"I will leave you three nights": Animal Symbolism in "Nosferatu" (2024)

 “Do not reveal what is sacred to dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” (Mathew; 7:6)


When Robert Eggers has two characters (Professor Von Franz and Dr. Sievers) talking about not wasting teachings with those who will not appreciate them, he’s inviting the audience to look beneath the surface, where the true story lies. What you see at the surface is a melodrama (18-19th century theatre tradition), a farce, a lie, and a deception, designed to confuse the audience, on purpose. This narrative is similar to an alchemist quest, an initiation rite, and there’s alchemist’s gold at the end. 


“Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks will receive, and anyone who seeks will find, and the door will be opened to those who knock.” (Mathew, 7:7)

 

Nosferatu” (2024) is a story about liberation, not only sexual, but mostly spiritual, with Ellen reclaiming ownership over her own power (death) and sexuality (sex) at the end, breaking free from the Victorian society which oppresses and shames her (the roots of her suffering and the obstacles that prevent her spiritual enlightenment). Victorian society medicalizes Ellen because of her mediumship and supernatural gifts, and forces her to conceal her true nature in order to be sociably acceptable and to “fit in” with the swines and the dogs. 

And this liberation from the roots of our suffering, the obstacles which prevents us from reaching spiritual liberation, is also the true message to the audience, losely based in “the three poisons” (and their antidotes) from Buddha’s teachings (Buddhism). These three poisons (ignorance, greed and hatred) are a vicious cycle of sorrow and suffering, consuming each other and trapping the person in a state of eternal self-delusion. 

Free yourself from ignorance, free yourself from greed and free yourself from hatred. Seek wisdom, detachment and love. Only then, can you, like Ellen, achieve spiritual liberation and evolution. 

And we see Ellen, herself, undergoing these three poisons and their cures, for three nights: ignorance vs. wisdom; greed vs. detachment; and hatred vs. love. 


Ignorance/Wisdom: “[Don’t] cast your pearls before swines

"Tonight you denied yourself […] Two more nights."

Symbolically, and historically, swines (pigs) have always been associated with ignorance, including in “the three poisons” of Buddhism. “Ignorance” is delusion, apathy, and misperception of how the world works (wrong views of reality) and the not understanding the nature of things. Ignorance stems from the belief we, humans, are separated (and not connected by universal consciousness), which leads us to prioritize our own pleasure over the suffering of others. It’s lack of empathy and ignoring everyone else’s reality but our own. 

"God. [...] That's His power. A gentle breeze from Heaven."

Ignorance is falling to look at the broader picture, outside of what we know and what is familiar to us. It’s living trapped in an echo chamber of self-deception and self-illusion, it’s not knowing and not wanting to know. Ignorance is indifference and causes us to ignore what doesn’t affect us, personally. It makes us ignore the issues of others because it does not benefit us, and we think it doesn’t concern us. It’s none of our business, so we don’t care. 

"Never speak these things aloud. Never. It is a trifle. A foolish dream, just as your past fancies."

Ignorance is the root of all suffering, and from where the other two originate; because there is nothing wrong with desire and anger, but anger without wisdom is stupidity and hatred, which will leads us to be trapped in a cycle of self-destructive emotions and behavior. And desire without wisdom is mindless impulse, which will lead to greed, and co-dependency and lack of boundaries as a result. Overcoming ignorance is the first step to conquer the other two poisons (Greed and hatred) and their antidotes (detachment and love).

The ignorant swines are the Victorian characters, and Victorian society as a whole. They keep Ellen trapped in her self-delusion state, by forcing their beliefs, way of thinking and way of behaving on her. They gaslight her constantly, by dismissing her supernatural gifts and her mediumship (her nature) as a “sickness” of the mind. And no one listens to crazy people. She’s mad, a “hysteric”, a “melancholic”, and, as such, she’s to be patronized, and stripped of her agency and of her power. 

A power (nature) the Victorian characters don’t even recognize she has, to begin with, from beginning to end, in the film. At first, her power (nature) was seen as a consequence of her “sickness” (“melancholy” and “hysteria”, the Victorian diagnose for Ellen’s mediumship); then it’s caused by a demon, by Orlok himself. And once Orlok is destroyed, Ellen will be “normal” and a perfect Victorian wife role model (living for and by her husband). To Victorian society (ignorance), Ellen’s power is not her own. 

Ellen goes through a journey to gain wisdom, as she starts the film parroting what Victorian society tells her about her nature (“I have put these fancies behind me”) to fully owning it at the end: “I need no salvation. All my life I have done no ill but heed my nature”.

Influenced by Victorian society, Ellen lives in a state of self-delusion and is not in harmony with herself, nor with others, because she’s ignorant about her own nature. Victorian society (ignorance) lacks the language and the knowledge for Ellen to truly understand herself, and what she is. According to Victorian society, Ellen’s sexual desire and her nature (power) are evil and demonic, and this causes her great shame and inner conflict (“I’m unclean!”). Because she’s the one who conjures Orlok for their every communication to happen (and it’s sexual energy that summons him), and she can’t accept this due to her ignorance (Victorian society), and so, she deceives herself.

"Professor… My dreams grow darker, they sicken me. Does evil come from within us or from beyond?"

At the beginning of the film, Ellen tries to fit in, and to be socially acceptable, and dismisses her own power (nature), because that’s what her ignorance (Victorian society) makes her believe. And she’s also annihilating herself in the process, struggling to be what others expect her to be, which only worsens her identity crisis. She’s trapped in a vicious and toxic cycle of suffering, delusion and self-pity because Victorian society cannot provide her with the wisdom she needs to know herself. As long as she’s holding on to ignorance (Victorian society), her suffering will be never ending, with no way out.

We find the representation of wisdom in Professor Von Franz. Like Ellen herself, Von Franz is a an outcast of Victorian society, living in isolation in his attic with his books and his cats. He was kicked out of his university and home country (Switzerland) due to his unconventional beliefs, and is seen as a laughingstock and a charlatan by the Victorian characters (ignorance). Nevertheless, he stays focus on his studies, always seeking knowledge, and is unapologetic himself, even if others don’t understand him. He’s not casting any pearls to swine, as well. For instance, he refuses to elaborate after the ignorant swine Friedrich Harding expresses his doubts about the reveal of Orlok being a Solomonar, and he doesn’t know what that means. This information is a pearl not meant for ignorant swines.

“The pupil is expanded. It does not contract naturally to the light. […] A second sight. She’s no longer here. […] She communes now with another realm.”


Professor Von Franz is the character who empowers Ellen with the knowledge of what she is. He (wisdom) breaks her ignorance (Victorian society) of her diagnose of “hysteria” and “melancholy” by Victorian doctors. She’s has been misdiagnosed by Victorian society (ignorance), and it’s Von Franz (wisdom) which gives her the answer to her nature (power). Ellen was correct, she’s not mad; she’s a medium, a seer, whose power manifests through trance mediumship. But Von Franz doesn’t reveal the entire truth, just yet. Because, like the occult scholar he is, he knows she’s still not ready to hear it, as she’s still holding on to ignorance (Victorian society).

Count Orlok himself represents hidden knowledge. He’s a Pagan enchanter, a Solomonar, follower of the Dacian god Zalmoxis, and owner to the secrets of life and death, and immortality. He recognizes Ellen for what she truly is; an enchantress and a necromancer, who can command the elements by the power of her word (like himself). But Orlok tells her this before she’s ready to hear it, because he wants to destroy her ignorance (Victorian society), and force her spiritual liberation process, as the Saturnian karmic and catalyst force he is.

"you did wake me, enchantress, and stirred me from my grave."


Through wisdom, Ellen begins to accept that she has full control over her trances, and her self-delusion (Victorian society) begins to shatter. To Anna Harding (ignorance) this represents a “miracle” (inexplicable phenomenon), because she doesn’t recognize Ellen’s power. And she attributes this to Thomas return because women’ entire lives revolved around their husbands. And Ellen asks to speak to Professor Von Franz (wisdom), Anna (ignorance) tells her to hush, and forget about it, his ideas are bizarre and uncomfortable, because they challenge what Anna knows, and she’s not willing to accept knowledge outside of what she’s familiar with (Christian organized religion). 

"Hush! His thoughts are so queer, so sordid, I dare not repeat them!"


Ellen is on journey to achieve wisdom. And she conjures a trance in front of Thomas to test if he accepts her power (nature), or if he’s one of the ignorant swines (Victorian society). His reaction is to call the doctors on her and blame Orlok for her “sickness”, as he vows to destroy him. He does not recognize her power (nature) as her own, like the others. He’s one of the ignorant swines.

And the next and last time, Professor Von Franz (wisdom) speaks to Ellen, he sees she’s no longer holding on to ignorance (Victorian society), even though she’s still conflicted about herself, and is seeking his counsel. And Von Franz knows she’s ready to hear the truth about her real nature (power): 

"In heathen times you might have been a great priestess of Isis."


Wisdom (Professor Von Franz) and hidden knowledge (Orlok) are aligned. Isis, the Queen of the Underworld (and the Isis and Osiris Myth that echoes in Ellen and Orlok’s story). And Ellen sees, at last, that she’s “not for the living”, she’s “not of humankind”. She’s a dual-natured spirit that belongs to Pagan times because Victorian society (ignorance) has no place for her; nor for Orlok, and not even for Professor Von Franz. Still, she’s their salvation, and redemption. Ellen has overcome her ignorance (Victorian society).



Greed/Detachment: “Do not reveal what is sacred to dogs

"Another night has passed. Tomorrow shall be his last."

"Pray then, instruct me, my Lord. Charge me. Use me." 

Greed” (the dogs) is attachment, and it can take on many forms; greed for sensual pleasures; greed for wealth and power; and greed connected to ideas and views. At its core, the poisonous “greed” refers to selfishness, misplaced desire, and grasping for happiness and satisfaction in others (outside of ourselves) due to our own ignorance.

"Thank you for loving me."


Greed is the poisonous craving for more, and be doomed to be forever unfulfilled and hungry. Nothing is ever enough, there’s always something missing, we always want new and bigger things, because greed is looking for satisfaction  and validation outside instead of within. It’s looking for identity, pleasure, happiness, love, and fulfillment in others, instead where it truly lies (inner selves). 

It’s believing others will give us what we seek in order to be completed. It’s looking outside, instead of looking within. Greed makes us wrongly believe our happiness and fulfillment is dependent on others, and that curses us in finding no lasting satisfaction. 

"But Thomas, it was you that gave me the courage to be free of my shame – you!"

Greed is also disregarding the needs of others and even endangering them to get the object of one’s desire. It’s showing lack of generosity and empathy toward others. Greed can manifest itself in the most destructive and compulsive of ways. Which is what we see with Herr Knock’s character in his greed for power, and he’ll stop at nothing to learn Orlok’s secret to immortality. He’s not a “lunatic”; he has his full mental capacities in order, he’s just a greedy dog who will do anything to become immortal, and seeks to be a “prince of rats”, a strigoi like Orlok himself, because he thinks that’s the secret. 

Ellen goes through a detachment journey, too. It starts by her saying her “heart is lost without [her] Thomas” to her giving her heart to Orlok for him to kill, symbolizing her, fully, freeing herself from her greed.

Her relationship with Thomas (and Anna) is greedy and co-dependent, as she places her need for validation, love and happiness in them, sacrificing her true nature in the process, because they do not accept nor understand who she truly is. This poisonous greed, causes Ellen to lose sight of her identify, causing inner conflict and insatiable hunger in her. She can never be fulfilled for as long as she seeking her needs in others, instead of within herself. 

Thomas Hutter, himself, is a personification of greed, and his ambition for wealth and his ignorance are his downfall. He’s also the representation of the Victorian husband; Ellen is his property, according to the law, and her sexuality is controlled by him. Marriage and motherhood were a woman’s destiny, so this puts Ellen’s attachment in perspective. Thomas is also associated with dogs in film, itself, especially while in Transylvania; the Handsome Roma man had a dog; and Count Orlok unleashed his “hellhounds” on him. 


Ellen starts the story metaphorically and literally holding on to Thomas (“You can’t leave, I love you too much”), like Victorian wives are meant to serve their husbands, and their entire lives revolve around them and the children. She’s completely dependent on him for literally everything (she’s his property), to the point she truly believes it was him, and not her own spiritual power, that kept Orlok away (“From our love I became as normal”). Evidentially, this will cause inner conflict because this originates from her ignorance (Victorian society). 

At the end of the second act, we see the tables turning, and now it’s Thomas who holds on to Ellen, as she’s progressively liberating herself from ignorance (Victorian society), and of him, as a consequence. He’s one of the obstacles that prevent Ellen from reaching spiritual enlightenment, and one of the roots of her suffering (greed). And him holding her tightly, is a visual representation of her Victorian oppression, and it’s hold on her, preventing her from liberating herself. And we see Ellen employing wisdom (Professor Von Franz) to release herself from ignorance and greed (Thomas)’s grasp, and keep him at bay, so she can truly liberate herself. 

We find the representation of detachment in Greta. Cats are independent and self-sufficient animals, and have always been associated with spirituality and wisdom. As Ellen herself says to Professor Von Franz, Greta has “no master nor mistress”, because cats belong to themselves, they are not dependent on others. Dogs are eager to please, while cats’ love has to be earned, because they are their own creatures and won’t settle for less than they deserve.


And Thomas, as a personification of greed, rejects Greta at the start of the film, foreshadowing his rejection of Ellen’s detachment and spiritual liberation from him. He complains about the fur on his clothes and not wanting the cat climbing into the bed. And as the greedy dog that he is, he doesn’t appreciate independent cats, nor what they represent. And cats also represent wisdom and spirituality. Thomas signs his name in Orlok’s covenant, in spite of his intuition telling him there are hidden motivations at work. He rejects his intuition (spirituality) in favor of his greed, and ambition to climb the social ladder and get wealthy. 


Hatred/Love: “I have felt you like a serpent crawling in my body”

"Behold the third night."

"I abhor you."

Hatred” (the snake) is anger, aggression, aversion or repulsion towards other people, circumstances or even towards our own uncomfortable feelings. It’s hostility, ill-will and wishing harm and suffering upon others, or even on ourselves. Hatred causes us to create conflict and enemies everywhere around us, and within ourselves, dooming us to be trapped in a cycle of self-destructive emotions and self-pity. 

Hatred makes us neurotic and resisting to change and growth, because we want to avoid unpleasant feelings, circumstances or people. We want everything to be pleasant, comfortable and satisfying all the time. With hatred, we become obsessed with strategies of self-protection and revenge. We deny, resist and push away our inner feelings of fear, hurt and loneliness, interpreting them as enemies. Hatred is not wanting to deal with emotions we deem uncomfortable and shameful. 

"I care nothing of your afflictions!"


Hatred brews resentment, leads to harmful actions, and perpetuates negative cycles. While attachment makes us greedy and co-dependent, hatred makes us push away, usually aggressively, the things we dislike, including in ourselves, masking us project them unto others. When ignorance takes over, we can even create our own imaginary anger, enemies and conflicts. 

We always try to justify our hatred, and it can be caused by many things, from the smallest acts to the most extreme offensive. In Buddhism, hatred is one of the poisons because hatred is only harmful to the person who experiences it. It’s one of the roots of our suffering because the one who hates is the person who hurts the most in the end rather than the one being hated.

"Denied myself?! You revel in my torture!"

Ellen is both attracted and repulsed by Count Orlok, when they first meet “in the flesh” at the Harding household, when her anger drives her to give him entrance, dooming everyone inside. Due to her ignorance (Victorian society), she lives in a state of self-delusion about her true nature, and, as such, Orlok is the target of her anger and hatred, because she blames him for her torment in being medicalized by Victorian society. First, she doesn’t recognize her own power, at all, then she takes Von Franz words about a demon obsessing over her, too close to heart, and still blames Orlok for her “sickness”. Her “shame” is her self-hatred and self-loathing, of her not accepting herself because of her ignorance (Victorian society).

Due to her ignorance (Victorian society), Ellen can’t accept she’s the one who keeps summoning him with her sexual energy, and projects her shame onto him, accusing him of corrupting her innocence. And she’s so deep in delusion and self-deceit (Victorian society) she actually believes he took her as his lover, in her teenage years, even though he was no more than a shadow to her, and she was the one who kept conjuring him by masturbating (or maybe this is part of the reincarnation theme in the story). “You deceive yourself”. In the second act, Ellen, did, however, accepted she was the one who resurrected him (cursing him to be a strigoi in the process), as she says “I have brought this evil upon us.”

"He is my shame! He is my melancholy!"

"You are my affliction."


What Ellen realizes during her “possession scene” with Thomas is not only that he’s one of the ignorant swines. She initiates her trance and connection to the spiritual realm, and Orlok is not conjured (nor is he in that scene, at all, because we have no visual indication of this). And she sees its sexual energy that summons him, and that he has to be called for their communications to happen. Which is why she says “let him see! Let him see our love”: Ellen is channeling sexual energy to conjure Orlok (but he doesn’t make an appearance). And when Thomas steps away from her, she’s deeply ashamed (“I’m unclean!”) because she just realized all of this. She’s the one who has been calling out to Orlok, this entire time. And it’s her own nature (power) that is medicalized by ignorance (Victorian society). And Ellen is filled with self-hatred, still, she doesn’t fully accept herself, nor her nature.

Orlok, the representation of hidden knowledge, symbolizes everything Ellen, as a Victorian woman, isn’t suppose to desire nor have. He’s not merely passion, erotism and sex, he’s also knowledge and education, as a Solomonar who studied at the Solomonărie (germanization Scholomance). All the things that were out of limits to the average woman in the early 19th century, who should confide herself to the domestic and whose destiny was marriage and motherhood (Thomas). Passion is not the only thing Orlok has to offer; he’s a pathway to Ellen’s true nature and destiny as enchantress, Pagan priestess to Underworld deities, the secrets of life and death, and immortality. 

The antidote to poisonous hatred is love. Not just any type of love, but loving-kindness, the highest form of unconditional love. As Ellen gains wisdom, and overcomes her ignorance (Victorian society), she conquers detachment from greed (Thomas), and lets go of her self-hatred, she embraces self-love, and accepting herself for who she truly is, unconditionally. 

And the representation of love are Ellen and Orlok. Because they are the same; they are one spirit, one nature, she’s the enchantress and he’s the enchanter, the witch/wizard archetypes. To Orlok, Ellen is the root of his suffering, for she was the one who cursed him to be a strigoi; but she’s also the antidote, because she’s the one who can break his curse. To Ellen, he symbolizes somewhat the same, because her power awoken with him, leading her to be medicalized by Victorian society (ignorance). They are each others cures (which is already present in the alchemist themes in this story). 

Solomonari codex of secrets: Orlok’s last assignment at the Solomonărie to become a Solomonar (Romanian folklore). A “book of wisdom”, a “book of laws” (codex), which contains all the Solomonari rules, and everything he learned at the school. 


The deception to blind the swine and feed the greedy dogs is Ellen and Thomas’ love. At the surface, Thomas does represent “love” in the narrative, but this love is a lie and a farce. It’s melodrama (18th-19th theater tradition). Thomas “loves” Ellen, but he does not see her, nor understands her. He dismisses and gaslights her, patronizes and silences her, throughout the entire film, because he’s one of the ignorant swine (Victorian society). He’s not only a obstacle to Ellen spiritual liberation, he’s the oppressor in her character arc who wants to keep her in oppression, because he’s the Victorian husband, and Ellen is his property (which is why Orlok “buys” Ellen from him, to set her free from him). This “love” is all appearances, empty words and performative excessively sentimental gestures that feel flat, because they are. 

This “love” is meaningless; there’s no real connection between them. It’s Ellen holding on to her Victorian wife role (ignorance) of serving her husband, annihilating herself in the process. Thomas wants to keep her in ignorance (Victorian society) and in the domestic sphere (a big house and a maid is what he thinks she deserves), and he’s not letting go of this ambition until the end. Thomas doesn’t recognize Ellen’s power, nor accepts her nature, and, if Orlok somehow got defeated by him, sooner or later, he could have her sent to an asylum because of her mediumship, like her father did. A love that prevents you from being your true self and is an obstacle to your spiritual growth and liberation is no love, at all. Its a poison which feeds your self-hatred, keeps you trapped in a vicious self-destructive cycle, and from which you need to release yourself from to embrace unconditional self-love. 

Ellen embracing unconditional self-love and her spiritual liberation, is represented in her accepting Orlok’s covenant. Because he’s passion, eroticism, sex, knowledge, education, destiny, magic, validation, acceptance, and freedom. While Thomas wants to keep Ellen in oppression, Orlok wants to return her power to her, liberating her from ignorance (Victorian society). He wants Ellen to accept her true nature (power), and regain ownership over it and be the master of her own destiny. 

He’s a Saturnian karmic and catalyst force, and spiritual growth is not comfortable nor easy; often one has to walk through fire to achieve radical spiritual transformation and growth, and be reborn from the ashes (especially when our old conditioning, mindset, is too strong). He gives her three nights/days of “torture” to trigger her spiritual transformation, until she “submits” herself to it upon the third night. He’s the monster of her creation, and, as such, he’ll bring her power (death) upon ignorance (Victorian society), the root of Ellen’s suffering. And in doing so, Orlok is forcing her to face and come to terms with her own nature/power, because she’s the one who unleashed him (and cursed him). 

And where there was (self)hatred, now there is (self)love. Ellen is not “submitting” (as in surrendering) to Orlok; she’s fully and unconditionally accepting herself in a radical act of self-love, kindness, acceptance and forgiveness, after spending years trapped in a destructive cycle of self-loathing because of her ignorance (Victorian society). She has grown in wisdom, she has embraced detachment, and now she is ready to bid Orlok to come to her, and accept transformative (self)love. Von Franz knows she is ready, and so does Orlok.

"You are mine."


And her “willing sacrifice” is the highest form of selfless unconditional love for one another, for herself. She’s willing to die in the physical world for them to be reborn, forever united, in the spiritual realm, breaking the curse that keeps his soul imprisoned in that rotten corpse. And she’s wearing her wedding dress (with their symbolic lilacs), not only “bride of Dracula” theme, but the visual conformation of how Ellen wanted and desired this, all along. And this type of love (loving-kindness) is so strong and powerful, it extends to all living beings, as Ellen’s (self)love puts an end to the plague of Nosferatu, not just for them, but for everyone else. This “willing sacrifice” is metaphorical spiritual liberation and enlightenment.

Ellen and Orlok’s love transcends the laws of time and space, and deals with reincarnation themes. Orlok is a strigoi lover, and, as such, he haunts the person he loved the most in his human life, Ellen herself, the reincarnation of his wife or lover. “Remember how once we were? A moment. Remember?” And Ellen probably has unconscious memories of her past reincarnation, since she, truly, believes they were lovers in the past (“he took me as his lover, then”); has an ongoing fondness of lilacs (native to the Balkans and remind Orlok of his human life and of Ellen herself); and her every dream is of Orlok (even though, him, as a strigoi, can only cause her nightmares, because fear and terror are the only emotions he can create in others; and he compelled her to dream of him for that one particular occasion for his ritual to divorce her from Thomas in the spiritual realm). 

Robert Eggers asks on his own essay about “Nosferatu” in “The Guardian, and will mention this again, in a different interview, to “Vanity Fair”: What kind of trauma, pain and violence is so great that even death cannot stop it?" And in the context of this story, this “dark trauma” can only be soul separation (since Orlok’s entire motivation is binding souls with Ellen). Their souls were separated by death, which caused a trauma so dark in them, it created a monster upon civilization (Nosferatu), in their yearning of being united. Which they are at the end; as Orlok drinks from Ellen, her soul is getting trapped inside of Nosferatu, joining with his (because he’s a strigoi, he feeds on souls. Which is why Thomas had to be exorcised). At dawn, when the rotten corpse is destroyed, their merged blood/souls are released from it (“freed them from the plague of Nosferatu”) and they ascend to the Afterlife, where they are one, “ever-eternally”. They were separated by death, and are united by death.

In Buddhism, “greed” is represented by a rooster, but here is associated with dogs (Thomas). Ellen’s lust and passion for Orlok, however, is also connected with the rooster, as she begs “more, more” of him just before the first crow of cock (rooster), and she’s finally fulfilled after using her sexual desire and passion as a pathway to metaphorical spiritual enlightenment (dying in the material word, and be reborn in the spiritual realm), because her ignorance is now wisdom, her detachment allowed her to embraced her passion to achieve spiritual liberation, and her (self)hatred is now (self)love.

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