beauty and the beast by madame de villeneuve

At a young age, Gonsalvus was treated as an uncivilized curiosity.

Petrus Gonsalvus was born in 1537 on the Canary Island of Tenerife, the largest of Spain's seven Canary Islands off the coast of West Africa. No, but he does have connections to French royalty. The fashions in the Disney movies indicate that the time period is the mid to late 1700s, which is reflective of the time period of the fairy tale, not of the true story that inspired it. The best known version of Villeneuve's story and the basis for the films was written 16 years later by Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont and was geared more toward young ladies than adults. Their widely-known story is thought to have inspired Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve's 1740 French fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. Petrus Gonsalvus and his wife Catherine met in 1500s France. No, it did not cause Gonsalvus to have an oversized body with huge muscles like the Beast in the Disney movies. Excessive hair growth is the only known effect of the condition. It has also been referred to informally as werewolf syndrome because the appearance is akin to the mythical werewolf. In Gonsalvus' case, it affected his entire body. The real 'Beast' was a man named Petrus Gonsalvus, who suffered from a genetic condition known as hypertrichosis (also known as Ambras syndrome), which is defined by an abnormal amount of hair growth on any part of the body in excess of the regular amount present in people of the same race, age and gender. Unfortunately, that also means no talking clock, teacup, candelabra, etc., as you might have guessed. The real Beauty and the Beast story didn't involve a magical spell placed on a prince for his arrogance. Julie Anderson, School of History, University of Kent I think it's very difficult for people who look different to be accepted within a society which bases so much on what people look like.

Beauty and the beast by madame de villeneuve