Beholding Bluebeard

Image Source: Kickstarter (Bluebeard's Bride by Marissa Kelly, 2017)

For as long as I have been a sentient being capable of advanced thought, the 'woman in peril' sub genre has always maintained a more than substantial sway over me.

A woman, usually young and at a turning point in her life, finds herself swept up into a dizzying, intoxicating maelstrom of a courtship consisting of overpowering seduction and mystery by an older, sexually imposing man of enigmatic descent in a terrifying yet delectable affair. They elope (against the wishes of the woman's peers) and he spirits her away to his manse in a province far from the woman's home where he gives her everything her heart desires, every luxury, every fancy her tender mind can conjure, he delivers. One day, he tells her he must leave her for a journey abroad, much to her confusion. He places a collection of keys in her young hand and he informs her the mansion is hers and she may do as she likes and go anywhere she pleases except one particular room he is extremely protective of. He departs and the woman is left to her own devices. She wiles away the time, enjoying every privilege afforded to her, but in the back of her mind, the nagging question tugs away at her curiosity; "What is behind that door?" Finally, her willpower can hold no longer and with those holy keys, she unlocks her husband's forbidden lair and beholds a horrifying secret she never would have imagined. Her spouse eventually discovers her act of defiance and flies into a bloody rage, vowing to kill her. At the last moment, she is saved by a younger prospective suitor who manages to slay the man turned maniac and both live Happily Ever After (TM).

Image Source: Geek and Sundry, 2016

The tale of Bluebeard is hardly the first of its type, but it is one of the most infamous and influential. Strains of it can be found everywhere and while they may either be amplified or diluted to suit the narrative of which they appear, the source remains at the core. Want a notably innocent example? Disney's beloved animated sensation, Beauty and the Beast contains a direct reference to Bluebeard in the Beast's warning to Belle to stay away from the West Wing. Just like the woman in the tale, she defies the caution and infiltrates his lair to investigate, only to draw her captor's frightening ire. While the result is VERY different from the original prose, the execution and motivation remains the same.

Another less direct but thematically relevant example from another mode of media is Rammstein's sexually-charged, Gothic and disturbing yet undeniably compelling music video for their song Du Riechst So Gut (You Smell So Good) in which a literal wolf (or specifically wolves) in man's clothing aggressively pursues a beautiful, nameless woman wearing red during a masquerade ball being held at a palatial estate. Upon imposing her out in the labyrinthine gardens of the property, he lures her, swooning into bed by pledging his adoration of her before transforming into the monster which lurks within, all the while ecstatically crooning about how wonderful she smells. 

Want another example? In Season Three of Hannibal, the character of Doctor Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson) finds her mind and soul at the mercy of one Doctor Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) who keeps her imprisoned through circumstance and coercion, though this time the secluded mansion is the exotic location of Italy and the attraction between the two is primarily mental (though both of their beauty is not lost on each other). Bedelia is completely aware of the danger of which he presents to her and those he preys upon, but she cannot help but get sucked further into his realm of horrific wonders. There is no asylum for her in this vipers' pit formulated by her captor and there is no other way to go but down, down into the abyss.

Complicity or desperation? The lines are blurred.

So why is this appealing to me? I have several reasons, and while not all would be considered, at least in the narrowest sense of the word, mentally healthy, I feel many individuals can relate, particularly women. So, if it pleases you, permit me to offer up an alternative perspective on this sordid tale.

At some point or another, all of us become attracted to somebody we know, deep down, in our heart of hearts, we should not be with. A dangerous, toxic, frightening figure who you know will ultimately cause you nothing but pain, but your immediate impulses speak far louder than the Voice of Morality screaming in your synapses ever could due to the shallow answers to your desires they provide, be it money, sex, attention, security, anything you want, but not what you necessarily need. 

While this notion can clearly be applied to both sexes given it's unfortunate factor in our lives, it can especially be felt by women because, let's face it, it is so easy to make women the victims in such situations because they are so delectable to be seen in distress. 

A bitter, warped version of the truth held by bitter, warped people. Image source: Rachael Turns Pages

Folklore portraying stories of fancy and horrors were designed to be cautionary; if you don't obey your parents, the bogeyman will get you; if you do not maintain your chastity you will be defiled by some horrible demon; if you are a disobedient and inconsistent wife, you deserve to be punished. Make no mistake, these yarns were not merely told in the name of entertainment, but to be accepted and practiced as sociological doctrine bestowed by the powerful onto the weak to maintain a seriously unbalanced status quo. Human beings are curious, troubled and hypocritical creatures. We make, maintain and enforce staunch rules because a certain level of behaviour is accepted as being correct. Anything which does not fit these conditions is deemed abnormal and looked upon with disdain, yet we can find ourselves indulging in the very same attitudes we say we abhor and nowhere is an example of this aspect of human nature which is more prevalent than sex and sexual desire.

Ohhhh, we are a horny bunch, and you don't need me to academically confirm that for you because the evidence surpasses mere empirical study and into our very DNA. Pornography, erotic fiction and imagery, allusions to that act which is labelled as forbidden but utterly irresistible to all. There is something about the Bluebeard story which titillates us although we would never openly discuss it over supper, be it the fantasy of immediate temporary satisfaction and the idea of the mysterious, lethal lover who places you under their horrible spell. The attraction of domination and submission has played heavily in every provocative work, even in genres where we do not automatically associate these terms. In a way, Bluebeard presents the opportunity to the sane of mind reader to safely explore the darker corners of their psyche without fear of real life repercussions or threat to their personal safety. By my personal perspective, Bluebeard and his constituents are the female-based fantasy equivalent to the femme fatale archetype in the traditionally masculine-fantasy film noir as both are eerily very similar when one considers the factors;

- A forbidden lover who promises the protagonist every dark, carnal desire.
- Exotic and erotic escapades, with the knowledge of what is being done truly is not in lead characters' best interests but survival instinct be damned because this feels so damn good.
- Deadly webs being woven by the treacherous lover ripe for entanglement.
- The too little, too late realization made when far too deep waters have been entered.

Image source: giphy

 

However, there is something else which I find that speaks to me about this disturbing tome and that is the idea that it can be 'taken back' and re-examined by wiser, contemporary eyes.

In recent years, Bluebeard has become less of a story which focuses on enforcing the oppression of women and more about the opportunity for women to take stolen power and personal agency back by recognizing such behaviour as destructive and threatening while also encouraging the reader to contemplate what they would do in such a situation. Women today have been afforded far more opportunity to prove their strength, be it physical and/or emotional which reflects not only in the attitude we have toward the original text but also those who re-tell the story.

In Angela Carters' seminal and darkly erotic The Bloody Chamber (a title which is fraught with multiple meanings I'm sure you can appreciate), while remaining faithful to most of the established text, a major element which comes in to play is that the unnamed young heroine (who narrates the story first hand) is saved partly by her own ingenuity as well as her own mother as opposed to the convenient younger suitor who can only offer emotional comfort as opposed to potent promise of survival. While the protagonist still embarks on a journey of Happily Ever After with the character, the true hero of the story is another woman, another figure of affection, one of maternal, eternal love. The one who saves you does not always want to get into your pants.

Another fascinating retelling is Margaret Atwood's Bluebeard's Egg, an extremely diverse, frustrating, yet cerebral venture which revolves around the life of a married couple in which the wife comes to suspect there is something deeply off about her husband, but her suspicions about his nature present more questions than answers. Due to the focal concept of perspective, the reader's personal interpretation and opinion of Atwood’s story can change depending on how they choose to approach it as well as the characters. 

In final thoughts, Bluebeard remains a powerful and perennial cornerstone of literature. Thanks to an expansion of time, shifting viewpoints, wisdom and intellectual discussion, it has morphed into a variety of wild and wonderful incarnations; the dark fantasy, an opportunity for discourse about interpersonal relationships between women and men and an enduring case of maintaining self-awareness and resourcefulness in uncertain situations. While the original story was decidedly misogynistic with little consideration for progress, it has become far more than the sum of its parts, it has been dissected, deconstructed and re-purposed to fit a far more sophisticated agenda; one of wisdom and of transformation. 

Bloodborne: The Perversion of the Hero's Journey

The easiest and hardest part about writing about Bloodborne is while there are so many topics which are intimately familiar to me. The clear H.P. Lovecraft comparisons, strong ties to various works of horror to nihilistic psychology, it’s ridiculously difficult for me to articulate about just one element but something I noticed on the several occasions I have played the game is this; it is a deliberate deconstruction and annihilation of the concept of the human myth and it’s place in our culture. To be frank with you, I haven't the foggiest where this drabble is going to go, and while I will try my darndest not to go off on too many a tangent, keep in mind this is more a less a string of  consciousness made digital word as opposed to anything remotely resembling academic thought.

Simply put, Bloodborne is a perverse inversion of our exclusively human beliefs and values, things which have been a part of our culture and our psychology since we learned the ability to think beyond what we could merely see. However, it does not do so by employing the strictly strange to show this, quite the contrary, Bloodborne presents us all with a knowledge we all know, but performed in a sacrilegious context which lays bare just how fragile our sense of belonging and existence truly is. Although it is tempting to strictly adhere to comparing these notions from the relatively modern source of Lovecraft, let’s keep in mind the concept of existential crisis, both interior and exterior, have always been a part of the human condition.

Sack up, kids. Real talk time. 

Like it or not, we are a selfish species; most if not all of what we have done has been to preserve our livelihoods with all over concerns being secondary, even tertiary. We consume and reproduce in an endless cycle with little forethought for the consequences our collective and generational actions will have on our world, despite the fact the world and the universe it exists within is a greater entity than we will ever be. In the broad scheme of things, all of us, no matter how powerful or profitable we are, will mean less than nothing. When we die, the world and universe will continue, altered in the formers’ case to be sure, but save for those who love us, we are not mourned or given an immortal legacy.

We will never become deified by anyone beyond those who we share our lives with because we are only temporary beings. In the case of Bloodborne, the notion of immortal legacy and godhood is something humans were never meant for, and in the pursuit of changing such a dynamic for our betterment, instead, we end up denigrating further as opposed to flourishing.

For the duration of the game, while playing as the Hunter, you make the gruesome discovery that the residents of Yharnam have collectively gone mad and have descended rapidly into becoming blood-thirsty beasts, where a transmorphic event has taken place in their bodies, minds and souls.

Why?

Quite simply, their forebears believed humanity could ascend to meet the Great Ones eye to eye. Scholars attempted to bridge the two races through research and experimentation, all achieving disastrous results, all of which being imperfect, horrendous and abhorrent hence the reason for the Hunter. The Hunter is the tool used to hunt down those who relinquished their humanity in favour of communing with the Great Ones, eliminating the primitive element, but as it becomes apparent, this cycle never ends. As long as humans have the aspiration and the entitlement to go beyond what they are worth, the hunt never ends. This desire in addition to the consumption of the Paleblood (which enables you to look past the veil at what truly lurks in the shadows of Yharnam) is what reverts humanity to it’s most base instincts, stripping away logic, morality and any mores of societal norms and always results in certain tragedy.

Case in point; the lament of Father Gascoigne

The Paleblood goes beyond exposing a persons’ id (yes, it's that old Freudian chestnut again), it transforms that person into the id. In this sense, the story line pushes forward the truth that despite everything we see and read, despite everything we vow to never do, one way or another, the temptation to give in is greater than anything. This almost suicidal drive to become the animal is the religion of humanity, it’s where we came from, it’s where we could potentially go because it is all too easy for us to give in at the end.

The Hunter, at least to me, represents the figurative Hero in Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey, a distinctly humanistic trait which shows up constantly in stories because it appeals to our sense of self worth and hope. Below I’ve included the overview of this, however, one of the most recognisable examples of this can be seen in the story arc of Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy or the myth of King Arthur which is the epitome of a classic quest of the hero in any story;

1. The Ordinary World: The hero, uneasy,  uncomfortable or unaware, is introduced sympathetically so the audience can identify with the situation or dilemma.  The hero is shown against a background of environment, heredity, and personal history. The hero-in-potential is shown to be torn in various directions due to circumstances, personal dilemmas and other outside forces beyond their control.

2. The Call To Adventure: Something disrupts the current status quo, either from external pressures or from something rising up from deep within the person's existence, so the they must be introduced to the genesis of change.

3. Refusal of The Call: The hero feels the understandable human fear of the unknown and attempts to shirk the adventure, however briefly.  Alternately, another character may express the uncertainty and treachery ahead.

4. Meeting The Mentor: The hero comes across a seasoned traveler of who gives him or her the primary training, equipment, and/or crucial advice that will help on the journey.  In some cases, the hero will find that mentorship within themselves through realising their own true sense of resolve.

5. Crossing the Threshold: At the conclusion of the First Act the hero commits to leaving the Ordinary World and enters a new world, the Special World, filled with unknown challenges, labors and dangers.

6. Tests, Allies and Enemies: The hero's innate strength and/or intelligence is tested and soughts out allegiances in the Special World.

7. Approach:  The hero and new found allies formally prepare and forge a sense of unity for the major challenge in the Special World.

8. The Ordeal: Near the middle or the end of Act Two, the hero enters a central space in the Special World and confronts death or faces his or her greatest fear which they have long been running away from.  Death, literal or figurative of either self or their traveling party occurs which fully pushes the hero to their absolute limits.

9. The Reward: The hero earns the treasure by facing death or something akin to it.  There may be a temporary cause to celebrate, but there is also danger of losing the treasure again and the hero knows better not to rest upon their laurels.

10. The Road Back: About three-fourths of the way through Act Three, the hero is resolute to complete the adventure, leaving the Special World to be sure the treasure is brought back to their home.  Often a chase scene signals the urgency and danger of the mission which can last the entire remainder of the story.

11. The Resurrection: At the climax, the hero is severely tested once more on the threshold of home.  He or she is purified by a last monumental sacrifice, another moment of death and rebirth, but on a higher and intimately complete level.

12. The Return: The hero makes an assured return to home or continues the journey, bearing some element of the reward that has the power to transform the world as the hero has been transformed and has a greater awareness of who they are, what they can do, and a willingness to help future heroes, thus the cycle continues.

Bearing that in mind in addition what I mentioned earlier about the rift between humanity and the gods, I want you to think of the reverse when it comes to the Hunter’s journey in Bloodborne and you will find that Bloodborne is the direct antithesis to Campbell’s celebrated narrative theorem. Despite the fact the game is indeed an RPG while permits you to customize your character’s appearance, attitude, skills, clothes and weaponry, this initial feeling of empowerment is actually a cruel joke which gradually rubs itself in your face when you realise that most if not all of what you have done has been not for the benefit of humanity, but for the Great Ones.

As the Hunter gathers further knowledge and insight about the curse of Yharnam, they start to see the Great Ones and realise every movement they have made has been dispassionately scrutinised. The Great Ones do not concern themselves with the affairs of humanity, instead they observe, watch us as we destroy themselves in the senseless, compulsive pursuit of something they will never have. Witnessing this reminds you as the player that no matter how well you have performed in-game, how many times you have needed to restart an area, regardless of your upgrades, pimped-out wardrobe and enhanced weaponry, is of absolutely no significance in the story, specifically the universe in which the Hunter exists.

Nothing, not a single deed of what you have done matters.

Your Hero’s Journey proves fruitless and utterly inconsequential which in turn cements home the notion that anything human, anything of which has been our thought, our will and our creation, no matter how powerful we may see it as, has absolutely no place beyond our own ego because it is only human. ONLY human. This nonchalant act of perversion against our expectations is the brilliance in the narrative of Bloodborne; it is not interested in giving you yet another optimistic boost about yourself or the human race. It pummels your fragile ego and awareness into oblivion because that is, at least in this universe, where we are all bound. 

How comforting.