pirates
Devilish figures on the stained glass window of the Queen Anne's Revenge.

Devilish figures on the stained glass window of the Queen Anne's Revenge.

"Haul those sheets! Run 'em! Run, keep running! Run as if the devil himself and itself is upon us!"
―Jack Sparrow[src]

A devil is the personification of evil as conceived in various cultures, with the history of these perspectives intertwined with religion, mythology, art, and literature, developing independently within each of the traditions. It was seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Each tradition, culture, and religion with a devil in its mythos offered a different lens on manifestations of evil, portrayed as red, having horns on its head, and without horns, and so on. While the English sometimes use demon as a synonym for devil, however, it is different as demons were evil spirits. It is unknown if they were somewhat related to the mythological Hell, though some cultures would qualify demonic creatures as hell-spawned. The Devil, otherwise known as Lucifer or Satan, was seen as a fallen angel who rebelled against God and became a malevolent entity who enticed humans into sin or falsehood.

History

"Jack, where are ye going?"
"I am going to have a talk with the devil himself."
―Arabella Smith and Jack Sparrow, on Hernán Cortés[src]

Each tradition and culture with a devil in its mythos offered a different lens on manifestations of evil. In religion, such as Christianity, the Devil was identified with several figures in the Bible, including Lucifer and Satan,[1][2] described as a fallen angel who rebelled against God, an entity who enticed humans into sin or falsehood, terrorized the world through evil, and shall be condemned, together with the fallen angels who follow him, to eternal fire at the Last Judgment.[3]

Davy Jones, the sailors' devil.

Davy Jones, the sailors' devil.

Davy Jones, a mortal pirate who was supposed to rescue the souls of all sailors who died at sea as captain of the Flying Dutchman,[4][5] became most recognized as sort of the devil of the deep.[6] Under the curse of the Flying Dutchman, in which the ship became encrusted, the crew transformed into demonic sea creatures, while Jones himself—once good and pure—became the Lucifer of the seas,[1] wearing a black hat that was shaped to resemble devil horns,[7][8][9][10] and in effect making him a legendary figure known as the sailor's devil across the Seven Seas.[6][4][5] The young adventurer Jack Sparrow said he was going to have a talk with the devil before facing the spirit of Hernán Cortés.[11] Later, when Jack's crew of the Barnacle attended the masquerade ball in a hotel in New Orleans, Jean Magliore and Tumen wore matching devilish masks, complete with horns and pointed eyebrows.[12]

The first pirate flag of the evil and dreaded pirate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach was the black flag with the skeleton of the devil holding a goblet in one hand and a spear pointing to a bleeding heart in the other,[13] a design he would later use for the figurehead of the Queen Anne's Revenge.[14][15] The nightmarish vision painted on the stained glass window seen on the stern of the Revenge depicted dead men writhing in flames, stoked by devilish characters.[16]

On several occasions, "devil" was used as a word rather than a person. Some songs like "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life for Me)", "Dead Man's Chest"[4] and "Hoist the Colours"[5] make reference to the devil(s) though very brief. Captain Edward Teague was once called "the devil what spawned Jack Sparrow."[17] Cutler Beckett called his father, Jonathan Beckett Sr., a devil for trying to use his mother to manipulate him.[18] While recruiting a motley crew for the Interceptor, Joshamee Gibbs referred to the mute pirate Cotton as a "poor devil" for having his tongue cut out. Later, as the Interceptor battled with Hector Barbossa's cursed crew of the Black Pearl, Gibbs said they needed a "devil's dowry" as an idea.[3] After Jack Sparrow was helped aboard the Black Pearl after his escape from the Turkish Prison, a small monkey named "Jack" swung out of the ship's rigging in front of Sparrow and screeched as if he were the devil himself,[8] with Sparrow and his crew screaming back as the monkey snatched the roll of cloth and took it from Sparrow.[4] Shortly before his death at the Fountain of Youth, Blackbeard referred to Barbossa's poisoned sword as devilry and called Jack Sparrow a devil for tricking him during the Profane Ritual.[15]

By 1729, Davy Jones was referred to as the devil several times. The first notable use was by Jones himself when Will Turner challenged him to a second game of Liar's Dice in front of the his crew aboard the Flying Dutchman, warning Will that he can't best the devil twice.[8] After the Kraken attack on the Edinburgh Trader, Davy Jones told Koleniko to chart a course to Isla Cruces, and to get there first "or there'll be the devil to pay." Following Jack Sparrow's death in a battle with the Kraken, Jones' First Mate Maccus remarked that even Sparrow couldn't best the devil, referring to his captain. And lastly, when Jack's crew mourned for their captain, Voodoo priestess Tia Dalma told Will it was a shame he couldn't capture the devil and free his father's soul.[4]

Years before to the search for the Trident of Poseidon, a young twelve-year-old Henry Turner spent his life studying the myths of the sea, having drawn several recorded encounters with the sea snakes, at least one depicting a man named Sam Brown having his leg bit off by a "Devilish Sea Seppent" that was sighted off the coast of Dominica.[19]

Because of young Carina Smyth's rebellious nature, one of the female workers in the orphanage proclaimed she had "quite the devil's tongue", to which Carina's guardian Mrs. Altwood responded that her heart was in the right place.[20] When a group of superstitious thieves led by the dark-haired woman stole the Galileo's diary from Carina, they could not read the Latin words, so they proclaimed the book was scribbled in devil language.[21]

During the quest for the Fountain of Youth, Barbossa referred to mermaids as "devil fish" when talking about the dangers of Whitecap Bay to the crew of the HMS Providence. About one year later, while visited by a priest in Saint Martin prison, Carina Smyth was called an "orphan born of the devil" because of the accusations of her practicing witchcraft.[22] When the ghostly Capitán Armando Salazar and his crew of the undead followed a down-on-his-luck Captain Jack Sparrow to the shores of Hangman's Bay the undead captain told Sparrow that the pirate would soon pay the devil his due.[23]

Behind the scenes

"You can't best the devil twice, son."
"Then why are you walking away?"
―Davy Jones and Will Turner[src]

The term "devil" was first mentioned in Thurl Ravenscroft's narration recorded in the soundtrack for Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean.[24] The Devil would be referenced in various media, notably identified as "Lucifer" in the 2007 book The Secret Files of the East India Trading Company,[1] as well as "Satan" in the 2011 novel The Price of Freedom by A. C. Crispin.[2]

Davy Jones was referred to as the "devil" several times in the 2006 film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and the 2007 film Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, even in the behind the scenes. In Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay and Irene Trimble's junior novelization for Dead Man's Chest, among other material, Jones was described as wearing a black hat that resembled devil horns.[7][8][9][10] In the "Pirate Lore" featurette, Davy Jones was referred to as the "devil of the deep" by screenwriter Ted Elliott.[6] It was also said that Jones became "the Lucifer of the seas" in The Secret Files of the East India Trading Company.[1] When talking about Jones in a "Masters of Design" featurette for At World's End, creature designer Crash McCreery talked about how his hat had horns that are devilish.[25]

In Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay draft for Dead Man's Chest, the cursed Davy Jones was described with "a black hat shaped to effect devil horns" in his first appearance. Later, Will Turner played Liar's Dice with Davy Jones two times aboard the Flying Dutchman, with Will beating Jones the first time and winning his twice-cursed father Bootstrap Bill's freedom, and Jones warned Will that he can't best the devil twice prior to a second game. After Will escaped the Flying Dutchman aboard the Edinburgh Trader and Captain Bellamy asked Will what they were running from, a sailor notified the captain about the Dutchman being spotted, with the screenplay using parenthetical text with "speak of the devil" for Bellamy suggesting that it was pirates, and "the devil, indeed" for Will adding "Or worse."[7] The Liar's Dice scene never made it to the final cut of the film but was retained in the junior novelization[8] as well as the extended scene "Married To The Ship" featured in Blu-ray releases beginning in 2011.[26]

The Dead Man's Chest junior novelization ended with the aftermath of Jack Sparrow's battle with the Kraken aboard the Flying Dutchman, in which Bootstrap Bill Turner whispered out toward the empty sea, "If any man could beat the devil, I'd have thought it would be you."[27] However, no such scene occurred in the final cut of the film itself, in part due to Bootstrap being locked in the Dutchman's brig.[4]

According to Captain Charles Johnson's 1724 book A General History of the Pyrates, Blackbeard's superstitious crewmen believed that Devil himself was sailing with them, because sometimes they could see among the crew an unknown man whom nobody knew. A night before the battle of Ocracoke Inlet, when a pirate asked Blackbeard about the location of his buried treasure, Blackbeard answered that only him and the Devil knew where the money was hidden, and the one who outlived the other would get it all.[28] The story about the unknown crewman was indirectly referenced in Tim Powers' 1987 novel On Stranger Tides, which was used as the basis for the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. In the book, when the main characters search for the Fountain of Youth in Florida, they notice there is one man more in their expedition than there should be, but no one can clearly see that man and identify him.[29] During the journey to the Fountain Blackbeard called one of the hostile loas/spirits "devil" before magically branding it as a slave.[30]

In Jeff Nathanson's early 2013 screenplay draft of the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Joshamee Gibbs said that the witch Melia talks to the devil himself.[31]

Appearances

Sources

External links

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Secret Files of the East India Trading Company
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Price of Freedom, Chapter Four: "Cutler Beckett"
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: "Pirate Lore"
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Wordplayer.com: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (junior novelization)
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide
  11. ↑ Jack Sparrow: The Sword of Cortés, p. 96
  12. ↑ Jack Sparrow: The Age of Bronze, p. 93
  13. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (junior novelization), p. 48
  14. ↑ The Art of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, p. 52
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
  16. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: The Visual Guide, pp. 38-39: "Blackbeard's Cabin"
  17. ↑ Jack Sparrow: Dance of the Hours, p. 139
  18. ↑ The Price of Freedom, Chapter Seven: Lost and Found
  19. ↑ James "Jim" Carson's artwork for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
  20. ↑ The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth, p. 13
  21. ↑ The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth, p. 52
  22. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
  23. ↑ The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth, p. 189
  24. ↑ Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: The Sound Track of the Fabulous Adventure
  25. ↑ Masters of Design: Crash McCreery: The Cursed Crew
  26. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Deleted Scene: "Married To The Ship"
  27. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (junior novelization), p. 145
  28. ↑ A General History of the Pyrates, CHAP. III. OF Captain TEACH alias BLACK-BEARD.
  29. ↑ On Stranger Tides, Chapter Fourteen
  30. ↑ On Stranger Tides, Chapter Twelve
  31. ↑ Dead Men Tell No Tales script by Jeff Nathanson, second draft, 5/6/2013