It has been some time since I've done any writing...eating lots of spaghetti and engaging in mindless games has been the rule of the day lately. Therefore, I must warm myself to the tale, and to paraphrase Stephen King, wait for the Muse to take a dump on my head. I think that's already taking place. I'm a fan of Mrs. Rice's Vampire Chronicles. Her cosmology is exquisite...if I were to isolate her works into stand-alone components, I would say that is what drew me to read her novels most of all. The practical plausibility of immortal vampires is quite a task to undertake, and rather than rely on nebulous concepts of mystery and black magic (as those who preceeded her have often done) to explain their existence to the reader, she ingeniously devised a milieu which incorporated a solid foundation to vampirism, blending it seamlessly with the development of her passionate, often darkly whimsical characters. To Anne Rice, the supernatural is not mysterious at all...it's quite explainable. Spirits actually exist, and do not behave according to superstitious lore...rather, they observe laws like everything else in the universe does. Magnificent.
From what I gather here...and from my discreet correspondence with Madmoiselle on the matter...this union of the practical and impractical is one of her desires for this story, and an important one at that. Needless to say, the prospect of working on something like this has my Muse banging on the proverbial bathroom door of creativity urgently (to borrow from Stephen King again
). I warm to things such as this. I have a host of ideas...all swirling around Reves, the werewolf. Having once owned a half-wolf dog - and researching their behaviors quite extensively because of it - I possess an understanding of the primal canine. I have met and interacted with a number of pure wolves (my shaggy friend's mother being the first), and began to develop an appreciation of the amazing intelligence and grace they possess. Wolves are by their nature reclusive, slow to trust, and loyal to the very end. Aggressive does not enter the picture at all...unless they are cornered or defending those they trust. In the world of canines, only the pit bull terrier possesses a more powerful bite...and from my experience I know just how hardy and tough wolves are. They are powerful, tough and possessed of incredible stamina (one wolf can range 80 miles in one day)...yet the truth displays them to be non-aggressive and inquisitive. They seem to be free of many of the shortcomings their domesticated descendants suffer from. It seems these shortcomings were a price domesticated dogs paid for their superior arrangements with the top lifeform on the planet. Subsequent human manipulation of their breeding resulted in the dogs we are familiar with today...and, despite many thousands of years of co-habitation and genetic tinkering with man and by man, the domesticated dog is still a wolf under his or her whiskers and fur. Yes, even the fluffy little French poodle...though it pains me greatly to admit, is a 100% anatomical and genetic match of the gray wolf, whom scientists now consider to be the ancestor of our dogs. Bah.
(FYI, the gray wolf is also considered to be the "blueprint" of the wolf, and now all wolf types - such as the Mexican wolf, and Arctic wolf of Canada - are considered variations of the gray wolf).Armed with what I know about wolves, I cannot reconcile a nocturnal predator preying upon human beings. Case in point regarding their shy nature....my wolf-dog was half German shepherd, and true to his father, he was quite the watch dog. He would bark in his booming way when someone would approach. However, that was the extent of his similarity to German shepherds, who are known to be aggressive when their territory is violated. Instead he would hide his shaggy bulk as best as he could when the person in question drew near....and watch them. This was not fear on his part. No, I came to discover that he was one of the most social and friendly (as well as fearless) canines I have ever known...and he was simply observing the person in his wolfy way, watching them intently to determine if he could trust them or not. I could never pin down what criteria he was using to measure those he observed...one fellow he came to trust in 30 minutes, another 4 months...but when he decided a person was trustworthy, his shyness was over...sometimes to the consternation of the person in question.
What makes a werewolf a threat to humans? For some reason, the peoples of Europe feared wolves a great deal...and their legends and myths attest to this. Contrast this with the Native American experience...wolves were mystical, spiritual beings who were involved in the creation of the cosmos (their exact role differing on the beliefs of a particular tribe). In the same vein, dragons and serpents were beings of infernal evil in European legends...yet were symbols of wisdom to the Chinese, and benevolent in the form of the feathered serpent to Mesoamerica. Here we have a clash, one would think, pitting the true nature of wolves against the bloodthirsty predators of myth (many of these myths persist to this day). Where does this evil originate, then? Wolves are an integral part of the ecosystem where they are found, much like any other creature. In Canada, they are the only dedicated predator of moose (besides the two-legged variety). In the US, they will drive out lesser canines that invade their range...such as coyotes or packs of domesticated breeds gone wild...but are uncanny in their ability to avoid contact with humans, despite their presence. Much of the predation on livestock once attributed (erroneously) to wolves is understood to be the responsibility of coyotes and wild dogs, who are more opportunistic and less likely to remain aloof from humans and settled areas. With this in mind, then, I have an answer to the problem. Wolves become evil because mankind makes them so...and in the annals of literature and folklore, humanity finds a place to project itself upon the cosmos. We have an instinctual fear of the darkness...yet the darkness itself is like the grass, or sunlight, or a verdant meadow. It just is. Rather, the fear in the darkness comes from the faceless terrors in our own minds...the darkness in our own souls which finds a place to reside in the murky unknown.
