Plot in The Were-Wolf

As established earlier in the story, one thing certain to kill a werewolf is holy water—water that has been sanctified somehow. Because of Christian’s selfless sacrifice, his blood has been made holy, powerful enough to vanquish a werewolf due to his steadfast love for his brother.

Because of the injuries to Christian’s hands, he’ll be unable to grasp the branch that would allow him to traverse the gap safely. Thus, if White Fell reaches the handhold, she’ll be able to escape.

Notice how wolf-like her body has become, suggesting her true nature as it gets closer to midnight, when she will be forced to transform into a wolf.

First Christian’s left hand and now his right have been rendered useless by White Fell’s blows. He becomes even more desperate, as it seems unlikely than ever that he will be able to keep pace with her until midnight.

White Fell’s animal nature is again made prominent here, her femininity given way to beastly tendencies. The tension of the race increases as White Fell manages to deal a blow to Christian, suggesting that he may not be able to keep up with her for long.

Christian is ruled by his emotions and sense of propriety. Though he is sure that White Fell is a werewolf, he cannot bring himself to be violent against a woman, having already had trouble striking his beloved brother. Now, he waits for midnight, when it is said that a werewolf must change from its human form to its true wolf shape.

Presumably, this flask is filled with holy water from the church, which explains why Christian is so desperate to get close to White Fell.

Christian has traveled to claim some holy water. In the Christian tradition, holy water is water that has been blessed by a priest. Used in a variety of sacramental rites, holy water is also said to ward off evil—and, according to Sweyn and Trella, kill werewolves, which is why Christian desires some so badly. The noun “stoup” refers to the container the water resides in, which is a basin along the church’s wall.

Though Sweyn suggests these ways of finding out a werewolf in a joking matter, Christian takes them to heart. That they are included in the narrative foreshadows that they will be tested against White Fell later in the story.

The two brothers are twins, but they are quite different. Sweyn is better in all physical aspects except for Christian’s running speed. Because of Sweyn’s physical superiority, Christian tends to defer to and greatly admire him. In this way and in their worldviews they are quite different, which is important as the story progresses.

Christian immediately figures out White Fell’s true nature from the clues available to him: the wolf prints leading to but not away from the house and the strange woman that’s wearing fur. This sets the tone for the rest of his interactions with his family, though he will seek definitive proof of her being a werewolf before acting definitively.