Elizabeth Báthory in popular culture

The influence of Countess Elizabeth Báthory in popular culture has been notable from the 18th century to the present day. Since her death, various myths and legends surrounding her story have preserved her as a prominent figure in folklore, literature, music, film, games and toys.

In folklore and literature

The case of Countess Elizabeth Báthory inspired numerous stories and fairy tales. 18th and 19th century writers liberally added or omitted elements of the narrative. The most common motif of these works was that of the countess bathing in her victims' blood in order to retain beauty or youth. Frequently, the cruel countess would discover the secret of blood bathing when she slapped a female servant in rage, splashing parts of her own skin with blood. Upon removal of the blood, that portion of skin would seem younger and more beautiful than before.

This legend appeared in print for the first time in 1729, in the Jesuit scholar László Turóczi’s Tragica Historia,[1] the first written account of the Báthory case.

When quoting him in his 1742 history book, Matthias Bel[2] was sceptical about this particular detail,[3] he nevertheless helped the legend to spread. Subsequent writers of history and fiction alike often identified vanity as the sole motivation for Báthory's crimes.

Modern historians Radu Florescu and Raymond T. McNally have concluded that the theory Báthory murdered on account of her vanity sprang up from contemporary prejudices about gender roles. Women were not believed to be capable of violence for its own sake. At the beginning of the 19th century, the vanity motif was first questioned, and sadistic pleasure was considered a far more plausible motive for Báthory's crimes.[4] In 1817, the witness accounts (which had surfaced in 1765) were published for the first time,[5] demonstrating that the bloodbaths or blood seeker for vanity aspect of Báthory's crimes were legend rather than fact.

The legend nonetheless persisted in the popular imagination. Some versions of the story were told with the purpose of denouncing female vanity, while other versions aimed to entertain or thrill their audience. Some versions of the story incorporated even more elaborate torture chamber fantasies than recorded history could provide, such as the use of an iron maiden, which were not based on the evidence from Báthory's trial. Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, whose name inspired the term masochism, was inspired by the Báthory legend to write his 1874 novella Ewige Jugend ("eternal youth")[6]

Bathory also appears as the main antagonist in the novel Dracula the Un-dead, a sequel to Bram Stoker's classic novel by his great grand-nephew Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt. In the book, she is cousin to Count Dracula and was the motive behind his decision to move to London in the original novel, as she was murdering women under the guise of Jack the Ripper and he swore to stop her.

The historical novel The Countess by Rebecca Johns tells a first-person fictionalized account of Báthory's life from her prison cell at Csejthe Castle. In the book, she tells her son, Pál, the story of her life, explaining her behavior toward her servants as punishment for their disloyalty.

In the novel Cold Blood[7] by Syra Bond, the full horror of Bathory's life is captured in an expression of her warped imagination. The confused picture this produces, together with her lack of grasp on reality, creates a credible tandem world of torture and blood lust wrapped up in an overarching lack of regard for others.

Vampire myth

The emergence of the bloodbath or blood seeker for vanity myth coincided with the vampire scares that haunted Europe in the early 18th century, reaching even into educated and scientific circles but the strong connection between the bloodbath or blood seeker myth and vampiric myth was not made until the 1970s. The first connections were made to promote works of fiction by linking them to the already commercially successful Dracula story. Thus a 1970 movie based on Báthory and the bloodbath or blood seeker for vanity myth was titled Countess Dracula.

Some Báthory biographers, McNally in particular, have tried to establish the bloodbath myth and the historical Elizabeth Báthory as a source of influence for Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula, pointing to similarities in settings and motifs and the fact that Stoker might have read about her. This theory is strongly disputed by author Elizabeth Miller.[8]

Meanwhile, Báthory has become an influence for modern vampire literature and vampire films.[9] The story, while retaining the essential facts, receives an imaginative interpretation in the horror novelist Syra Bond's Cold Blood.[10]

Literature

Poetry

Comics and manga

Stage plays

Film

There have been numerous films about, referring to, or containing characters based on Countess Elizabeth Báthory:

Radio

Video games

The bloodbath myth served as a major component of some games:

"...And so it came to pass that the Countess, who once bathed in the rejuvenating blood of a hundred virgins, was buried alive... And her castle in which so many cruel deeds took place fell rapidly into ruin. Rising over the buried dungeons in that god-forsaken wilderness, a solitary tower, like some monument to Evil, is all that remains. The Countess' fortune was believed to be divided among the clergy, although some say that more remains unfound, still buried alongside the rotting skulls that bear mute witness to the inhumanity of the human creature."

Toys

Báthory is featured in McFarlane Toys 6 Faces of Madness series, a collection of action figures, including Rasputin and Vlad the Impaler. Báthory is depicted bathing in blood while the heads of some of her victims are impaled in a candelabrum. Bathory was also made as a doll in the Living Dead Dolls series.

The card game Evil Baby Orphanage includes Lady Báthory as a character; she is shown in a bathtub with pink water.

Music

Songs about Elizabeth Báthory include:

Bands named after Elizabeth Báthory include:

References

  1. in Ungaria suis cum regibus compendia data, Typis Academicis Soc. Jesu per Fridericum Gall. Anno MCCCXXIX. Mense Sepembri Die 8. p 188-193, quoted by Farin
  2. Notitia Hungariae novae historico geographica, divisa in partes quator, […] Tomus quartus. Vienna Austriae, Impensis Paulli Straubii Bibliopolae. Typis Iohannis Petri van Ghelen, Typographie Regii, Anno MDCCXLII, p. 468-475. Quoted by Farin, p 21-27.
  3. …ut spectatorem primi facinoris, cognitoremque cogitationum feminae fuisse, credi posset. … [so colorful that] one might think he had watched the first crimes and known the woman’s thoughts.
  4. [Alois Freyherr von Mednyansky]Freyherr von M-y: Elisabeth Báthory in Hesperus, Prague, October 1812, vol. 2, No. 59, p. 470-472, quoted by Farin, p. 61-65
  5. Hesperus, Prague, June 1817, Vol. 1, No. 31, p. 241-248 and July 1817, Vol. 2, No. 34, p. 270-272
  6. Ewige Jugend. 1611. in Leopold von Sacher-Masoch: Ewige Jugend und andere Geschichten, Berlin: R. Jacobsthal 1886, pp 5–43.
  7. Cold Blood.
  8. Elizabeth Miller, "Bram Stoker, Elizabeth Bathory and Dracula" from Miller, Elizabeth: Dracula – Sense and Nonsense. Desert Island Books 2006. ISBN 1-905328-15-X S
  9. Bonnie Zimmerman: "Daughters of Darkness – Lesbian vampires", Jump Cut, no. 24-25, March 1981, pp. 23–24, available as online essay
  10. Bond, Syra (2011). Cold Blood. Newark: Cambridge House. p. 300. ISBN 978-1907475689.
  11. "Necropolis (1970)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  12. "Daughters of Darkness (1971)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  13. "Ceremonia sangrienta (1973)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  14. "Curse of the Devil (1973)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  15. "Immoral Tales (1974)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  16. "Thirst (1979)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  17. "Mama Dracula (1980)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2014. Retrieved 2014-07-09.
  18. "Night of the Werewolf (1981)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  19. "Night Fangs (2005)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  20. "Stay Alive (2006)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  21. "Demon's Claw (Video 2006)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  22. "Dracula's Curse (2006)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  23. "Blood Scarab (Video 2008)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  24. "Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron (TV 2007)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  25. "Hostel: Part II (2007)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  26. 1 2 Film (2008-06-29). "Countess Elizabeth Báthory: icon of evil". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
  27. "Bathory: Countess of Blood (2008)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  28. "The Countess (2009)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  29. "Epitaph: Bread and Salt (2013)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  30. "Chastity Bites (2013)". Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc. 1999–2013. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  31. Awesome “Salem” Promo Echoes Bathory
  32. http://bathory.org/ – Elizabeth Bathory: The Opera; includes many FAQ sections about the woman herself and topics about her
  33. Morgan, Anthony (October 2007). ""Armoured Assault" – Evile frontman Matt Drake hails gargantuan Thrash masterpiece Enter the Grave". Lucem Fero. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
  34. "Tinderbox Singles". Thebansheesandothercreatures.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
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