Foxy Loxy, kitsune spirits and vampire werefoxes

Wolves are everywhere in romance but the poor old fox doesn't get a look in.

Why not? If anything, it is the fox that has the more respectable substantial literary tradition. One of the first storybooks I remember reading as a small child featured a memorable fox. It was that Brer Rabbit story where he pleads with Brer Fox, please don't throw me in the briar bush! I felt rather sorry for Brer Fox, but then I prefer Sylvester to Tweety Pie, Tom to Jerry and Daffy Duck to Bugs Bunny.

Back to foxes though.

We British love our foxes (other than those of us who wish to hunt them). We don't really do big mammals in the U.K. And whilst foxes aren't exactly huge, they are one of the few native wild mammals we have that can't be trampled underfoot. For my part, I have the cheek to think of them as quintessentially British. (After all, Robin Hood and Maid Marian in the Disney cartoon are foxes). And they're terribly successful. Urban foxes are very common. We have that visit our garden regularly.

Reynard the Fox is a mythical figure who dates back to medieval times. He's a deceitful character, wily and cunning, not to be trusted. He - or his type at least - appears in many traditional stories: Chicken Licken, The Gingerbread Man etc. They are nice helpful foxes too though. Like in The Golden Bird.

Foxes are just as common in other cultures. Japan, China and Korea all have fairytales featuring foxes, particularly werefoxes like the Japanese kitsune. Interestingly the kitsune often assumes the form of a woman. Small, cunning and elegant. Traditionally it was believed that a woman alone at night may well be a kitsune.

But I think my favourite literary fox is Reynardine. This traditional English ballad is a warning to young women to beware of strange and seductive men. Interestingly the wikipedia entry about it mentions a 19th century version of the song called A Vampyre Legend in which the foxy character appears to have a penchant for bloodsucking. So if the paranormal genre is looking for the next big thing, my betting is that it's going to be vampire werefoxes.

All of this though, is essentially an excuse to post my favourite cod-traditional 1970s renditions of this ballad. Here is Reynardine from Fairport Convention's 1970s Liege & Leaf album. Enjoy.