This episode deals with rats - in Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum - and the possibly anti-Jewish rat-like vampire in Nosferatu. The Nosferatu vampire is especially portrayed as vermin, and some scholars believe this was subtle propaganda towards viewing Jewish people as "less than human" - and rationalizing their extermination. All in all - a very dark (and important) episode.
This episode deals with rats - in Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum - and the possibly anti-Jewish rat-like vampire in Nosferatu. The Nosferatu vampire is especially portrayed as vermin, and some scholars believe this was subtle propaganda towards viewing Jewish people as "less than human" - and rationalizing their extermination. All in all - a very dark (and important) episode.
Note: Mr. Poe's lines are in italics.
0:00 Intro
Welcome to Celebrate Poe. The opening melody is Edgar Allan Poe’s favorite song - Come Rest in This Bosom. Today’s episode is called Rats, Rats, Rats, Part Two - and deals with an aspect of a horror classic that is often felt to be an innocent harbinger of one of the most devastating examples of mass murder and destruction.
This is the second part of an episode that began with Rats, Rats, Rats - Part One. The title is taken from a line by Renfield in the film version of Bram Stoker’s Dracula - Rats, rats, rats! Hundreds, thousands, millions of them, and every one a life! The previous podcast episode of Celebrate Poe dealt with F.W. Murnau’s classic German film, Nosferatu - its plot and the court case surrounding its contents. This episode will take a deeper look at feelings that many scholars believe that the rat-like monster of Nosferatu may have represented - whether intentionally or not. And I need to warn you - this episode is going to go to some pretty dark places.
01:37 Comparison of Dracula interpretations
Now in contrast to the almost charming womanizer protrayal of Dracula in the 1931 Universal version, the character of Nosferatu can probably be best described as animal like and repulsive. This was supposed to be actor’s Max Schrek’s first appearance in a film, and his version of a vampire is that of a pale and thin being with a shaved head, two elongated front teeth, and sunken cheeks. He had wide bulging eyes, and extremely long fingernails that were curved, and pointed like claws. With a pale and thin appearance, he looked more like a giant, nauseating rat than a genuine human being. And rats play an important part in Nosferatu - both in the original and in the remake.
But before I talk about rats in Nosferatu - I would like to look at rats in Edgar Allan Poe’s writings. Now, to be honest, rats are not frequently mentioned in most of Poe’s works - oh, there is a brief allusion to a theatre rat - but the most famous use of rats by Poe is in The Pit and the Pendulum.
02:38 Rats in The Pit and the Pendulum
According to author Stephen Peithman, rats can represent decay, hell, infirmity and even death. I think it is interesting that the rats in The Pit and the Pendulum might be viewed as even more creepy today - today we know that rats were potential carriers of the dreaded bubonic plague - a fact that probably would have not been known by Poe’s original readers. However, having masses of filthy rats crawl over you has got to be the ultimate example of disgust and terror - no matter time period you are talking about. So I would like to read a portion of The Pit and the Pendulum - tho it sure would be nice if the ghost of Mr. Poe were here here to read it himself.
GHOST ENTRANCE SOUND
Well, hello Mr. Poe - just when you need him.
Hello, Mr. Bartley.
Hello, Mr. Poe. I knew you are going to be here for the 2001 Halloween episode of Celebrate Poe to read some of your works - but how did you know that I was planning to read from “The Pit and the Pendulum?”
Mr. Bartley - As a ghost, I have my ways. I am surprised you do not know that by now.
Well, I am glad you do - have your ways. Would you be willing to read the section about rats from The Pit and the Pendulum.
Mr. Bartley, I think you know the answer to that.
Introduction to reading (rat noises)
For many hours the immediate vicinity of the low framework upon which I lay, had been literally swarming with rats. They were wild, bold, ravenous; their red eyes glaring upon me as if they waited but for motionlessness on my part to make me their prey. "To what food," I thought, "have they been accustomed in the well?” They had devoured, in spite of all my efforts to prevent them, all but a small remnant of the contents of the dish. I had fallen into an habitual see-saw, or wave of the hand about the platter: and, at length, the unconscious uniformity of the movement deprived it of effect. In their voracity the vermin frequently fastened their sharp fangs in my fingers. With the particles of the oily and spicy viand which now remained, I thoroughly rubbed the bandage wherever I could reach it; then, raising my hand from the floor, I lay breathlessly still. At first the ravenous animals were startled and terrified at the change -- at the cessation of movement. They shrank alarmedly back; many sought the well. But this was only for a moment. I had not counted in vain upon their voracity. Observing that I remained without motion, one or two of the boldest leaped upon the frame-work, and smelt at the surcingle. This seemed the signal for a general rush. Forth from the well they hurried in fresh troops. They clung to the wood -- they overran it, and leaped in hundreds upon my person. The measured movement of the pendulum disturbed them not at all. Avoiding its strokes they busied themselves with the anointed bandage. They pressed -- they swarmed upon me in ever accumulating heaps. They writhed upon my throat; their cold lips sought my own; I was half stifled by their thronging pressure; disgust, for which the world has no name, swelled my bosom, and chilled, with a heavy clamminess, my heart. Yet one minute, and I felt that the struggle would be over. Plainly I perceived the loosening of the bandage. I knew that in more than one place it must be already severed. With a more than human resolution I lay still. Nor had I erred in my calculations -- nor had I endured in vain. I at length felt that I was free. The surcingle hung in ribands from my body. But the stroke of the pendulum already pressed upon my bosom. It had divided the serge of the robe. It had cut through the linen beneath. Twice again it swung, and a sharp sense of pain shot through every nerve. But the moment of escape had arrived. At a wave of my hand my deliverers hurried tumultuously away. With a steady movement -- cautious, sidelong, shrinking, and slow -- I slid from the embrace of the bandage and beyond the reach of the scimitar. For the moment, at least, I was free.
Thank you, Mr. Poe.
It was definitely my pleasure. I must leave you now, but I will join you next week for your Halloween episode.
Yes, the 2021 Holoween episode is called Poe’s Vampires .
Mrr. Bartley - that is a most intriguing title that will require some explanation. Nevertheless, I am excited regarding the opportunity to relate some of what I feel where among the best works I penned during my earthly existence. Auf Wiedersehen, Mr. Bartley
Goodbye, Mr. Poe.
09:15 Historical background in Germany
By now - just by examing two works of art - Nosferatu and The Pit and the Pendulum - I hope you can see that rats have been used to represent creatures that we view as repulsive, despicable, and even less than human.
This is where it begins to get really dark - You see, in 1919, the country of Germany signed the Treaty of Versailles - ending World War I. Many Germans - with very good reason - felt that they were treated unfairly, and any lacked real financial stability - much like today. A creeping autocrat by the name of Adolph Hitler was able to stoke unrest, emphasize nationalism, and unfairly blame minorities for economic and social problems - especially the Jewish population. Hitler’s actions, along with some effective propaganda to emphasize his beliefs, are usually listed as reasons for the rise of the Nazi party.
Now you might ask - what does this have to do with Nosferatu. Well, German critic and social scientist Siegfried Kracauer later wrote in his study From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological Study of the German Film - that the films produced directly before Hitler’s rise to power frequently expressed the political dilemma between conservatism and revolution. He wrote that the German people were constantly facing indecision between order and chaos - and interpreted Nosferatu as a tyrannical figure that can be seen to stand for the extreme inflation that was sucking the blood out of the finances of the German people. And the vampire is able to inflict pain and suffering on whoever crossed his path. - Now stay with me on this one. At the same time, the figure of Count Orlock could be viewed as the personification of the Jew who is taking advantage of Germany’s finances, morals, and intellect - in other words - destroying the country.
Also, between 1918 and 1920, Germany alone lost roughly 287,000 people in the great flu pandemic — the "Spanish Flu," as it's erroneously called today — which killed 50 million worldwide. It was a shattering experience for the Germans, as it was for people everywhere. So showing masses of rats was a reminder of that plague. Readers of Poe’s time may not have known that rats were carriers of the plague, but Germans who saw Nosferatu knew the signicance of rats in bringing the plague and death.
Comparing a person to a rat was saying that person was less than human - that he or she was vermin that must be destroyed. Hitler later used this hateful view to his advantage is what I call “hard-core” propaganda to convince the German people that Jews were vermin - animals who must be totally extinguished for the common good.
For example, when the foreign Count Orlock arrives in Wisborg by ship, he brings with him a swarm of rats spread the plague throughout the town. And I am not talking a few rats - especially in the remake. These are huge, fat rats that make your skin craw. This is an element that is not in Bram Stoker’s novel. But in Nosferatu, the rats are among the most graphic images in the movie - I don’t think I have ever seen an image of that many huge rats crawling all over each other in one place - and that includes that horrible Michael Jackson movie, Ben. - good song, but creepy movie. Anyway, accordinng to some scholars, this plot element of Nosferatu also associates Count Orlock with rodents and the idea of the "Jew as a disease-causing agent"
Now for any neo-Nazis who might be out there - I definitely do not espouse any of Hitlers views - any kind of stereotype, racism, or nationalism. The reason that the Holocaust Museum makes much of Hitler’s propaganda public on their web site is to to give you an idea how such hatred evolved and could happen again.
14:36 F.W. Murnau’s intentions and actions
Now let me emphasize that there certainly is no evidence that the director, F. W. Murnau intended Nosferatu to be an anti-Semetic work - that the movie toyed with Jewish stereotypes because its vampire was rat-like. It is doubtful that any perceived associations between Count Orlok and anti-Semitic stereotypes were conscious decisions on the part of Murnau.
Now stick a pin in the subject of Murnau, and I would like to briefly talk about an incident of “innocent propagana’ from my childhood. You see, every Christmas season, the March of the Wooden Soldiers with comedians Laurel and Hardym would play on television. It was an innocent combination of Babes in Toyland with Victor Herbert songs - the kind of stuff that a kid would love. I remember there was a character called Barnaby who I now know was the stereotypical Jewish character - disagreeable, grouchy, bent over posture, crooked behavior, a miserly attitude, and cheap - above all - cheap. I don’t remember if it was said that he was Jewish, but I came away assuming from the stereotype that he was Jewish because that was how all Jewish people were. So even innocent stereotypes can cause you to form unrealistic opinions about others and can be dangerous.
But back to Murnau, and his actual character -
In reality, F. W. Murnau "was friendly with and protective of a number of Jewish men and women" throughout his life. This included Jewish actor Alexander Granach, an excelent actor who played Knock in Nosferatu. Also, F.W. Murnau would probably have been more sensitive to the needs of oppressed minorities than most people in Germany. F.W. was a fairly open - at least for those times - individual who happened to be openly homosexual.
When it became obvious that Hitler was rising to power, many of Germany’s film stars such as Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich disagreed with Hitler’s ideas so much that they lived for the rest of their lives in the United States. Karl Freund, one of the directors of the 1931 Dracula, (who I talked about in the episode Children of the Night) also moved to the United States. And in 1927, F.W. Murnau was offfered a four year contract in Hollywood, and he moved to California. And to be honest, living in Hollywood would be easier than living in Germany as a gay man. Before Hitler’s rise to power - quite possibly - but afterwards - no way. If Murnau had not moved to the United States, he probably would have been sent to a death camp. You see, Nazi policy was to also exterminate all homosexuals - so I think it is fair to say that he was hardly a fan of Hitler.
For a great fictional themed film that shows Germany before the War from a gay perspective and then several gay individuals in a death camp - check out Bent from 1997 - one of the most powerful movies I have ever seen. Your library should have it. Bent stars Ian McKellen, Mick Jagger, and Clive Owen. I believe the Clive Owen role was played in the Broadway play by a young Richard Gere. It is NOT the Bent filmed around the same time with Andy Garcia. You know, just talking about Bent - I reserved a copy of Bent from the local Indianapolis library a few minutes ago. The DVD has a picture of Clive Owen as a prisoner in a death camp on the cover.
Anyway, again, I do not think that Murnau intended the Nosferatu vampire to be anti-Semetic - but just because he did not intend to have an objectionable protrayal, does change the reality of how the vampire came across and what it communicated - even on an unconscious level. And it is the innocent expression of hatred that can be the most insidious and harmful precisely because it DOES seem innocent.
Now a little bit more about Murnau’s later years
In 1927, he directed a movie called Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans. This movie was the only motion picture to win an Oscar for Unique and Artistic Production because the category was retired after the inaugural 1929 Academy Awards. Murnau died in a car accident in California; and only 11 people attended his funeral. Greta Garbo commissioned a death mask of Murnau that she kept for many years.
20:32 The Eternal Jew quotes
Now getting back to Germany -
As Hitler rose to power, the propaganda espousing his policy towards the Jewish population became more and more venemous. I ran across the English translation of a review of one of those propaganda films from 1940 on the web. The film is called The Eternal Jew, and the page is copyright with no unauthorized reproduction. I wrote to Dr. Randall Bytwerk, the professor at Calvin College who compiled the site of Nazi Propaganda. His collection shows how hatred became public policy in Nazi Germany. In a rather lengthy request, I asked if I could use a section of his archives in this podcast - not really expecting an answer. The next morning, I got a one-word response - YES So I am taking that as an ok.
This review was published in a Nazi Party’s monthly regarding the film [The Eternal Jew], - one of the nastiest of several anti-Semitic films of the period. No author is given. I am just going to read it - not that I agree with the content in any way - but I think it speaks for itself by showing how seemingly civilized people can be brainwashed. The name of the author is not given.
The Eternal Jew: The Film of a 2000-Year Rat Migration
The Eternal Jew is the first film that not only gives a full picture of Jewry, but provides a broad treatment of the life and effects of this parasitic race using genuine material taken from real life. It also shows why healthy peoples in every age have responded to the Jews with disgust and loathing, often enough expressing their feelings though deeds.
Just like rats, the Jews 2000 years ago moved from the Middle East to Egypt, at that time a flourishing land. Even then they had all the criminal traits they display today, even then they were the enemies of hard-working, creative peoples. In large hordes they migrated from there to the “Promised Land,” flooded the entire Mediterranean region, broke into Spain, France, and Southern Germany, then followed the German colonists as they moved into the countries of the East. Along they way they remained eternal parasites, haggling and cheating. Poland above all became the enormous reservoir from which Jewry sent its agents to every leading nation of Europe and the world.
The self-portrait Jewry offered the world was disgusting from the beginning. All that is overshadowed by the powerful examples in this new and most valuable film, The Eternal Jew. This film with its persuasive power must be shown everywhere where anti-Semitism is still questioned. No one will fail to shudder at the sneaking servility and dirty bartering of the Jews when they start out, at the perfidy, insidiousness and vulgarity of their methods, at the brutality and all-devouring hatred they exhibit when they reach their goal and control finance.
The most revolting scenes show Jewish slaughtering methods. These customs, which cast a particularly vivid spotlight on the so-called Jewish religion, are so terrible that it is hard to watch the film as the grinning Jewish butchers carry out their work. It is illuminating to see how stubbornly Jewry holds to its method of slaughter.
Not only in this regard, but in other areas too we are reminded with a shudder of what once was reality in Germany: the power of the Jews in the economy, finance, culture, theater, film, publishing, press, radio, education and politics. All these Jewish leaders had their home or their origin in the filthy ghettos of the East.
One has a deep sense of salvation after seeing this film. We have broken their power over us. We are the initiators of the fight against world Jewry, which now directs its hate, its brutal greed and destructive will toward us. We must win this battle for ourselves, for Europe, for the world. This film will be a valuable tool in that struggle.
Again, this is not because I agree with the propaganda in any way, but because I believe that tracing the evolution of the Nazi Party’s propaganda for the period is very instructive in helping to show how hatred can become public policy - This is certainly not because the German people are uniquely bad - but can occur wherever stereotypes, prejudices, racism, and nationalism are allowed to rear their ugly heads in ANY country.
26:35 Dehumanization
When I was doing the transcript for this episode, I ran across an excellent book called Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave, and Exterminate Others by David Livingstone Smith.
The author begins his text with the words from the United States Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The idea that all human beings have certain basic rights just because they are human may not sound controversal until you look at societies or groups who view certain groups of people - for whatever reason - as less than human. Most of us would feel uncomfortable - to say the least - at killing another person - but when a group of people looks at another group as less than human - or somehow creatures without a soul inside a body that looks like a human - then discrimination or even extermination of that group can be somehow rationalized.
I know I had always thought - how could anyone set out to kill a group of human beings- especially on a large scale. But after reading Less Than Human, I see that trying to exterminate a group of people can actually seem somewhat logical when that group is percieved as less than human - as parasites or rats that are repulsive vermin.
An essential part of Hitler’s campaign of hate was his belief that Jews were less than human, and should be exterminated. Hitler repeatedly referred to “the Jew” as a germ, germ carrier, or agent of disease, a decomposing agent, fungus, or maggot. Hitler likened the Jew to a viper or adder ... whose bite directly introduces venom into the bloodstream of the victim. In Hitler’s perception of Jews as blood poisoners, he also refers to them as bloodsuckers, leeches, and poisonous parasites. He viewed the systematic murder of Jews, homosexuals, and other groups he considered undesireable as a public good.
Now when talking about dehumaning man, this episode has mainly dwelt with the of ideas of Less Than Human regarding the German Holocaust. But I believe the book’s ideas are also applicable to attitudes during Poe’s lifetime towards African American individuals. Poe’s attitudes towards race were very complex - it seemed he divided his professional life between the North AND South, and wrote very little about his role in society, but I am looking forward to taking a deep dive into this area and sharing it with you in future episodes.
30:14 Concluding story
When I finished writing the script for this episode, I realized that I had immersed myself in learning about a man made hell - a place that ultimatly leads to a state of isolation, depression, and even destruction. To say I was in a dark mood is putting it mildly.
Then the delivery person came with a package from amazon - no, this wasn’t some kind of wonderful product that would take my mind off my morbid thoughts, but a humdrum external drive that I needed. Now stay with me on this one. The drive I used for a backup had died, and I needed a backup to keep on site. So I turned off my computer (always a good idea when installing a hard disc) - attached it to my computer, initialized it, and then tested the drive. It failed. I called customer support and wanted to know what was wrong. I assumed I would get someone who knew what they were talking about and was a good communicator - OK, I am not proud to admit this. - but I was hoping the person was knowledeble and spoke clear English.
After a few rings, I heard a woman’s voice, “Hello, Mr. George, how may help? I could try to imitate her Oriental accent, but it would come across as insulting on my part.
My heart dropped, but I told her my problem, and it was clear she did not understand what I was saying. We went back and forth regarding the simpliest of issues, and I gradually became increasingly stressed out.
After a few minutes, it became obvious we weren’t getting anywhere - and for some reason I started thinking about Jewish individuals in a death camp - of course, I couldn’t do anything to retroactively help the millions of people who were tortured and slaughtered - but I could be patient with the lady who was obviously doing her best.
Suddenly I became very patient - sometimes explaining the meaning of words in a way that I hope did not come across as insulting. She opened up, and started teaching me some computer concepts from her end. I am definitely not proud of this but, I had acted like the Gestapo agent showing what I felt was my supposed superiority while I verbally dehumanized her. It was only when we began speaking and laughing as equals that we got anything accomplished. She told me how much she sincerely enjoyed speaking with me several times. It sounds like a small thing, but I had a wonderful feeling because I had made a brief, but very human connection with another person. And this connection could only have been made when we treated each other with respect and as equals.
In summary, the great documentary film maker Ken Burns has said - ‘I believe it is the artist’s responsibility to lead people into hell. But I also believe it is important to lead the way out.”
And why not visit my podcast web site at celebratepoe.buzzsprout.com - click on the episode you want to learn more about to see its show notes and a transcript.
33:52 Halloween episode
Next week, join the ghost of Edgar Allan Poe and me for Celebrate Poe’s special 2001 Halloween episode - Poe’s vampires - for a look at Poe’s stories about the undead and his obsessions with death - an obsession that can probably best be summed up with Poe’s words from The Premature Burial “The boundaries between life and death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where one ends and where the other begins.”
34:32 Sources
Sources for this episode include the films the 1921 Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, the 1979 Nosferatu the Vampyre: Phantom of the Night, From Caligari to Hitler: German Cinema in the Age of the Masses, and the books Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave, and Exterminate Others by David Livingstone Smith, Devil’s Advocates: Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror by Cristina Massaccesi, Nazi Propaganda 1933-1945, Compiled by Dr. Randall Bytwerk, Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography by Arthur Hobson Quinn, The Poe Log: A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Dwight R. Thomas and David K. Jackson, and Poe and Place by Phillip Edward Phillips.
Well, thank you very much for making it this far, as we take a deep dive into life and times of America’s Shakespeare, and how he has influenced our world. Join us for the special Celebrate Poe Halloween 2001 episode - Poe’s vampires. Just to let you know, I am aiming to release Poe’s Vampires on the afternoon of Saturday October 30 just in time for Halloween.
36:52 Outro
Thank you for listening to Celebrate Poe.