Why do we tell Werewolf Stories?

Why do we tell scary stories? Folk and fairy tales are a way to teach us warnings and lessons; don't be mean to that traveling old man, be wary of wolves in the woods, don’t take that deal that seems too good to be true. Are horror films/stories the same thing, or is there more to it? And more specifically does the monster we chose to chase our hero/heroine portray more about us as storytellers than we think? This is a continuation of my last two articles in which I talked about why we tell ghost and vampire stories. Today I want to address Werewolves. And again, these are largely based on my own perceptions, and thusly they might not address many potential applications these stories could have. But please, I would love to hear from you, what do you think?

So first off, as far as I can recall there seem to be three types of lycanthropy narratives. One would be they mysterious stranger causing amok in the town, the other would be yourself infected and going through these lunar changes, and the last would be a loved one dealing with this disease. I don’t really want to touch on a stranger, because that is a pretty broad subject depending on who you have represent this stranger. And I don’t really want to talk about it being yourself because I feel this could bleed into my first article, why do we tell ghost stories in the sense that getting lycanthropy could be like you dealing with hereditary illness or other diseases. So what I want to address is when it is a loved on who is infected with lunar lunacy.

So let's break this down a bit and follow the flow of the story. Usually we start with our main character, we are going to call them “the defense”. They usually have a lover/younger sibling/best friend who they largely take care of, or more just feel responsible for. Either because of obligations or just because they love them so much and only want their happiness. We are going to call this other person “the offense”. Whatever the case either because it’s hereditary or because of some trauma “the offense” changes. They become more aggressive, can’t control their temper, and start changing more things about their lifestyle. What does this sound like to you, because to me it could be a few things. It could be living with an alcoholic, or younger sibling you are in charge of going through puberty, or just in general living with someone who is abusive or bipolar. So to “broadly” categorize this we are going to say abusive relationships, mostly involuntarily abusive. It usually starts small and unnoticed by those around the offense and defense. In the stories there will just be some dead wildlife popping up around, but no one thinks too much about it it. The person infected with Lycanthropy knows something is wrong, but tries to ignore or hide it. Which always just makes the problem worse. In real life this is very similar, the outside world doesn’t know there is a problem, the defense might show up on day with messed up hair, runny mascara or a bruise. But it is casually explained away with no one the wiser. And the offense at this point still thinks they either don’t have a problem at all (ignoring) or thinks they can fix it themselves (hiding).

Then things escalate, as they always do. In the movies this can be as fast as the next night, as the moon gets closer and closer to the full moon the beast inside becomes more aggressive. Or it escalates next month, during the next full moon. Either way, someone is either hurt or killed. In real life it takes much longer to get to a fatal point, which in actuality makes it more dangerous. When things hit fast like a car crash, it's obvious there is a problem. But when its a slow burn, it’s much easier for those involved to rationalize the problem away thinking the outburst are so few and far between, or they only do it when they drink, or whatever the excuse to not seek help is. When it comes at you slower, you don’t think it's as bad as it really is. That is until it reaches the tipping point, someone gets REALLY hurt, and I don’t think I need to explain what that is, everyone knows that point. This is when the offense is no longer that person you love or care for, they are the beast jeopardizing your wellbeing. They have fully transformed into something you do not recognize anymore.

In the stories there are always a few different possible outcomes.

1. The Beast wins. The offense has killed or pushed away everyone linking them to their humane side, and have let their addiction/rage/whatever control their lives. This is not a good ending, usually ends with them killing the one who was trying to help them. 
2. The Offense dies. Whether it be because they were unwilling to try and change, or were incapable of changing. Either way, they were too much of a risk to those around them and either willingly gave up their lives, or were killed by someone else. In real life this could literally mean the offense pushed the defense so far, that in defense of their own safety they kill the offense, or have them arrested and get them locked up. This might solve the problem for the defense, but the problem the offense was struggling with never gets solved. This is not a good ending either, no one has to die because of something they can’t control. There is always a better option, even if that means committing them to an institution of some sort; rehab, hospital, or asylum. People do come out of those places changed if they are willing to try. Or atleast live their lives in the safety of knowing someone is taking care of them, and will sedate them if they ever start to become a rage monster again.
3. Compromise. The offense and defense work together to cure/maintain the offense’s illness. Either through locking them up each month, or coming up with some sort of pseudoscience cure or magic remedy maintain symptoms. In my opinion this is the best ending. Both parties admit there is a problem and both are willing to figure out how to solve it, together. In real life this could still mean rehab or treatment for bipolar or whatever disease/illness they may have. Either way, offense and defense are together, fighting it together and thus both become stronger and better for it.

In the past, stories usually ended in a bittersweet way, which I generally dislike. Because it gives people the idea in their head that there is something wrong with them that can not be fixed. And they are a monster because they can’t control this aspect of their life. But these days you are seeing more and more stories pop up with option C, because we as a collective we are less interested in saying you’re a bad person because of “X” reason, and are more in favor of “oh “X” reason makes you do these bad things, let's figure out what trigger’s “X” then see if we can eliminate “X” all together and throw you back into society as a productive happy member.”
So back to my original question, why do we tell werewolf stories. Well 50 years ago, or to be honest probably more like 15 years ago, I feel like it was warning and blaming. Warn people of the signs of “the offense” type person, and say “Just stay away, they are a monster, and there is nothing you can do about them accept kill them or lock them up.” Which is horrible, everyone deserves a chance at happiness, especially when the “X” thing that makes them a monster by your standards is something they can’t control, or are struggling to control. Just makes a society of people who think in the “us vs. them” mentality and that only leads to heartbreak and death. But lately I think we tell these stories to say, “Hey, you are sick, you are not a monster. You only become a monster if you let your illness consume you. Let me help you through this. You will find that you can accomplish so much more with someone by your side than you could alone”. And these days, you are never alone unless you chose to be.