Gilles de Rais = Bluebeard?

Going back over one of the pieces of research that Gini handed Casey and I about Sally Clark from the Canadian Enycyclopedia, I noticed something very interesting. There is only one line on that page that even references her writing of Jehanne of the Witches, and in that line the encyclopedia refers to Gilles as "mass murderer, otherwise known as Bluebeard". Surprised at not having noticed this before, I quickly googled "Joan of Arc and Bluebeard" and several interesting things popped up. The one I found most interesting is this website  Sur La Lune Fairytales which documents the history of the legend of Bluebeard, as well as various similar stories and modern translations. I was astounded at how many titles I recognized, with characters that are allegedly inspired by Gilles de Rais' deeds! You can find the list on the website; I reccommend checking out the list of modern interpretations - Bronte's Jane Eyre and Atwood's The Robber Bride are both on the list!


Illustration for Mr. Fox by John Batten (a tale similar to Bluebeard)
Found under "Illustrations" on the site


 Although, I find it quite fascinating that the story itself has translated from Gilles mass killing of young sodomized boys to the killing of "badly-behaved" wives. The gender politics at play are astounding. I have always recognized the legend of Bluebeard as coming from a long history of "Bad Wives Tales" meant to keep the medieval wife in line, depicting Bluebeard as less monsterous for his actions (barf). Yet, the argued origin of the story as coming from the accounts of Gilles de Rais' actions does portray a horrible, mass murdering human being. YET, Sally Clark seemingly sympathizes with his character, especially since she places the whole play from his point of view. I don't even know what to make of all of this!

WAIT: I just checked back and realized the website actually attributes both the Gilles de Rais origin and the "bad wives tale" motive as possibilities for the legend:

"Bluebeard was already a folk tale by the time Charles Perrault wrote it down and published it in 1697. The history of the tale is debated, but the popular opinion is that the tale developed from the legend of Gilles de Rais (aka de Retz) (Murphy 1996).

Gilles de Rais (1401?-1440) was a Marshal of France and served under Joan of Arc before her execution. He was a French national hero for helping drive the English out of France. After the crowning of the Dauphin and the death of Joan of Arc, de Rais settled into his estates in Brittany and turned deviant. He practiced alchemy and black magic while he was a great patron of the arts. He enjoyed killing, usually by decapitation, young boys after he he had sodomized them. His fame and influence kept people from noticing that children were disappearing from his lands. Some speculators think the story of Bluebeard arose among the peasantry to warn their children to stay away from the dangerous baron whom they had no other protection against due to his political and financial stature. Finally, the Duke of Brittany investigated the murders and dug up the remains of 50 boys in de Rais' castle. He confessed to 140 killings at his trial, but he might have killed up to 300 people. He was burned alive and hanged simultaneously for his crimes on October 26, 1440 (Mendoza 1998). You can read more about Gilles de Rais at Antonio Mendoza's The Serial Killer Hit List--Part 1 site.

Other critics do not think the story is based upon the story of Gilles de Rais, but is actually based on older stories such as "Conomor and Triphine" and "Cupid and Psyche." These stories are addressed more on the Tales Similar to Bluebeard page. This theory centers on Bluebeard's interpretation as a cautionary tale against curiosity and temptation (Warner 1994).

Yet another theory of Blue Beard's origins is centered upon the fairy tales being seen as women's stories, passed down through generations from mother to daughter. Bluebeard can also be interpreted as a cautionary tale about real life. The story isn't warning against temptation and curiosity in marriage, but the practical consequences of marriage. In the time when childbirth was a main cause of death for women, mothers warned their daughters that marriage could be deadly since you could be killed by your husband with the simple act of becoming pregnant by him. In this way, the tale loses its sadistic killer and becomes a tale of normal life (Warner 1994)."

Anyway, just felt like I should finally post and although this might not be relevant, it's just one thing I have noticed that I think is pretty intriguing. Check out the site and let me know what you think!

Brittany