Tales and Legends

Quebec’s Legends

delphinecote
Canada Map
Image Source

Canada has many special legends and myths that were developed through time. More precisely, French-Canadians have a very religious past. Various artists used Quebec’s history and legends to create movies or music. If you do not know about the province of Quebec, then one important thing is that before it was called the “Province of Quebec”, it was known as “New France,” obviously because it was a French colony. Quebec is the only French colony in Canada that kept speaking French, and the population developed a culture of their own, with a rich historical background. Thus, I figured it would be interesting to tell you about some Quebec legends related to fantastic creatures, or frightful ones.

St. Lawrence Gulf’s Mermaids

Image Source

One day, a school of mermaids were traveling in the direction of the Mediterranean Sea to reach the Red Sea, where their home was. Unfortunately, a group of mermaids got lost on the way there, in the St. Lawrence Gulf, which is situated at the mouth of the St. Lawrence river. Mermaids are known for their irresistible charm. Seamen say that their songs and movements are graceful, and pretend that in the sunlight, their skin looks like it is covered with a film of gold. And so, one day, a mermaid jumped on the deck of a boat to ask a seaman to remove the leeches on her fishtail. He agreed, but fell desperately in love with her, forgetting about his wife and children. Hence, he followed her in the depths of the water, and he was never seen again.

Nowadays, they are lost between Magdalen Islands and Anticosti Island, hoping for a boat captain who would agree to lead them back to their house.

Men Without Heads in the Escoumins

The Escoumins is a little village bordered by the St. Lawrence river situated on the North Shore. It is a site that used to be popular for trade because of its advantageous geographic position. But even before that, it is said that some pirates landed there to bury some treasures since it was an isolated site at that time, and so, it was perfect to hide their gold. However, when they buried their treasures, they were “picking on the short straw” for the one among them who would be buried with the treasure to protect it from potential enemies. The buried seamen had their head cut before they were buried with the treasures. Nowadays, it is said that some of these headless pirate ghosts are seen, still protecting what is theirs. Curiously enough, no one ever tried to find one of their treasures… people probably prefer not to know what could happen to them if they did!

The Trafalgar Tower

Image Source

            This legend comes from the book called “The Trafalgar Tower” or in French, “La Tour de Trafalgar” written by Georges Boucher from Boucherville, in Montreal. The author affirms that he went there himself to attest to the strange, presumably paranormal phenomena that are going on there. Did he invent all of this, or is it true? No one will ever know… The legend goes as follows:

            In Montreal, in the district called Côtes-des-Neiges is a small tower, the Trafalgar Tower. One day, Leocadie, a beautiful 17-year-old girl who lived in the district with her aunt, went to the church to do her devotions. While she was there, a young man entered the church to admire it, and he saw Leocadie. He instantly fell in love with her, with a violent and passionate love. He went talking to her, and they started seeing each other as friends. After some time, he learned from Leocadie’s aunt that her heart was already taken by another man to whom she was engaged and about to get married. He thus swore he would take his revenge against the one he once loved so much. The last thing he told her before he left was: “See how red the sun is; it is red like fire, like blood, like the blood that must flow”. The day before their wedding, Leocadie and her fiancé were hiking at the mountain, the mountain where the Trafalgar Tower stood. Then actually went to the tower, and as soon as their feet touched the threshold of the door, a man, whom Leocadie clearly knew, attacked them with a knife. First, he attacked her by stabbing her with his knife, directly in her heart. Wanting to avenge Leocadie, her fiancé jumped on the man. After a violent fight, the murderer finally strangled him. The next day, both lovers were found dead, and the murderer was condemned to a horrible death.

            The Trafalgar tower became a cursed place, and people who went there pretend that they saw some blood on the walls and on the door. Moreover, everyone of them swore the fear and anxiety they felt forced them to leave the place. Even more strange is that they all said that while they were running away from the tower, they heard some footsteps right behind them.

            Oh well, as I mentioned previously, this legend was first told and then written by Georges Boucher, so who knows, maybe he invented it all. Or maybe not. Anyway, I would probably not test whether his affirmations about the place are true myself. These are just a few legends, but there are many more. If you are interested about Quebecer’s legends, I swear you will not be disappointed!

DelphineC

Tales and Legends

Haunted Places in the World

delphinecote

If you are a travel lover as well as a haunted-place amateur, then keep reading, because I decided to do a list of some places in the world that might interest you.

Čachtice Castle, Slovakia

Image Source

The Čachtice Castle dates back to at least 1276, but was given around 1575 as a wedding gift from her husband to a Hungarian countess named Elizabeth Bathory. Her husband was a soldier, and so he often was away from home to fight. In the meantime, she hung around the various family properties. Her husband died in 1604, and this is when the real trouble began as she moved permanently back to the castle. The real trigger for the following behaviors is not known today. It may be her husband’s death, or some other unknown event. Still, what follows is quite disturbing. She was aging, and as time passed, she developed an obsession for eternal youth found in the blood of virgins. She was hiring young women to work in the castle, but some doubts were starting to rise in the neighboring villages, due to the young women never returning home. Thus, parents stopped sending their daughters to the castle, but to oppose this change, Elizabeth created a school for young women, which attracted many girls from aristocratic families around the world. In 1610, as the girls were never returning either, the families sent the local authorities to the castle. They discovered injured and dead young women within the walls of the castle, and estimated that around 600 young women were tortured or killed by Elizabeth and her three accomplices. The collaborators were all condemned to death whereas Elizabeth was walled in a tower of the castle for four years where she was found dead in 1614.

Aokigahara Forest, Japan

Image Source

This forest is found at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan and dates back to approximately 1200 years. This place is also known as the “Suicide Forest” and is one of the world’s most popular suicide locations; in 2003, 105 dead bodies were discovered in it. It is said by Japanese spiritualists that the suicides permeated Aokigahara’s trees, creating paranormal activity and preventing many people who enter from leaving the forest; people entered, but never returned.

Isla de las Munecas, Mexico

Image Source

In English, this island is called “The Island of the Dolls.” As its name suggests, this island is the shelter of hundreds of dolls, each in a different state of decomposition. It all started when a man named Julian found a little girl on the island, but she was not in good shape; she was drowned. Unfortunately, he was not able to save her and when he looked around, he saw a doll, most probably the little girl’s doll. He decided to hang the doll in a tree to honor the memory of the child. But then, he decided to gather more and more dolls, and it finally developed into an obsession, presumably due to the fact that he was not able to save the girl. It is said that the spirit of the little girl now possesses the dolls since some witnesses reported that they the dolls move their heads, their arms and open their eyes. Moreover, some people said they heard the dolls whispering, and some others said the dolls lured them to come to the island while they were passing near the island on a boat. Strangely, after 50 years of collecting dolls, Julian was found drowned in the same spot where he found the girl many years before.

The Hill of Crosses, Lithuania

Image Source

The Hill of Crosses is located 12 km north of the county town Šiauliai. The town was founded in 1236 and occupied in the fourth century. In 2006, the number of crosses on the hill already exceeded 100,000. However, no one really knows when or why people started to leave some crosses on the hill, but it is now one of the most popular pilgrimage places in all the country and is a symbol of desire for freedom, national pride and piety. Even though this place is more for religious purposes, it can still be quite creepy to stand in the middle of all those crosses of an unknown signification.

DelphineC

Movies

For Brave Children Only

rovallee

According to the director of the movie Coraline, this movie is destined to be seen by brave children only. What does that really mean? Don’t you think being brave is a little subjective? How can you make sure your child is brave enough to watch this movie, even is it is categorized as general?

I think this statement is completely inappropriate. If the director really wanted it to be watched by brave children, could he have categorized it to a specific age group? Right now, but especially when the movie first came out in 2009, children from all age groups were watching it and were afraid by it. I guess it is completely normal given that the main character, Coraline, lives with “false” parents that have buttons sewn over their eye. Which children would not be afraid of the fact that her parents have been replaced with scary doubles?

Like this wasn’t enough, she is trapped in an alternate world and can’t escape it. She is experiencing completely unreal but scary things, which not all children from all age groups are able to understand. Children from younger age groups could easily take this information for granted and think that it could happen to them.

I simply don’t really understand how the aspect of bravery is relevant to this situation given that it is presented as a general movie. Personally, when I was younger and I watched it, I was very scared of this movie, so I assume that it happens to several children in the same situation. I don’t know if you agree with me, but if you have children in your entourage, just be aware of it and maybe take some precautions to make sure it doesn’t “traumatize” them.                         

                                                                           Cheers, Rosalie

Books

From Fear to Love

rovallee

In this post, I will provide you a little explanation of the evolution of the gothic genre through time with different examples of books that were really popular in this genre.

First of, I will describe how The Castle of Otranto set the standards for the future gothic pieces. This story was written by Horace Walpole in 1764. It was the first story that follow the gothic genre we know today. This story really set the standards for this genre and, even nowadays, some gothic pieces are inspired from it. At first, the gothic genre really focused on the aspect of setting. The setting of a story is really the base because it will decide whether or not the reader will be frightened by the piece or not. In The Castle of Otranto, the setting is, in my opinion, the most important elements of the story. Actually, the fact that it is set in strange places really far from anything else is what makes the reader afraid. On the contrary, if the story was set in the middle of the city in a beautiful house, the tension in the book would certainly be destroyed.

Following the same idea, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, written in 1897, also put emphasis on the setting of the story. In this book, the fact that Count Dracula’s castle is far from the city makes the readers believe even more in the “evilness” of the character. Even in the story, the protagonist, Jonathan Harker, is afraid to go to the Count’s castle because it is set in a far and strange place and no one is really sure of what’s happening there. Once again, the tension found in the book is essentially created by the setting of the story.

On the other hand, more recent gothic pieces put emphasis on completely different motifs to create tension. For instance, Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight, published in 2005, created tension based on the archetype of the damsel in distress and forbidden love. The forbidden love situation is mainly represented in Bella and Edward’s relationship. The fact that he is a vampire and she is a human, makes it technically impossible for them to fall in love, even though this is exactly what happens. Adding to this situation, Bella, one of the main characters, is essentially represented as a damsel in distress. Meyer puts Bella in different situations that sometimes put her in danger, but mainly creates vulnerability. It is in those cases that the archetype of the damsel in distress will create tension for the readers because they will fear what will happen to the girl.

With this glimpse of information, I hope you understand a little better the evolution of the gothic motifs through time and that it makes you realize how the authors create the tension you like so much about gothic novels.

                                                                                      Rosalie                                                       

Movies

Keep Quiet!

rovallee

Don’t breathe or he’s gonna catch you! That’s the essential statement of Fede Álvarez’s movie called Don’t Breathe. Essentially, the movie is set in an old blind man’s house because three young adults try to steal the money the rumors say he is living with. Since the old man is blind, his earing is impeccable, which the three friends did not expect. The old man ears each and every single noise they make in the house. During their chase for the money, the young adults try to escape from the dangerous old man, but he actually is able to keep them locked into his house, which allows him to try to catch evildoers. While trying to escape, they realize that the old man is getting nearer to them and that they are more and more in danger. When they see the old man around, they try not to breathe to make sure the blind man doesn’t find them. That is the principal reason why the movie is titled that way, but I’ll let you discover whether or not the young adults were finally able to get out!

The American horror movie focused mainly on the aspect of terror. During then whole movie, the three offenders are really scared of what the old man could do because they didn’t know him, and they weren’t aware of what he could potentially do to them. The apprehension of the actions of the man was the aspect that frightened the most the delinquents. During their adventure in the blind man’s house, they finally discover what was the old man really hiding in his house, once again I’ll let you discover it by yourself, and the young adults reached a state of horror. The fact that they could see the old man as well as the scary things in his house let the delinquents change their feeling from terror to horror. The scenarist really focused on those two important gothic motifs to create suspense and tension in his movie, which makes it that good.

If you love horror movies, I really suggest you watch it. And if you’re more afraid of this kind of movies, I suggest you still watch it, but in daytime maybe! 😉

                                                                                                                                 Rosalie

Books

Where Does Dracula Come From?

delphinecote

There are two main sources from which vampires were inspired. The first one is Greek mythology, and the second one is Vlad the Empaler. My guess would be that the story of Vlad the Empaler is considerably more known by people than the one from Greek mythology! But still, both are interesting.

Greek Mythology:

Delphi, place where the Oracle lives.

This legend from the Greek people has been found in the “Scriptures of Delphi,” which are said to have been written by the Oracle of Delphi. Delphi is an ancient Greek city that has been inhabited since 1600 BC. It was considered by the Greeks to be the center of the world, due to Greek mythology and Zeus’ eagles, which he released in the wild, and which met at Delphi after encircling the world. The scriptures tell the story of Ambrogio, an Italian adventurer that was going in Greece to have his fortune told by the Oracle of Delphi. The words of the Oracle were the following: “The curse. The moon. The blood will run.” Preoccupied by the words of the Oracle, Ambrogio spent the night outside the temple thinking about their meaning. When daylight came, he saw a beautiful young woman: Selene. She was the Oracle’s sister and came to the temple everyday to take care of her sister (the Oracle). He fell deeply in love with the woman and asked her to marry him. Here is where the problems begin: Apollo, god of the Sun, was also coveting Selene, and to show his anger, he cursed Ambrogio by making his skin burn whenever he was exposed to sunlight, which forced him to hide in a dark cave, unable to warn Selene of what happened. Thus, to try to escape and communicate with Selene, he made a pact with Hades, the god of the underworld: Hades would give him a bow and arrows so he could offer his kill to Artemis, goddess of the hunt and sister of Apollo, to win her favor and eventually steal her silver bow. If he failed to do so, he would have to give his soul to Hades forever, and indeed, he did fail. From there, many things happened but at the end, Artemis proposed he become immortal, which he accepted. However, for Selene and himself to live the afterlife together, she had to be immortal too, and the way to achieve immortality was for him to drink her blood, which would kill her mortal body, but assure them they would be together in the afterlife. Therefore, he drank her blood, and she became goddess of moonlight, and every night, she would come down from the heavens and touch her beloved Ambrogio.

Vlad the Empaler:

Vlad the Empaler

            Vlad the Empaler’s real name is actually Vlad Dracula. He was born in Transylvania, Romania, and ruled, on and off, the region of Wallachia in Romania between 1456-1462. He fought against the Ottaman Empire, an empire in which the leader, Sultan, had absolute political and religious power over his people. His nickname comes from the fact that his favorite way to kill his enemies was to impale them on a wooden stake. The legend says that Vlad enjoyed dipping his bread in his victims’ blood. However, no one knows whether this is real or not; one thing is certain, Romanian people do not consider him as a monster, but a hero.

Other sources of inspiration:

Abhartach

            Of course, many other things may have influenced Bram Stoker to create Dracula’s character. Indeed, an Irish legend about a tyrant called Abhartach relates that this monster was killed and buried three times before asking for the help of the Christian saint to stop him forever. Moreover, it was said that the tyrant asked for sacrifices of blood from the wrists of his subjects.

            It is also said that on February 1896, the New York Newspaper featured an article about vampires, and in this article, a section was written about vampire bats. Bram Stoker, who read this article, was thus inspired by science in the creation of the vampire Dracula.

Furthermore, Bram Stoker was well aware of Eastern European folklore as well as other stories talking about vampires that were written before he wrote his own.

Finally, Bram Stoker created a monster from various sources of information he found from different time periods. Even though Dracula has been invented, where do all these legends come from? Why were people so afraid of vampires for about three hundred years? Would it be possible that, even if some characteristics of the “classic” vampire are missing, a creature close to the definition of a vampire would exist somewhere?

DelphineC

Movies

Reasons to Love Harry Potter

delphinecote
The three main characters
Image Source

I was talking with a friend of mine not long ago, and the subject went through fantastic movies and books; no need to say that I immediately mentioned how amazing Harry Potter was. And, disappointment, I learned he never watched nor read this series. I mean, he obviously knew what it was, but he never actually watched or read it. From this discussion, I felt the duty to give people who never watched or read the series reasons to take the time to do so. If you don’t like to read, you may like to watch movies sometimes right?

  1. It made us all think we could be wizards

If you were young enough when you discovered Harry Potter, you must have thought at some point that you could be a wizard too. It sure develops the imagination of the youth.

  2. Hogwarts

Hogwarts

How incredible is it? I mean, we all dreamed about visiting this place. First, the architecture is awesome and second, the vibe of this place is comforting.

3. The creatures

Dobby, an elf

Goblins (Gringotts Wizarding Bank), elves (Dobby), ghosts (Nearly Headless Nick), three-headed dog (Fluffy + reference to Greek mythology: Cerberus, the three-headed dog which guards the entrance to Hades, the underworld where spirits of the dead were the only ones allowed), trolls, dragons, unicorns, centaurs, phoenix, dementors… There are so many, if we were to write a list, we would probably forget half of them. However, the variety of fantastic creatures is quite impressive, and the use of those creatures is never pointless.

4. The values transmitted

Indeed, values of friendship, family, courage, loyalty, altruism and more are all part of this series. Of course, it is a story, and in each good story, there are the villains which are in complete contradiction with all good values shared in the story, but the principal characters, Harry, Hermione and Ron, all promote the values that encourage emotional growth.

5. Settings, special effects and costumes

Well, it’s quite simple, the settings, special effects and costumes are all incredible.

6. Books vs. movie

One of the rare book series that was adapted to cinema which actually resulted to be a real success. Of course, some details are missing; a movie is obviously very different from a book, mostly in terms of length; you cannot produce a 10h movie for each book. Nonetheless, when I compare with other book series and films produced from those books, Harry Potter is most probably the only one with which I was not disappointed.

7. Just a good amount of cheesiness

Am I the only one who finds it boring when I want to watch a fantastic movie and it actually results in a love story? Well, Harry Potter does contain some love stories, but honestly, I would say that we hear about it like 4 times in all 8 movies.

8. Movies marathons or study background

Harry Potter is the perfect choice for a gloomy day movie marathon. I swear, every time I don’t know what to do during a holiday when it’s raining, I never go wrong with Harry Potter. Plus, once you know them by heart, it’s a perfect background for study or homework times (yep, I love it that much).

Ok, there are more reasons to watch or read Harry Potter, and if those ones are not enough for you, I’m sure you’ll be able to find others on other websites. But I mean, do you really need more?

*In case you would not know any of them, the titles of the films from the first to the last one are: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011).

All Harry Potter’s movies

DelphineC

Movies

Classic: The Lord of the Rings

delphinecote
The Fellowship of the Ring
Image Source

Fun fact, I’m all about classics. And I figured why not talk about another one: The Lord of the Rings. I know many people who read the books and then saw the movies and were disappointed, but I mean, obviously there are more details in a book. We cannot ask for a copy-paste of a book into a film; it’s impossible, even more impossible considering how humongous a novel it is. So, despite the lack of some details in the movies compared to the novel, we must admit that The Lord of the Rings is a classic, and everyone definitely watched it at some point or another. But what makes fantasy so attractive to people? What made it a success? I mean, the trilogy earned a total of 17 Academy Awards… who else could say the same?

Obviously, fantasy is one of the most appreciated genres even though it cannot be considered as a “serious” literature genre. However, that’s the good thing about it: it is NOT serious. Everyday life sometimes gets a little bit overwhelming, and we need to find some ways to escape for a certain time. Unlike documentaries or movies/books inspired from actual events that happened in the past, fantasy allows us to enjoy some free time without being reminded of the stress of the exterior world. Even though those movies or books are not all about joy, we still enjoy them.

Samwise Gamgee

If we take The Lord of the Rings, just think about Frodo’s companion, Samwise Gamgee; a light-hearted, generous, courageous and so valiant Hobbit. If you know who Sam is, just by being reminded of him kind of made you nostalgic right? And now you want to watch the movies just for him, yep.

Gimli

Now think about Gimli, the dwarf: he is a strong and loyal warrior who would certainly fight for Frodo to succeed in his quest until he dies.

Aragorn

No need to talk about Aragorn, but still I will do it: not only is he a good looking man, but he is also the rightful heir to the kingdom of Gondor, a man of honor and worthy of your trust (just for the sake of telling it, Arwen, an elf, and not just some kind of elf, but Elrond’s daughter – Elrond is a king elf – is in love with Aragorn, and that my friend, is something to be proud of).

Gollum

The last I will mention, but not the least is Gollum. This little creature that was once a Hobbit and that the Ring transformed into a kind of monster. He is a creature which we first hate, but then feel so much compassion for him and we finally love him for he is not fundamentally bad, but actually, fundamentally good.

Let’s only think about the fellowship of the ring, which includes nine people: four Hobbits (Frodo Baggings, Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took), two men (Aragorn and Boromir), a Dwarf (Gimli), an Elf (Legolas) and a Magician (Gandalf). The Dwarves and the Elves are not in good terms due to some old conflicts, and the men race is not really respected anymore since their “weakness” is what caused the loss of many (the man king did not destroy the Ring when he had the occasion). But still, they work together, they help each other and learn to respect and even appreciate one another. Important values such as mutual aid, courage, honesty, friendship and many more are put forward in this trilogy. If this is not a life lesson, I don’t know what it is.

We love fantasy, because it is a loophole and it stimulates our imagination and our feelings.

I leave you on a fun meme I found on the Internet. If you understand it, you are part of the real ones!😉

DelphineC

Books

The Good Girl

rovallee

Not so long ago, I read a thriller that is so far, one of the best books I’ve ever read. It is called The Good Girl, written by Mary Kubica. This literary piece is a very high-intensity thriller because the actions you expect to happen are definitely not the ones that actually happen. This novel is mainly considered as a psychological thriller, but I still found some gothic elements in it and I wanted to demonstrate that it is possible to explore a specific literary genre while including some gothic elements in it.

First of, the archetype of the damsel in distress is the main element of gothic literature in this thriller. Mia, the main character of the book, is in complete distress after she’s been kidnapped by a certain guy named Colin. Even if she tries to escape, it is impossible to achieve it and waits for the help f the police and her family. On the other hand, Mia’s mother could also be considered as a damsel in distress. She constantly tries to find ways to find her daughter but, because she is depressed by the loss other daughter, she waits for the police to help her out. In that way, she qualifies as a damsel in distress.

 Colin Thatcher, Mia’s one-night stand, turn out to be a sociopath who kidnaps her. Here, the monster archetype found in gothic pieces is a human monster. Colin’s purpose to take Mia away from her family was simply to hurt her. The monster generally generates terror and horror to the victim, in this case Mia.

That is what leads me to explain you the aspects of terror and horror in this psychological thriller. On one hand, Mia is completely terrorised by Collin because she anticipates what he could do to her. Terror is defined as the anticipation of the scary, and that is exactly what Mia is doing and feeling. On the other hand, there’s horror. Horror is the realization of what is scary when seeing it in front of your eyes. In this case, Mia also feels it when she realizes that she had been kidnaped and that she’ll probably never see her family again.

Simply, I suggest you read this psychological thriller that can also enter in the gothic genre because it has a lot of suspense and you’ll have difficulty to stop reading it, I swear.

Have a good time reading it!!

Rosalie