Many stories of monstrous humans survive to us from the medieval Latin West. These stories, known as mirabilia (tales of marvels), were used to inspire admiratio (wonder) in audiences, and aid in their reception of edifying messages within the text. Stories of human–animal transformations leant on the meanings of animals as symbols, and transposed these meanings onto the humans they discussed. This article examines human–animal transformations in the works of Gervase of Tilbury (c.1150–1220) and Gerald of Wales (c.1146–1223) through analysis of various medieval writings on wolves, cats, and rabbits, offering an insight into the moral messages of medieval marvel texts.
C. White (Fri,) studied this question.