Venice
Venice city is termed the haunted city because of the legends, mysteries, and stories about it. It is the most romantic location in the entire universe to some people. The place has a sparkling marketing spiel with cuddly pictures of canals and gondolas in which lovers profess their compassion (Feldman). There are stories of things that lurk in the shadows in the streets of Venice. Though not all these tales can be confirmed to be true, some are founded on facts. Some of the stories are those of serial killers, ghosts, the devil of the angel’s house, witches, and the mermaids.
The Serial Killer
This is the tale of the ‘Sguazeto alla Biasio” with a horror flavor. The story talks about a hotel that sold the best sauced Venetian stewed meat(Kurska 70). At its peak time, the city experienced a strange disappearance of young children. The efforts to establish the cause and locate the children failed. On a particular day, one customer noted what he thought was a bone in the meal, but on a closer look, it was a finger. This caused an uproar that led to investigations that discovered the remains of all children who were missing.
The Ghost
The recent story is the ghost of the Gardens of Castello. It relates to the Giuseppe Garibaldi statue located on the same street. It talks of the ghost of Giuseppe Zoli that watched over the stature (Fol 18). One person tells of how he was pushed away strongly when he passed near the stature. When he tried to look around, the only thing he saw was a red shadow that had moved away. The police officers who tried destroying the stature also experienced the same. One aged resident once studied the red shadow and noted it was Giuseppe Zoli.
The Devil Legend
The devil’s legend talks about the St. Mark’s Square and a canal in the house. The structure is named Ca’Soranzo because of the angel statue. There lived a lawyer who trained a monkey to help with house chores (Carstensen 62). The monkey in the house was a devil who wanted to take over his soul, and this was identified by a monk who talked with the monkey.
The Witches Wake-Up Call
The witchcraft legend is titled the witches Wake-Up Call. It is based in the labyrinthine streets next to the Accademia Gallery. There is the witch’s clock that keeps the neighborhood tickling in this place.There lived a witch in the place who used the clock to request payments (Stouraiti). Upon her death, the locals tried to destroy it, but some strange happenings and accidents only stopped when it was returned.
The Mermaid
As such is the legend of a mermaid who loved even after death. The story’s setting is in the sotoportego dei Preti in the Castello district. It talks of the fisherman who rescued a beautiful mermaid named Melusina (Thomas 80). After that, they fell in love and agreed to marry each other. Upon marriage, the mermaid turned into a woman who bore three children, and she died later due to an incurable disease (Joshi 98). In the form of a snake, she returned to take care of the house, but the fisherman killed her unknowingly.
Works Cited
Carstensen, Angela. “One great lie.” Booklist 117.15 (2021): 61-62.
Feldman, Martha. “City culture and the madrigal at Venice.” City Culture and the Madrigal at Venice. University of California Press, 2020.
Fold, Valeria. “ST. Marina between venice and the balkans.” Études Balkaniques 1 (2022): 7-28.
Joshi, Rita. “Amitav ghosh gun island.” World Literature Today 93.4 (2019): 98-98.
Kurska, Anna. “Venice According to Odyniec (and Mickiewicz?) in Romantic Contexts.” Czytanie Literatury. Łódzkie Studia Literaturoznawcze 9 (2020): 65-100.
Stouraiti, Anastasia. “Marvels of the Levant: print media and the politics of wonder in early modern Venice.” History Workshop Journal. Vol. 90. Oxford Academic, 2021.
Thomas, Alfred. “Demonizing the Other:“The Prioress’s Tale,” The Jew of Malta, and The Merchant of Venice.” Shakespeare, Catholicism, and the Middle Ages. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018. 75-112.
Fold, Valeria. “ST. Marina between venice and the balkans.” Études Balkaniques 1 (2022): 7-28.
Joshi, Rita. “Amitav ghosh gun island.” World Literature Today 93.4 (2019): 98-98.
Kurska, Anna. “Venice According to Odyniec (and Mickiewicz?) in Romantic Contexts.” Czytanie Literatury. Łódzkie Studia Literaturoznawcze 9 (2020): 65-100.
Stouraiti, Anastasia. “Marvels of the Levant: print media and the politics of wonder in early modern Venice.” History Workshop Journal. Vol. 90. Oxford Academic, 2021.