“Typhoid Mary” by God Dethroned
For starters, there was in fact a Typhoid Mary. Mary Mallon (1869-1938) was a notorious Irish immigrant to the United States. Mary, originally from innocent ignorance and later as a result of careless selfishness, is believed to have infected over 50 people with typhoid, killing a few in the process.
Indeed there were quite a few other individuals resident in New York at that time who were ‘healthy carriers’ of the disease. These people were infected with the bacteria that causes it but showed no outward signs or adverse effects as a result.
But perhaps the reason Mary has gone down in infamy in that regard is because she did something wrong. Even after becoming knowledgeable of her infection and being told not to work as a cook, which was her main source of income up until that time, she proceeded to do so anyway.
Indeed she was, excuse our French, a b–ch about the whole situation in terms of cooperating with authorities even from the jump. And whereas at first being forced into isolation garnered her significant public sympathy, upon once again becoming a cook, under a fake name even as detailed above, she caused the death of two individuals. So she ended up spending the last 23 years of her life more or less in quarantine.
Typhoid Mary
But that noted, Mary Mallon isn’t someone who we would refer to as a famous historical figure. Thus when many people, especially those who grew up reading comic books, hear the name “Typhoid Mary”, their minds may rather refer to a fictional character of the same name that has been part of the Marvel Universe since 1988. And said character is traditionally depicted as being an underworld assassin.
So with all of that in mind, it is not clear who exactly the vocalist is singing about. For instance, the first two verses could very well be about Mary Mallon, the “bringer of disease”. Albeit if this theory is correct, then the vocalist uses some overdramatized language in regards to relaying that idea. For example, he refers to the titular character as an “angel of disease” who “feeds on the weak”.
Moreover in the chorus, she is referred to as “a soulless divine”. And that segues us into the second half of the song. Here, Mary is depicted as someone who kills intentionally.
In Conclusion
So all lyrics considered, there is one plausible theory, unless the singer is referring to some type of femme fatale who is neither Mary Mallon or the comic book character. And that theory is that this song is actually about the disease.
Or more specifically, typhoid fever itself is being personified under the name of its most-popular propagator, Mary (Mallon). The issue with that understanding though is that a modern-day extreme metal band dropping a song about a mostly-forgotten illness would be unorthodox.
But further research reveals that typhoid still kills some 150,000 people worldwide annually. So possibly what God Dethroned is doing, in a roundabout way, is trying to raise awareness about the disease.
“Typhoid Mary” Facts
Artist(s): God Dethroned
Release: 2006
Album/EP: “The Toxic Touch”
More about Mary Mallon
Irish- born cook, Mary Mallon, later nicknamed by the press as Typhoid Mary, was the first person identified in the US to be an asymptomatic carrier of typhoid fever.
In 1900, barely two weeks after she started working in New York as a cook, there was an intense outbreak at the residence she worked.
Between 1900 and 1907, she had worked in several homes, spreading the disease to the people she worked for. However, authorities could not yet trace the source. Sanitation expert and detective George Soper was called to investigate the cause and find the carrier of the disease to help prevent the spread in late 1906.
After four months of investigation, George traced the infection to Mary. At that time she had been working as a cook in Park Avenue Brownstone. When confronted by Soper, she rejected the accusations of being the carrier of the bacteria, Salmonella typhi.
She was later forcibly transported to the Willard Parker Hospital, New York. Here, traits of Salmonella Typhi were found in her body waste. Mary was quarantined for a long time. She actually spent about 25-30 years of her life at a hospital on the North Brother Island. All this while, she remained in isolation.
Apparently, she did not fully understand or accept that she was infected and spreading the disease, since she had no symptoms. She bluntly disregarded the suggestion of doctors to remove her gallbladder.
Mary Mallon was 69 years old when she died. She had infected at least 53 people. Out of this number, three died.
