Monsters, werewolves, witches, and fairies remain a strong presence in our stories and dreams. As Claude Lecouteux shows, their roots go far deeper than their appearance in medieval folklore, predating Christianity, and are widespread over Western Europe. Through his extensive analysis of Western European legends Lecouteux has uncovered an almost forgotten religious concept: that every individual owns three souls and that one of these souls, the Double, can—in animal or human form—leave the physical body while in sleep or a trance, journey where it chooses, then reenter its physical body. In a thorough excavation of the medieval soul, Claude Lecouteux reveals the origin and significance of this belief in the Double, and follows its transforming features through the ages.

MYTHOLOGY Otherworldly beings—among them werewolves, witches, and fairies—have figured in our stories and dreams since the Middle Ages. But as Claude Lecouteux shows, their roots reach...