Fire-breathing monster

In mythology and fantasy, a fire-breathing monster is a monster with the ability to shoot fire from its mouth. The concept of a fire-breathing monster is shared by various mythological traditions throughout history, and is also a common element of monsters in the fantasy genre, especially dragons, which are almost always given the ability to shoot fire, or some other type of breath-based attack. The origins of this power may vary, from magic to a biological explanation similar to an organic flamethrower.

Religious and mythological origins

One of the first monsters described as fire-breathing was the Chimera of Greco-Roman mythology,^[1] although these types of monsters were comparatively rare in such mythology, with limited other examples including the Khalkotauroi, the brazen-hooved bulls conquered by Jason in Colchis, which breathed fire from their nostrils, and the cannibalistic Mares of Diomedes, owned by Diomedes of Thrace, which were conquered by Heracles.^[2] In addition, the Giant Enceladus was fire-breathing, with the eruptions of Mount Etna being attributed to the breath of the Giant after the island of Sicily was thrown on top of him by Athena, goddess of wisdom.^[3]

Cacus was described by the Romans as a monstrous, giant fire-breathing son of Vulcan, who resided in a cave beneath the Palatine Hill prior to the founding of Rome, and was killed by Hercules after a tremendous battle in which the hero was attacked by the creature's fire breath.^[4]

In Jewish mythology, the sea serpent Leviathan, a predecessor to the concept of the dragon, is described as having the power to breathe fire. It is stated in Job 41:19–21 that "its breath kindles coals, and a flame comes out of its mouth". Chapter 11, Verse 18 of the deuterocanonical Book of Wisdom describes how God had the power to create fire-breathing beasts to plague the Egyptians that could scare humans to death simply by seeing them, but chose not to do so because that amount of power was unnecessary.^[2]

In the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, the dragon was the first fictional appearance of a fire-breathing European dragon in its typical form, having been inspired by the evil Biblical Leviathan.^[5] The Beowulf dragon in turn directly influenced fantasy writer J. R. R. Tolkien, a Beowulf scholar, who went on to incorporate a fire-breathing dragon in The Hobbit in the form of Smaug.^[6]

In Japanese mythology, the Yōkai sea serpent Ikuchi is known for breathing fire through its nostrils, emitting smoke.

In

is depicted as a fire-breathing creature, similar to a dragon, with smoke coming from its nostrils in Nordic lore.

In

, known in Visayan folklore as the moon eater, is described as kindling coal and emitting flames from its mouth at night.

In

, a sea serpent from Native American lore, is said to kindle coal and emit flames from its mouth, resembling a sea dragon.

In fantasy

The Hobbit and

Fire-breathing dragons in fantasy fiction have become a stereotype, therefore, numerous dragons with alternate means of attack have been depicted. This includes various forms of elemental breath, noxious poison, and even laser beams.

References

1. ISBN 9781476679501
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2. ^
   ISBN 9780310587262
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3. ISBN 9781784919511
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4. ISBN 9780737746280
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5. S2CID 162080723
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6. ^ Tolkien, J. R. R. (25 November 1936). "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics". Sir Israel Gollancz Lecture 1936. Archived from the original on 2009-11-03. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
7. ISBN 9780230392137
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