With the complexity and brutality of her crimes, Elizabeth Bathory is known as the most sadistic and prolific serial killer in the world; even more so, she stands out because she is a female that is rare: especially in the Elizabethan Era. Bathory was believed to have been responsible for the murders of 600 virgin girls. She was certain that a drop of blood would make her look youthful again, but was convinced that bathing in the blood of girls who were virgins would take years off her. Because of her personality, physical qualities, and her lack of moral/family values, Countess Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary had the life of one of the most fascinating yet obsessive leaders in all of Transylvania. It is believed that her family had an impact and influence on the way she behaved. She was born into a wealthy and sadistic family where her uncle instructed her in Satanism and her aunt taught her sadomasochism, which is the giving and receiving of pleasure; in most cases sexual. As a child, Elizabeth had witnessed some other cruel behaviors. This behavior was by her father, who was a harsh, but righteous man. Bathory enjoyed it as she watched her father punish a gypsy by sewing him into the stomach of a horse (“Evil Dames in History”). Bathory was not an easy child growing up; life wasn’t easy for her being a member of the wealthiest family in Europe. It is said that the young Elizabeth suffered from seizures accompanied by loss of control and fits of rage, which may have been caused by epilepsy, possibly stemming from inbreeding during the Elizabethan Era. In addition, modern psychologists have diagnosed her with having a narcissistic personality disorder based on the hours per day spent in front of a mirror, the 5-6 clothin... ... middle of paper ... ...abethan-era.org.uk/elizabeth-bathory.htm>. "Countess Elizabeth Bathory." Evil Dames in History. Community Audio,18 Sep 2006. Web. 3 Feb 2014. Johns, Rebecca. The Countess: A Novel of Elizabeth Bathory. New York: Crown Publishing Group, 2011. Print. Ramsland, Katherine. "Lady of Blood: Countess Bathory." Crime Library: Criminal Minds & Methods. John Blake Publishing, 14 Jul 2007. Web. 6 Feb 2014. Richard, Pallardy. "Báthory, Elizabeth." Britannica Biographies (2012): 1. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 4 Dec. 2013. Rose, Christopher, and Thomas Garza, "The Slavic Vampire." 15 Minute History. WordPress, 30 Oct 2013. Web. 3 Feb 2014. . Wheeler , Joseph. "Testimonies from the Dead." Literary Culture. 26 Jun 1959: 15-18. Web. 6 Feb. 2014.
Elizabeth Bathory is known by many different names; ‘The Bloody Lady of Čachtice’, ‘The Blood Countess’, ‘Countess Dracula’, and not without reason. In the 16th century this murderess became obsessed with achieving mastery over nature; the countess had forsaken her humanity by drinking the blood of virgins for vitality and bleeding them dry to bathe in it for her skin to be clear of imperfections and signs of aging. Often the vain become delusioned that beauty and youth preserves the body forever, when in fact, life can just as easily be ripped away young than it is when old. With torture and a side of cannibalism, Countess Bathory was not the poster-woman for mental health, but her fear of death was what drove her to go to such extremes. Humans will go to endless lengths to maintain the illusion of mastery over nature and control over life and death. Throughout Oryx and Crake, Margaret Atwood explores human nature and puts forth that humans are driven by knowledge and fear of their own mortality. She argues that humans seek to play a divine role to control their own fate and in the process, sacrificing morals and ethics to quell that fear.
Countess Elizabeth Bathory is known as the most vicious female serial killer. Coming from a noble family in Kingdom, Hungary, no one really knows why she went out of her way torture hundreds of women. Either way throughout about a 20 year time span, Bathory spent her time not only ruling multiple castles, but taking in innocent women and children of the local men and women and making them her own. “Bathory and four collaborators were accused of torturing and killing hundreds of young women between 1585 and 1610” (Wikipedia 1).
Countess Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary, was born in 1560. That was a long time ago. Where you could do almost anything if you were a noble and you could get away with it. This was especially true in Elizabeth Bathory’s time. This was the reason she was able to kill over 600 virgin women to bathe in their blood. Only to make her complexion even better. She was later referred to as Count Dracula, because of her horrible treatment to her victims.
Wadlington, Warwick. As I Lay Dying: Stories out of Stories. New York: Maxwell MacMillan International, 1992.
...men who kept them in bondage and to sleep with them?” (6). Almost every night she would have to lie on her back and make love to her husband where she “unleashed [her] fury and [their] moments of love-making resembled a battle” (23) willingly or not. She was stripped of her body and womanly factors, and in her husband's eyes was made to be his sexual slave.
Pride and Lust are the two sins closely associated with the Wife of Bath. The Wife of Bath is a woman who is too proud of herself as shown by her style of clothing. Chaucer begins by describing her familiar Sunday clothing as “Her kerchiefs were of finely woven ground; I dared have sworn they weighed a good ten pound” (463-464). This type of clothing is atypical for a person attending a church service. Moreover, “Her hose were of the finest scarlet red and gartered tight; her shoes were soft and new. Bold her face, handsome, and red in hue” (466-468). All these things exemplifies her self-...
Elizabeth is the daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry the 8th. She was declared a bastard in 1537 when her father finally had a male child. After this no one believed that she would ever inherit the throne of England. Elizabeth was very damaged by the fact that her father kept beheading his wives. One of her step-mothers Catherine Howard, who was her mother’s cousin, was kind to her and it deeply affected her that another person she loved was beheaded (Weir Pg. 13). Many people believe that this is one of the main reasons that Elizabeth never wanted to marry. The institution itself was deeply flawed to her reasoning. I would be the same way if every time my father married he got to chop the woman’s head off because he was bored with her.
“We are left without any guide or compass, nothing to base our actions on, or blame them on. Since all actions are free choices we cannot escape our personal responsibility for everything we do and its consequences.” (Walter). The highly respected Bathory family sprung from the Hun Gutkeled Clan which held power throughout east central Europe. By the mid-16th century their power rose to its peak but died out ultimately by the year 1658. Many well-known kings, princes, members of judiciary, and holders of ministerial and civil posts were born into the legendary Bathory family. Among these infamous family members Erzsebet also known as Elizabeth Bathory was born in 1560. It is said that in order to preserve her loveliness and youthfulness she butchered approximately six hundred young ladies. Although Ms. Bathory’s actions were very disgraceful, she is the epitome of the negative effect that beauty and youth has upon society.
On November 4, 1942 in Harlem, New York, Patricia Era Bath was born to parents Rupert and Gladys Bath. In her early years, Patricia was raised in Harlem, New York. Harlem was not the safest, place yet Pat called it home. In her hometown lots of reasons for worry were present, not only because of the challenges for blacks, but because of World War Two. Patricia grew up being much worse off than others in their society. At an early age she excelled in many activates including science, flute, and being able to speak French. She was also able to master the writings of Milton, Virgil, Plutarch, and John Locke. Being the person she is, she only saw excitement and opportunity in her “long run.”
Elizabeth led England during it’s greatest time of influence as a nation despite the prejudices against her gender. Many people believe that her life was like a fairy tale-“Beloved by the kingdom; dressed by servants in jewels and gold, silk and velvet; pampered and treasured by kings and married to princes”, but in reality her life did not come close to being a fairy tale. Many of her subjects hater her from the moment she was born. She experienced imprisonment, her sister threatened to kill her, and she was almost forced in marriages with men she hated. Some of her friends caused uprisings in her name. Her enemies tried to assassinate her. Her father had her mother beheaded and ignored her for most of her life. Although she had many suitors, she never loved any of them. She understood the common people and eventually gained the loyalty of those who hated her. She could also be ruthless. The city gates and London Bridge held the bodies of the people that she executed during her reign.
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She showed her talents as a diplomat, managing a number of suitors and potential royal matches during her reign. through her father and her sister, Elizabeth had seen the challenges of royal marriages.