The dark history of werewolves - Craig Thomson
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Stories of werewolves have existed for thousands of years and continue to live on today. They’re especially prominent in European literature and folklore, and often found in cultures where the wolf is the largest natural predator. Over the years its image has continuously evolved, often reflecting the fears and prejudices of that time. Craig Thomson traces the history of werewolves.
Additional Resources for you to Explore
For more information on the legends, history, and folklore associated with the werewolf, History.com has put together two quick summaries of both werewolf legends and the werewolf trials of the 16th century. Both work as a good starting point for any budding lycanthropologist!
Want to read more classic literature on the werewolf? George Reynolds’s Wagner the Wehr-Wolf is available in its entirety on ProjectGutenberg.org. However, for a shorter and (arguably) more rewarding reading experience, both Clemence Housman’s “The Were-Wolf” (1896) and Gilbert Campbell’s “The White Wolf of Kostopchin” (1889) are also available online. The latter title by Campbell was itself heavily influenced by a story from Frederick Marryat’s 1839 novel The Phantom Ship (see Chapter XXXIX), which is also freely available online. All should provide a strong grounding in classic werewolf tales from the Victorian period.
One of the most important and influential non-fiction books written about werewolves was The Book of Were-Wolves, by the 19th century parson Sabine Baring-Gould. It was this book that influenced Bram Stoker when he was writing his classic horror novel Dracula (1897). Werewolves are often linked to vampires across many different traditions. For more information on the vampire, please see Michael Molina’s interesting video on this equally enduring icon of folklore and tradition.
Understandably, wolves form a very large part of the werewolf’s mythology. For more on wolves and their status particularly within the United States, the Wolf Conservation Centre in New York has a variety of resources, programs, and information to help students learn more. They also very recently did a webinar on the history of werewolves, which includes its link to the wolf as a natural predator.
If you think stories of werewolves are simply a thing of the past – then think again! Starting in 1936, there have been numerous reports of a large, humanoid, wolf-like creature in the region of Elkhorn, Wisconsin. The creature, dubbed “The Beast of Bray Road,” has been spotted several times since, with a number of theories accounting for its appearances. There are also tales of the Michigan Dogman, while in England, the legendary “Old Stinker” has regularly attracted attention in the media due to various sightings in recent years.
For more advanced researchers, the Open Graves, Open Minds Project from the University of Hertfordshire is one of the top research projects in the world, focusing on representations of both the vampire and the werewolf. They regularly host conferences devoted to world-leading research in these areas and offer regular blog updates and reviews.
Lastly, for broader information on werewolves, folklore, and Gothic literature, please see monstrousfolklore.com, a research website dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of folklore, Monsters, and the Gothic. This website has links to a range of interesting resources designed to help students engage with researchers and expand their knowledge surrounding these topics.
Want to read more classic literature on the werewolf? George Reynolds’s Wagner the Wehr-Wolf is available in its entirety on ProjectGutenberg.org. However, for a shorter and (arguably) more rewarding reading experience, both Clemence Housman’s “The Were-Wolf” (1896) and Gilbert Campbell’s “The White Wolf of Kostopchin” (1889) are also available online. The latter title by Campbell was itself heavily influenced by a story from Frederick Marryat’s 1839 novel The Phantom Ship (see Chapter XXXIX), which is also freely available online. All should provide a strong grounding in classic werewolf tales from the Victorian period.
One of the most important and influential non-fiction books written about werewolves was The Book of Were-Wolves, by the 19th century parson Sabine Baring-Gould. It was this book that influenced Bram Stoker when he was writing his classic horror novel Dracula (1897). Werewolves are often linked to vampires across many different traditions. For more information on the vampire, please see Michael Molina’s interesting video on this equally enduring icon of folklore and tradition.
Understandably, wolves form a very large part of the werewolf’s mythology. For more on wolves and their status particularly within the United States, the Wolf Conservation Centre in New York has a variety of resources, programs, and information to help students learn more. They also very recently did a webinar on the history of werewolves, which includes its link to the wolf as a natural predator.
If you think stories of werewolves are simply a thing of the past – then think again! Starting in 1936, there have been numerous reports of a large, humanoid, wolf-like creature in the region of Elkhorn, Wisconsin. The creature, dubbed “The Beast of Bray Road,” has been spotted several times since, with a number of theories accounting for its appearances. There are also tales of the Michigan Dogman, while in England, the legendary “Old Stinker” has regularly attracted attention in the media due to various sightings in recent years.
For more advanced researchers, the Open Graves, Open Minds Project from the University of Hertfordshire is one of the top research projects in the world, focusing on representations of both the vampire and the werewolf. They regularly host conferences devoted to world-leading research in these areas and offer regular blog updates and reviews.
Lastly, for broader information on werewolves, folklore, and Gothic literature, please see monstrousfolklore.com, a research website dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of folklore, Monsters, and the Gothic. This website has links to a range of interesting resources designed to help students engage with researchers and expand their knowledge surrounding these topics.
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Meet The Creators
- Educator Craig Thomson
- Director Avi Ofer
- Narrator Addison Anderson
- Music Salil Bhayani, cAMP Studio
- Sound Designer Amanda P.H. Bennett, cAMP Studio
- Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
- Producer Sazia Afrin
- Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
- Editorial Producer Shannon Odell
- Script Editor Stephanie Honchell Smith
