She Wolf in Literature

[Estro Felino]

One of the most beautiful pieces of Italian Literature is La Lupa by Giovanni Verga, the second most important novelist of the Nineteenth century, in Italy.
It deals with a novella, that is, a short story. Verga collected several short stories (often taken from real facts and characters), in order to describe the reality of his own time with critical and psychological analyses.
That is, he was a bourgeois from a very tiny mountainous village, and as an attentive observer, he used to thoroughly study all the human types that were typical of that very tiny microcosm.
The greedy landowner, the jealous husband, and the "libertine woman" (She wolf, La Lupa).
Probably inspired from a real character, it deals with a single woman (Pina) that used to chase men as if they were preys.
The choice of the title is a technique called animalization, that is to alienate a character from their own human nature and reduce them to the animal form.
In fact the protagonist is called She wolf, an animal. And like an animal she is described as smooth, silent, chasing men as if they were preys. Preys that she devours.
An extract

In the village she was called la Lupa—the She-Wolf—because she was never satisfied. Women made the sign of the cross when they saw her pass, always alone like a big ugly hound, with the vagabond and suspicious gait of a famished wolf; she would bewitch their sons and their husbands in the twinkling of an eye with her red lips and she made them fall in love with her merely by looking at them out of those big Satanic eyes of hers, even if they were before Santa Agrippina’s altar.

Fortunately la Lupa never came to church at Easter or at Christmas, nor to hear Mass or to make confession. Padre Angiolino of Santa Maria di Gesù, a true servant of God, had lost his soul on her account.
Maricchia,—poor girl, pretty and clever she was,—secretly wept because she was la Lupa‘s daughter, and no one had offered to marry her though she had nice clothes in her bureau, and her own little piece of land in the sun, like every other girl of the village.

This woman fell in love with a much younger man, Nanni. But he told her he wanted her daughter instead. So, the shewolf smartly decided to let her own daughter and Nanni get married, so she could have kept him in the family. And she would have chased and preyed him at leisure.
The young man denied her at first, but then gave in. When his wife found out, she reported them both. Nanni repented before the law and before the Church, but after some time, the shewolf resumed her pursuit.
Then, Nanni, tired and and weary, decided to kill her.

 

[Estro Felino]

If there are pieces of literature which speak of this argument, please feel free to post them, thank you.

 

[Estro Felino]

Even if it deals with a Nineteenth century work, I can witness that the atmosphere of the tiny villages, on the top of hills, in Sicily is still the same. It deals with villages hidden among the mountains, and this accentuates the isolation, the microcosm.
The same gossiping, everybody knows everybody and label the most unique members of the community with such names.
As far as I can remember, there were libertine women that received such appellatives.

I can witness it deals with very sexist and chauvinistic milieus, where women are guilty of "tempting men", whereas men are seldom to blame.

 

[Estro Felino]

This is a very short movie inspired from the novella.

Spoiler: Violent content. Viewer discretion advised.

 

[PoetPhilosopher]

Interesting.

I can tell it is Italian, I think. A more American, etc. story would have the men as wolves. There's a music video, for example, where this bullied male wants to get revenge on the bully, so he studies curses to curse himself and become a werewolf to get revenge on the bully. If I'm not mistaken.

As an exception, there is a story in a very old Western, I think Bonanza - an episode where a woman can become a wolf. In old American aired shows, you often saw the women depicted as villainous or dangerous. These days, you do sometimes have female villains, but when you do, there's generally much sensitivity.

And my perception could be wrong, but as you go from about the 1950's to now, there's kind of a softer outlook on women in fiction, and perhaps a more dangerous outlook on the men.

 

[Estro Felino]

Interesting.

I can tell it is Italian, I think. A more American, etc. story would have the men as wolves. There's a music video, for example, where this bullied male wants to get revenge on the bully, so he studies curses to curse himself and become a werewolf to get revenge on the bully. If I'm not mistaken.

As an exception, there is a story in a very old Western, I think Bonanza - an episode where a woman can become a wolf. In old American aired shows, you often saw the women depicted as villainous or dangerous. These days, you do sometimes have female villains, but when you do, there's generally much sensitivity.

And my perception could be wrong, but as you go from about the 1950's to now, there's kind of a softer outlook on women in fiction, and perhaps a more dangerous outlook on the men.

Thank you for your insight.
I casually found this, very interesting.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4937&context=facpub

 

[SomeRandom]

Well the obvious one that comes to my mind at least is the She Wolf in Roman mythology that suckled Romulus (founder of Rome) and his brother Remus.
(Remus is a werewolf in the Harry Potter series. A rather obvious but still fun nod to classical mythology.)

 

[Estro Felino]

Well the obvious one that comes to my mind at least is the She Wolf in Roman mythology that suckled Romulus (founder of Rome) and his brother Remus.
(Remus is a werewolf in the Harry Potter series. A rather obvious but still fun nod to classical mythology.)

Both in Latin and Germanic cultures, the wolf is an animal that evokes isolation, mystery, greed. Negative sentiments.
Lycanthropia comes to mind.

It is very interesting that the legend of the birth of Rome uses this negative symbol as symbol of motherhood.

 

[SomeRandom]

Both in Latin and Germanic cultures, the wolf is an animal that evokes isolation, mystery, greed. Negative sentiments.
Lycanthropia comes to mind.

It is very interesting that the legend of the birth of Rome uses this negative symbol as symbol of motherhood.

Huh I never really thought about it before.
Animals in origin myths seem rather commonplace, from what I can gather

But you make a interesting point.
Perhaps the usage was a deliberate subversion to illustrate Romulus’ nature. Or to show the other side of the shewolf, so to speak
I’m sure there’s essays out there pondering that lol