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There wolf, Master.
Oct. 11th, 2007 09:49 pmLycanthropy. Love it, hate it, it's there all the same.
Many stories feature lycanthropy as either a main or side issue, but a lot of them handle it in different ways. Is it a curse to be a werewolf, or a blessing? Is it a natural function, or a magical disease? Are werewolves born, or made?
Lycanthropy shows up in a lot of early tribal history, back in the days when medicine wasn't as advanced as all that. It is tied very closely to vampirism, actually, in that there is rarely a mention of one without the other; also, both of them are fairly significant when you realize that all sorts of native cultures from around the world that could not possibly have any contact with each other all tend to have similar myths on werebeasts and vampires. Just as vampires can commonly be attributed to when comas were thought to be death, and people were buried alive more often than these days, werewolves can be connected to early brushes with rabies and rabid dogs, wolves, and other mammals.
Regardless of its origins, lycanthropy remains popular, even if authors don't like to agree on its effects. Which do I like the best? Which is right for me to use?
(Honestly, the best for me to use is what I like the best, and the reasoning can be no more complicated than "because I wanted it this way". However, I do like to have at least some consistency in my writing, even if there isn't a whole lot of it.)
Many stories feature lycanthropy as either a main or side issue, but a lot of them handle it in different ways. Is it a curse to be a werewolf, or a blessing? Is it a natural function, or a magical disease? Are werewolves born, or made?
Lycanthropy shows up in a lot of early tribal history, back in the days when medicine wasn't as advanced as all that. It is tied very closely to vampirism, actually, in that there is rarely a mention of one without the other; also, both of them are fairly significant when you realize that all sorts of native cultures from around the world that could not possibly have any contact with each other all tend to have similar myths on werebeasts and vampires. Just as vampires can commonly be attributed to when comas were thought to be death, and people were buried alive more often than these days, werewolves can be connected to early brushes with rabies and rabid dogs, wolves, and other mammals.
Regardless of its origins, lycanthropy remains popular, even if authors don't like to agree on its effects. Which do I like the best? Which is right for me to use?
(Honestly, the best for me to use is what I like the best, and the reasoning can be no more complicated than "because I wanted it this way". However, I do like to have at least some consistency in my writing, even if there isn't a whole lot of it.)
