Nature of the Beast e-bog

This book examines fiction published up until 2016, and thus includes a lot of texts that have not been examined by previously published monographs on the werewolf. It focuses on fiction that has received comparatively little critical attention to date as well as often-analysed works such as Meyer's Twilight series.This study uses the critical theories of Deleuze and Guattari to explore the issue of lycanthropic subjectivity/identity. This is a radical departure from previous critical works on the werewolf, which have relied heavily on Jungian analysis. This monograph, after making its argument that the werewolf is in the process of achieving subjectivity, examines several developments that have resulted from this. These new aspects of the werewolf in contemporary culture, notably the appearance of the werewolf pack and the werewolf function as lawgiver, have not been extensively analysed in previous critical works on the werewolf and my work aims to redress the balance. The monograph also makes use of Gothic theory in its analysis of the modern werewolf. Although not typically regarded as a Gothic monster, as the vampire often is, the monograph makes the argument that the werewolf can be considered a Gothic monster. It also explores the impact being considered a Gothic monster can have on criticism of the werewolf, e.g. the different ways it enables us to think about lycanthropy and psychoanalysis.