairy tales, gothic and horror fiction, fantasy fiction and poetry. Such stories may be supernatural, symbolic or allegorical. The archetypal portrayal of a werewolf in popular consciousness is probably that in the horror film The Wolf Man (1941) in which Lon Chaney Jr. transforms into a werewolf at the full moon, and in later films teams up with Frankenstein and Dracula, as one of the three famous horror icons of the modern day. However, werewolf fiction is an exceptionally diverse genre with ancient folkloric roots and manifold modern re-interpretations.

[edit] History

In some stories (derived from folk tales and medieval theology), the werewolf was demonic, part of Satan's army of darkness, inimical to the human race and having a craving for human flesh. This appears as a theme of the Gothic horror story "The White Wolf of the Hartz Mountains" (1839) by Marryat which features a monstrous spirit-being which transforms from wolf to woman.

In medieval romances, such as Bisclavret, and Guillaume de Palerme the werewolf takes on more innocent traits, appearing as the victim of evil magic and aiding knights errant.

In fairy tales, such as Little Red Riding Hood, the figure of the werewolf is more ambiguous and subject to an allegorical or Freudian interpretation. These tales are the inspiration behind modern fiction such as The Company of Wolves by Angela Carter and the film Ginger Snaps which deal with female sexuality.

In other stories beginning with Wagner the Wehr-Wolf (1847) by G.W.M. Reynolds, the classic theme of a man cursed to be transformed into a werewolf at the time of the full moon is reintroduced: representing the split personality and evil, bloodthirsty, dark side of humanity itself. This theme of lycanthropy as a disease or curse reached its standard treatment in the film The Wolf Man (1941), starring Lon Chaney Jr. This movie contained the now-famous rhyme:

   
Werewolf
 Even a man who is pure in heart

And says his prayers each night: May become a wolf when the wolf-bane blooms: And the autumn moon is full and bright.

   
Werewolf

This movie is often credited with originating several aspects of the legend which differ from traditional folklore such as the vulnerability of the werewolf to a silver bullet. The process of transmogrification is portrayed in such films and works of literature to be painful. The resulting wolf is typically cunning but merciless, and prone to killing and eating people without compunction regardless of the moral character of the person when human. The first feature film to use an anthropomorphic werewolf was Werewolf of London in 1935 (not to be confused with the 1981 film of a similar title) establishing the canon that the werewolf always kills what he loves most. The main werewolf of this film was a dapper London scientist who retained some of his style and most of his human features after his transformation.

A very popular modern sub genre consists of stories that treat werewolves as separate race or species (either science fictional or magical) or as persons using magic in order to deliberately transform into wolves at will. Such current-day werewolf fiction almost exclusively involves lycanthropy being either a hereditary condition or being transmitted like a disease by the bite of another werewolf. The form a werewolf takes is not always an ordinary wolf, but is often anthropomorphic or may be otherwise larger and more powerful than an ordinary wolf. Sometimes the beast form of the werewolf will have some physical characteristics borrowed from an animal species other than the wolf, as can be seen in the boar-like werewolf of Wild Country and the cat-like werewolves of Underworld. Many modern werewolves are also supposedly immune to damage caused by ordinary weapons, being vulnerable only to silver objects (usually a bullet or blade). This negative reaction to silver is sometimes so strong that the mere touch of the metal on a werewolf's skin will cause burns.

More recently, the portrayal of werewolves has taken a more sympathetic turn in some circles. With the rise of environmentalism and other back-to-nature ideals, the werewolf has come to be seen as a representation of humanity allied more closely with nature. A prime example of this outlook can be seen in the role-playing game Werewolf: The Apocalypse in which players roleplay various werewolf characters who work on behalf of Gaia against the destructive supernatural spirit named Wyrm, who represents the forces of destructive industrialization and pollution. Author Whitley Strieber previously explored these themes in his novels The Wild (in which the werewolf is portrayed as a medium through which to bring human intelligence and spirit back into nature) and The Wolfen (in which werewolves are shown to act as predators of humanity, acting as a "natural" control on their population now that it has been removed from the traditional limits of nature). The heroic werewolf has also returned via the paranormal romance genre, where wolf-like characteristics such as loyalty are shown as positive traits in a prospective mate.

Despite the recent upsurge in the motif of heroic werewolves, unsympathetic portrayals of werewolves as monsters also continue to be common in popular culture. This is especially true in movies, which are only slowly incorportating trends in written fiction. There are very few werewolf movies outside the horror genre.

[edit] Lists

[edit] Literature

This section includes novels and short stories.

  • The Werewolf's Touch (1993)
  • The Werewolf's Sin (1994)
  • Vampire World 1: Blood Brothers by Brian Lumley (1992) First part of the Necroscope series features the Wamphyri werewolf Canker Canison. Followed by:
  • Vampire World 2: The Last Aerie (1993)
  • Vampire World 3: Bloodwars (1994)
  • Necroscope: The Lost Years Volume 1 (1995)
  • Necroscope: The Lost Years Volume 2 (1996)
  • Wild Blood by Nancy A. Collins (1993)
  • The Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series (1993-) by Laurell K. Hamilton features a number of werewolf characters and explores the concept of werewolf packs. Lycanthropy is a disease, and a major character has contracted it from a faulty vaccine against it.
  • Women Who Run with the Werewolves by Pam Keesey (1995)
  • Nadya – The Wolf Chronicles by Pat Murphy (1996) A race of European werewolves immigrate to the United States in the nineteenth century.
  • The Werewolf Chronicles by Rodman Philbrick & Lynn Harnett (1996)
  • The Silver Wolf (1998) by Alice Borchardt follows the lives of several werewolves in ancient Rome and Ireland. Followed by:
  • There are multiple allusions to lycanthropy in Caitlin R. Kiernan's Low Red Moon (2003), though no actual werewolves appear in the story. Other works by Kiernan containing werewolves or mentions of werewolves include "The Black Alphabet," "The Road of Pins," "Stoker's Mistress," and "Untitled 4."
  • The Essential Guide to Werewolf Literature by Brian Frost (2003)
  • The Crimson City (2005-) series by Liz Maverick, Marjorie Liu, Patti O'Shea, and Carolyn Jewel.
  • Maximum Ride series (2005-6) by James Patterson features genetically engineered werewolves called "Erasers" as antagonists.
  • The Demonata series (2005-6) by Darren Shan.
  • River by Skyla Dawn Cameron provides a different approach to werewolves, revolving around wolves who have been changed into humans. (2006)
  • Benighted (2006) by Kit Whitfield

[edit] Children's Books

  • Blood And Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause (1997) (upper teen fiction)
  • Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999) by J.K. Rowling. In J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, werewolves are cursed to turn into vicious wolves in the light of the full moon, and are dangerous to humans, whom they will attack whenever possible. There is a potion available that will allow a person to keep their mind after the transformation, effectively making lycanthropy a magical chronic illness. J.K. Rowling uses a werewolf named Remus Lupin as a metaphor for intolerance and people's reactions to illness and disability. Ironically, though distrusted in his world, Lupin is depicted as a kind person and as the only competent Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher throughout the series. As a complete contrast to the Lupin character, Rowling also introduced the character Fenrir Graeyback who not only embraces his werewolf heritage, but revels in his animality even when in his human form.

[edit] Theatre

  • Werewolf?: by William Gleason. A one act comedy about a man named Harold who seeks psychological help for his 'problem'. Harold believes he is a werewolf, but it turns out it's all in his mind. He never truly becomes a beast, just an even bigger nuisance than what he's normally seen as.

[edit] Films

[edit] Music

[edit] Music Videos

  • In the first half of Michael Jackson's famous music video for his song Thriller he transforms into something that is often thought to be a werewolf, but is really a werecat, according to director John Landis.
  • The music video for Dance in My Blood by the furry-themed band Men, Women & Children has a werewolf dancing on the surface of the sun amid mermaids, Indians and other costumed characters. The werewolf is dressed in clothing that is nearly identical to that worn by the lead singer, with black gloves and a suit without the jacket.
  • Clor's music video for Good Stuff has a dance-off between a naked man and a werewolf.
  • Rammstein has a clip of the song du riechts so gut, where the entire band is made up of werewolves, they chase a woman into a castle and then bite her.

[edit] Television

[edit] TV movies and mini-series

[edit] Series

  • Dark Shadows (1968)
  • Groovie Goolies (1970)
  • Monster Squad (1976)
  • Fangface (1978)
  • The Drak Pack (1980)
  • Teen Wolf (1986), animated show based on the film
  • Werewolf (1987)
  • She-Wolf of London (1990)
  • Gravedale High (1990)
  • Monster Force (1994), features a wolfman as one of protagonists fighting against the evil Creatures of the Night, as well as an evil werewolf fighting alongside the Creatures
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) features a likeable young werewolf, Daniel "Oz" Osbourne, who often assisted Buffy in fighting evil while in human form, and had himself locked in a cage during the full moon. During one of Oz's wolf phases, which takes place the night before, during and the night after the full moon, he copulated with a werewolf female. This werewolf was Veruca, a lead singer in a band called "Shy". Veruca was able to retain the memories of her experiences during her transformation and tried to convince Oz to embrace his werewolf persona rather than contain it. Veruca sought out Willow, intending to kill her, and would have if not for Oz, who (as a werewolf) fought and killed Veruca. Oz later returned with the power to resist the werewolf transformation, except under extreme emotional stress. The spin-off, Angel, established that there are other breeds of werewolves, similar to dogs.
  • Darkstalkers (1997), features the werewolf character Jon Talbain.
  • Big Wolf on Campus (1999) is a TV series about a teenager called Thomas "Tommy" P. Dawkins who was bitten during a camping trip by a werewolf. After subsequently turning into a werewolf himself, he regularly fights against an array of enemies in order to keep his neighborhood safe.
  • Wolf Lake (2001)
  • Wolf's Rain (2003)
  • Magipoka is an anime that features Liru, a female werewolf who is one of the four protagonists in a series also involving a witch, a vampire, and an updated version of Frankenstein's monster.

[edit] Single episodes

[edit] Comics

  • Werewolf, whose fur color changed from white to brown halfway through the series, is wikipedia:Monster in My Pocket #3. His human form is never shown, but he is among the good monsters in all incarnations. He was silent in the comics save for howls, but said to be very intelligent. When directed by a little girl named Teresa, who thought he was an anthropomorphic dog doll, to sit, he grabbed a chair. In the animated special, he became the Jamaican Wolf-Mon. Monster W14, Howlin' Prowlin' Werewolf, is shown in human form throughout one of the storybooks, depicted as a weakling "hume" (a term for the humanoid Monster Wrestlers) until the moon comes out as he enters the ring.
  • Hyper Police (MEE)/Tokyopop (Batanen and Tommy(Tomy) Fujioka are werewolves and brothers as bounty hunters in this series. Batanen always has wolf ears in place of human ears, and Tommy has a wolf like face on a constant basis, as well as both of them having tails. While the full moon does affect how they act, Batanen has been seen transforming whenever he sees a naked (half-naked) woman, or when he has fantasies about Natsuki Sassahara, who is a 1/2 nekomata. They are not seen as unusual though, as many people in their timeline are either monsters, demons, or gods.)
  • Crescent Moon (Haruko Iida/Red Entertainment, 2000-present) (The character Akira Yamabuki is a happy-go-lucky werewolf who is also an excellent chef. Unlike the usual werewolves of modern lore, his transformational state is not induced by a full moon. He himself can choose when to induce the transformation.)
  • Fables (Vertigo, 2002-present) (The character Bigby Wolf, the Big Bad Wolf of fairy tales, is a wolf that can become human or anthropomorphic due to lycanthropy).
  • Werewolf by Night (Marvel Comics, 1971-4).
  • In the DC Comics Green Lantern title one of the supporting characters is named Arkkis Chummuck, who is an alien form of werewolf.
  • Marvel Comics character John Jameson transforms into the werewolf-like Man-Wolf.
  • Link briefly turns into a werewolf like creature in the comic book adaptation of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past when he enters the Dark World (although this is only a silhouette). When his arm touches the world, it also becomes wolf-like.
  • Lycanthropes are frequently featured in Fred Perry's Manga Gold Digger. They vary in species, from were-wolves to were-cheetahs. As well as basic animal and human forms, they can also change at will to a third 'hybrid' form, in which they retain their animal colouring and strength, but also basic human shape.
  • Jean Jacquemonde from Spriggan has lycanthrope roots in his DNA. His estranged father, Rick Bordeau, is the carrier of the lycanthrope gene in his family. Later on, Jean's DNA is acquired by Trident as part of their biological weapons program.
  • Captain Hans Günsche, a member of the Millennium organization in Kouta Hirano's manga Hellsing is a werewolf, possibly the last of his kind; and, ironically, a member of the German Werwolf.
  • The criminal Megil the Pharmacist uses a lycanthropazine drug to transform himself into a werewolf in the Battle Angel Alita manga.
  • in one piece people can become animal hybrids from ingesting a devil fruit they are called zoans. the tekkai master of the cp9 jyabura can morph into a huge werewolf to ultlize his techniques effectively

[edit] Games

  • L. Lee Cerny and Bradley K. McDevitt, Night Life (Stellar Games, 1990) has three editions to date, a few supplements.
  • Mark Rein-Hagen, Werewolf: The Apocalypse (White Wolf, 1992) has two editions, innumerable supplements, and a short story collection (When Will You Rage?, edited by Stewart Wieck). Players roleplay various werewolf characters who work on behalf of Gaia against the destructive supernatural spirit named Wyrm, who represents the forces of destructive industrialization and pollution. Werewolves are born out of a union of werewolf and either human or wolf. They can change between 5 different shapes that range from human over monstrous-anthropomorphic states to lupine. In lupine shape they can be accepted by a wolf pack.
  • Werewolf:The Forsaken is a new werewolf game created by White Wolf Studios as a successor to Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Some concepts are similar, but the plot is much different. Although the werewolves played by the players are still (usually) the heroes, they no longer face the encroach of the Wyrm and now act more as secret defenders of the mortal world from encroaching spirits, and are often besieged by entirely different werewolf tribes called The Pure. In most respects, there is no relation to the original game save for the fact that it was produced by the White Wolf game manufacturers. Even the name of the species is different in Forsaken, as is the mission of the werewolves. In both games, werewolves are enemies of vampires and it is rare to see the two creatures intermingle.
  • Mike Tinney and Stewart Wieck, Rage (White Wolf, 1995). The card game inspired a couple of novels from White Wolf: Breathe Deeply by Don Bassingthwaite and The Silver Crown by Bill Bridges. Rage was based upon the tabletop RPG Werewolf: The Apocalypse.
  • 1995 Sierra On-Line game The Beast Within: A Gabriel Knight Mystery is an adventure game which has the lead character, Gabriel Knight, investigating murders around Munich, Germany that are purported to be the work of a werewolf.
  • Werewolf: The Last Warrior (1990) by Data East was a side-scrolling NES game in which the main character is a werewolf with blades for arms.
  • Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness for the Nintendo 64 game system featured the werewolves Cornell and Ortega as central characters in 1999.
  • Killer Instinct, a Rare arcade fighting game, features a werewolf called Sabrewulf.
  • Darkstalkers features a werewolf called Jon Talbain (also known as Gallon).
  • The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall allows the player to become a werewolf or wereboar. Additional werecreatures are referred to within the game, but do not actually inhabit it. Lycanthropy was initially absent from Daggerfall's sequel, Morrowind, but was a central plot point of Morrowind's second expansion pack, Bloodmoon.
  • Discworld Noir features a protagonist who becomes a werewolf partway through the game.
  • In The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess, Link transforms into a wolf in some parts of the game, when he enters the mysterious Twilight Realm.
  • In the upcoming Nintendo DS game, Tales of the Tempest, a werewolf race, the Lycanth, named after the word "Lycanthropy" are apparently persecuted by a powerful theocracy.
  • Golden Sun: The Lost Age for the Game Boy Advance features a village of werewolves who are able to channel Wind Psynergy (Jupiter). The village is called Garoh. Also, across the world map are many enemies who resemble werewolves.
  • Yugo Ogami, one of the playable characters in the Bloody Roar fighting series is a werewolf. In fact, the entire cast of fighters have various beast forms.
  • Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen uses the concept of the werewolf as an interest fighting unit, who's power increases dramatically during a 'night phase'.
  • One of the main characters, Kevin is an unfortunate half-werewolf in Seiken Densetsu 3.
  • In the Xbox and personal computer game Fable, a Balverine is like a werewolf, with a weakness towards silver and turning others by bites.
  • In Konami's 2000 roleplaying game, Suikoden II, a recruitable NPC, Bob, has the ability to turn into a werewolf for three rounds.
  • In Dungeons and Dragons, lycanthropy is an acquired character template.
  • The Druid character class in Diablo II: Lord of Destruction can learn to become a Warewolf.
  • In The Sims 2 Pets expansion pack, your sim can become a werewolf.
  • In Lionhead's The Movies, werewolves can be featured as characters in your movies.

[edit] Further reading

  • Black, George Fraser. A List of Works Relating to Lycanthropy. New York: New York Public Library Publications, 1919. (earliest published list of werewolf fiction)
  • Du Coudray, Chantal Bourgault. The Curse of the Werewolf. London : I. B. Tauris, 2006. ISBN 1-84511-158-3 (book on literary symbolism of the werewolf)
  • Flores, Nona C. Animals in the Middle Ages: A Book of Essays. New York: Garland, 1996. ISBN 0-8153-1315-2 (contains learned commentary on William of Palerne)
  • Frost, Brian J. The Essential Guide to Werewolf Literature. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 2003. ISBN 0-87972-860-4 (contains long lists of novels and short stories, especially pre-1970s ones, with excerpts)
  • Hall, Jamie. Half Human, Half Animal: Tales of Werewolves and Related Creatures. Bloomington, IN: Authorhouse, 2003. ISBN 1-4107-5809-5 (contains long lists of movies and novels)
  • Steiger, Brad. The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings. Visible Ink Press, 1999. ISBN 1-57859-078-7 (contains long list of movies, medium list of novels)

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Werewolf at Mia's Index of Anthro Stories

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