Reading Notes: Saints and Animals, Part B

(Wolf and Puppy, Unsplash)

The story that stuck out to me the most from Part B of this week's reading was "The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe." This legend was similar to several others that I had heard before, such as Romulus and Remus or Mowgli from The Jungle Book: a young baby boy is abandoned by his parents in the woods, but the boy is found by a wolf.  Like the other myths, the mother wolf in this story feels drawn to the baby, and out of pity she takes the child into her den and raises him as one of her own litter.  As the boy grows up a little, he is found one day in the woods by a Prince who is out hunting.  Assuming that the child is lost, the Prince "rescues" the boy and returns him back to human civilization, adopting him into his castle in Emly. But even after the boy, Ailbe, matures into a Bishop status in the castle, he still remembers his wolf mother and his early days in the forest.  One day, Ailbe gets the chance to be reunited with his wolf mother, who enters the castle grounds when running from a hunting party.  The two recognize each other immediately, despite the years that have passed.  Ailbe vows to protect his wolf mother and wolf siblings from any human harm, and even takes the wolf family in to live with him in the castle.

Although this story is currently told in third person from the perspective of Ailbe--which makes sense, because it is a human legend about a saint--one way to rewrite might be to switch the perspective to be told from the wolf mother's point of view.  Perhaps it could be retold as a legend passed down to wolves by their parents about a wolf family that lived in a castle long ago, feasting on rich meat and enjoying a warm fire.  Out of all the characters, the wolf mother was the most intriguing to me.  She seemed like such a noble and selfless creature for taking in the offspring of another species.  Even though she was a wolf and not a human, I admired her heart.  Telling the story from her perspective might lend some insight into her reactions to and thoughts about the events that we happening--was she nervous to take in a human baby?  Did she worry about Ailbe after he left?  Was she relieved to have the family back together again?  Did she feel alienated from other wolves after she lived in the castle?  It would be interesting to hear another side.

Bibliography: "The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe." From The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts, by Abbie Farwell Brown.