The werewolf, although not examined here, is a monster representing the uncivilized country folk of Europe—a symbol of primitivism, illiteracy, racial impurity, and the importance of social class.

DEFINE: The werewolf is defined here as a symbol of primitivism, illiteracy, racial impurity, and class anxiety in European folklore. SEED: Could be developed into an essay tracing how folkloric monsters encode social hierarchies and rural-urban tensions.

Sophia Rose Arjana, Muslims in the Western Imag…, loc. 1279