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Der Werwolf: Über die Werwolfsverwandlung, Verwundbarkeit & Entzauberung. Ein Beitrag zur Sagengeschichte von Dr. Wilhelm Hertz
120 pages, Paperback
First published October 15, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 30, 2011
This book is a newly published 2008 edition of Dr. Wilhelm Hertz 1762 published book " Der Werwolf: Ein Beitrag zur Sagengeschichte," which is free and as far as I know perfectly legal to download at google.books-
I've read both versions and I can see no difference in substance. The only difference is that this book was written in today's writing and German language.
In case of the original version you must be sure that you have a good copy, because this old font is sometimes hard to read if one is not accustomed to it. With a good specimen, the average reader should have no problems.
Who knows that there are several versions of the myth of Lycaon?
Who knows the restriction that it must be inherited silver?
Who has ever heard that you could recognize a werewolf because he has paws instead of toes on the hind legs?
If you would any of the three questions or even just one with the answer "me" would, this book is clearly what you need.
The book is easy to read and understand. Who wants an introduction to the topic of werewolves, and desires to a lesser degree that of other animal shifters, will find it here. It should not be overlooked that the author refers mainly to Europe, but concerning that the reader will be sure to find something.
A small flaw is that the author is sometimes a bit too much generalizing and we read many other languages you cannot understand, but the book does not lack in information content. But otherwise the book itself is still quite recommendable.
As a summary only remains for me to say that this book is definitely a must for everyone who deals with the theme werewolf, especially as many subsequent works in this area referenced this work.
I've read both versions and I can see no difference in substance. The only difference is that this book was written in today's writing and German language.
In case of the original version you must be sure that you have a good copy, because this old font is sometimes hard to read if one is not accustomed to it. With a good specimen, the average reader should have no problems.
Who knows that there are several versions of the myth of Lycaon?
Who knows the restriction that it must be inherited silver?
Who has ever heard that you could recognize a werewolf because he has paws instead of toes on the hind legs?
If you would any of the three questions or even just one with the answer "me" would, this book is clearly what you need.
The book is easy to read and understand. Who wants an introduction to the topic of werewolves, and desires to a lesser degree that of other animal shifters, will find it here. It should not be overlooked that the author refers mainly to Europe, but concerning that the reader will be sure to find something.
A small flaw is that the author is sometimes a bit too much generalizing and we read many other languages you cannot understand, but the book does not lack in information content. But otherwise the book itself is still quite recommendable.
As a summary only remains for me to say that this book is definitely a must for everyone who deals with the theme werewolf, especially as many subsequent works in this area referenced this work.
October 5, 2024
In meinen Augen ein sehr gute Buch, welches einen guten Überblick über zahlreiche Werwolfsagen bietet. Gelegentliche eigene Gedanken des Autors sind ebenfalls vorhanden, doch er hält sich mit diesen etwas zu viel zurück, was ich persönlich ein wenig bedauerlich finde. Wenn er sich jedoch mal selbst äußert, dann wird man sehr wissenschaftliche, gut begründete,regelrecht fundierte Meinungen vorfinden, die auch, wie der Titel verspricht, einen wirklichen Beitrag zur Sagengeschichte leisten. Eine für viele sicherlich etwas lästige Eigenschaft hat dieses Buch jedoch: es wurde von einem Doktor der Philosophie und Germanistik geschrieben. Dies hat zum einen den angenehmen Effekt, dass sich das Buch wirklich wie eine Doktorarbeit liest, demzufolge mit zahlreichen Quellen unterlegt ist und man hier ein wirklich sachliches, gut sortiertes Werk vorliegen hat. Es hat jedoch auch den Effekt, dass gewisse anderssprachige Passagen von Mythen in der Originalsprache (bspw. Latein, Angelsächsisch, Altgriechisch) abgedruckt und dann nicht übersetzt werden. In der Regel stört das nicht all zu sehr, da sie nie kontextlos erwähnt werden, doch ich kann mir gut vorstellen dass dieser Stil auf manche etwas anstrengend wirken könnte.
Doch das ist ein in meinen Augen eher kleines Makel, interessiert man sich für derlei Sagen dann ist das hier ein sehr lesenswertes Buch.
Doch das ist ein in meinen Augen eher kleines Makel, interessiert man sich für derlei Sagen dann ist das hier ein sehr lesenswertes Buch.
February 19, 2024
While I read a machine-translated version of this (since it's only available in German), the structure of it is simple enough that not much is lost in translation: it acts almost as a reference work, going through sources, briefly retelling each relevant snippet but not doing much more that. A good place to mine sources from more than anything.
Being from 1862, it's as much a historical artefact as it is a history book in itself. It doesn't have a whole lot to add onto the far more popular works of the general period by Sabine Baring-Gould and Montague Summers, though I do appreciate its breeziness - something both mentioned works fail at doing!
Being from 1862, it's as much a historical artefact as it is a history book in itself. It doesn't have a whole lot to add onto the far more popular works of the general period by Sabine Baring-Gould and Montague Summers, though I do appreciate its breeziness - something both mentioned works fail at doing!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews