In the enchanting realm of magic and mystery, there exists a breed of intrepid adventurers. These brave souls navigate the perilous landscape with a sense of wonder and curiosity unrivaled by ordinary mortals. Equipped with their wits, courage, and a touch of magic, they embark on quests that unravel the secrets of this extraordinary world. The intrepid adventurer in the magical world seamlessly blends into their surroundings, becoming one with nature and the mystical creatures that inhabit it. They possess an innate ability to communicate with creatures such as unicorns, dragons, and phoenixes - forging bonds that enable them to uncover hidden knowledge and unlock new realms of possibility. With each new discovery, the intrepid adventurer's spirit soars, fueled by the joy of unlocking the mysteries of the magical world.
When the werewolf finally does make an appearance in the last act, it’s Roy Ashton’s effects work that takes center stage. Having spent a great deal of time studying the physiology of wolves, Ashton brought his own unique sense of imagination to the design, crafting something monstrous and raw carefully stitched with humanity’s fragile thread.
It is approximately halfway through the picture that the young boy grows up and the film introduces its protagonist in the way of Oliver Reed s Leon Corledo. Born on Christmas Day, Leon Oliver Reed is the child of a poor serving girl raped by a mad beggar who himself was driven insane by a nobleman s cruelty.
With each new discovery, the intrepid adventurer's spirit soars, fueled by the joy of unlocking the mysteries of the magical world. They seek out ancient artifacts and forgotten spells, unearthing forgotten truths and legends. These relics and incantations grant them access to power beyond comprehension - a power they use wisely, always with the intent to protect and preserve the magical world.
Curse, Not Disease
So I already talked about ways to become a werewolf. This post is very closely connected to that one. One thing I emphasized is what I’m going to talk about this time – in modern popular culture, lycanthropy, the condition of being a werewolf, is considered a disease.
But in folklore, it was a curse. And it was only ever a curse. It was never considered a “disease,” or an “infection,” or a “contagion” to be “spread” or “contracted” somehow (all words you’ll hear used a lot in the overwhelming majority of modern werewolf media).
What’s the difference, exactly? Here, it’s this: as a disease, lycanthropy is a physical and mental biohazard anyone and everyone could potentially, and fairly easily, contract. As a curse, lycanthropy is something meaningfully and purposefully bestowed upon an individual or a family line and, at least relatively, unique to them. (That’s not to mention those folklore moments in which werewolves seem to essentially be their own separate race/species entirely.)
So where does this idea come from – it all started in the Early Modern period, aka the Renaissance. This is the time period during which werewolves may have first been considered anything approaching a disease. Because werewolves became associated with, and equated to, madmen – insanity. In the early years of the Early Modern period, as we progress from Late Medieval to Renaissance, we see werewolf accounts and court trials turning steadily more toward science and logical reasoning instead of magic and curses. And what better way to explain a werewolf than to declare them insane and be done with it?
And, indeed, this is when the term lycanthropy first came into common use, as mentioned in previous posts. It’s an ancient word in and of itself, and it was used a long time ago by Galen, among others. But the people of the Early Modern period took it up as a term to refer specifically to the mental disease: hallucinations that someone thinks they are, or are turning into, a wolf. (We refer to this as “clinical lycanthropy” today.)
However, this doesn’t explain how we go from an insanity sentence to a plague spread by bite, like a diseased animal. So how did we get THERE?
On all of that, we can blame – you guessed it – Hollywood. We’re going all the way back to The Wolf Man film from 1941 and its writer, Curt Siodmak. Siodmak came up with, and massively and irrevocably popularized, the idea of lycanthropy being spread by bite.
Almost certainly he picked this because of rabies, which is also – of course – spread by bite, and in a way, just another attempt to try to put in the effort of tying werewolves to some kind of science. And now we’ve seen pop culture latch onto this like everyone wants to marry it. And if not bite, it’s spread in some other way, all ways diseases and infections can be spread: biting, scratching, blood, sex, genetics… you name it.
Werewolves becoming a disease instead of a curse has sapped a great deal of meaning and purpose from the idea of being a werewolf and the werewolf’s very existence in a setting. Turning lycanthropy into a disease can be handled well (and indeed I am choosing to use and explore it in a lot of my own werewolf fiction, so I’m not saying it’s always a bad idea), but broad spectrum, it has turned lycanthropy from a meaningful curse into a common disease. Werewolves are now often little better than plague rats that need to be slaughtered en masse (sometimes with laughable ease – see the worgen starting zone in World of Warcraft, which is another entire topic for me).
There’s another reason why this is overall not a good thing. Werewolves being considered a disease has helped spread false ideas that wolves are disease carriers. This modern idea of lycanthropy as a plague has cost real wolves their lives and helped to solidify the medieval and Early Modern concept that the wolf is outright evil, a creature that deserves only to be killed to make way for humans to continue their progress.
Long story short – being a werewolf in folklore was a curse, not a disease. It happened for a meaning and it served a purpose. While I definitely am not opposed to exploring the idea of lycanthropy as a disease, it’s overall degraded the “status” of the werewolf in pop culture, and it only continues to do so as time passes… That, and it’s caused problems for wolves here in the real world, which is just not cool.
Now we’ve even carried the pop culture werewolf “spread by bite” over to pop culture zombies! And after this aspect of pop culture werewolves carried over to zombies, zombies have thus carried back over to werewolves in that werewolves have become more like zombies – a plague, contagious monsters dangerous only in hordes.
Zombies didn’t used to be a disease, either. Zombies were a curse, too, once, and now they’re largely a plague, whether they’re created by science or not. Even Resident Evil’s gotten halfway stuck on the idea, when it wasn’t before. In Vendetta we see a zombie strain spread by bite, and in the live-action movies, we get that, of course. And then Resident Evil 8 took it to the next level, making werewolf-zombies…
But if I go on about zombies and modern depictions of the undead, I’m going to go off on another tangent that belongs in another series of posts. And if I go on about Chris Redfield, we have another tangent entirely.
While the story takes its time getting to the meat and potatoes of its conceit, the purposeful, measured approach is one of the film’s greatest assets. As the young boy matures and goats begin to be devoured in the night, there’s a sense of mysticism and inevitability which accompanies the horrific proceedings. Culture, faith and conviction play an important role in the werewolf ’s curse — this is not simply a boy struck with some ailment, this is the culmination of a society’s dark past. This is humanity reaping the evil it has wrought.
But venturing into the magical world is not without its dangers. Dark forces lurk in the shadows, threatening to consume the enchantment and plunge the world into chaos. The intrepid adventurer faces off against malevolent witches, cursed beasts, and treacherous sorcerers, armed only with their bravery and the knowledge they have acquired. In their journey, the intrepid adventurer discovers not only the secrets of the magical world but also the depths of their own character. They learn the value of resilience, adaptability, and resourcefulness as they face obstacles that test their mettle. Each trial only strengthens their resolve, igniting a fire within them that burns ever brighter. Ultimately, the intrepid adventurer in the magical world is a testament to the boundless potential of human curiosity and imagination. They teach us that there is an extraordinary realm beyond the ordinary, waiting to be explored. In their quest for discovery and understanding, they remind us of the magic that lies within us all..
Reviews for "Legends of the Magical World: Tales from an Intrepid Adventurer"
1. Stephanie - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "Intrepid adventurer in the magical world". The plot seemed promising, but it quickly devolved into a cliché-filled mess. The characters were one-dimensional and lacked any depth or development. The writing style was also lacking, with awkward dialogue and repetitive descriptions. Overall, I found it to be a tiresome and uninspiring read.
2. John - 1 star - "Intrepid adventurer in the magical world" was a complete waste of time for me. The story felt like a rehash of every other fantasy novel I've read, without offering anything unique or original. The pacing was off, with long stretches of dull exposition followed by rushed action scenes. The protagonist was annoyingly perfect, never facing any real challenges or consequences. I would not recommend this book to anyone looking for a captivating and innovative fantasy read.
3. Samantha - 2 stars - I struggled to get through "Intrepid adventurer in the magical world". The writing was simplistic and lacked any poetic or evocative language. The world-building felt shallow and underdeveloped, leaving me feeling detached from the setting and its magical elements. The dialogue was cheesy and the humor fell flat. Overall, I found the book to be a lackluster and forgettable addition to the fantasy genre.
4. Brian - 1 star - I regret wasting my time on "Intrepid adventurer in the magical world". The characters were uninteresting and the plot was predictable, making it difficult to become immersed in the story. The writing was uninspired, lacking any kind of creativity or cleverness. The book felt like a lazy attempt to cash in on the popularity of the fantasy genre without putting in any effort to deliver an engaging or memorable story. I would not recommend this book to anyone seeking quality fantasy literature.