Phantom Thoughts pt. 37
Apr. 22nd, 2019 05:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zellephantom{His Don Juan Triumphant (for I had not a doubt but that he had rushed to his masterpiece to forget the horror of the moment) seemed to me at first one long, awful, magnificent sob. But, little by little, it expressed every emotion, every suffering of which mankind is capable.}
I like this DJT better than ALW, I think. An artistic masterpiece, the effort of a lifetime, that expresses just how DONE Erik is with the world and how cruelly it treats him and all those who are different from the norm.
{Presently I heard the sound of the organ; and then I began to understand Erik's contemptuous phrase when he spoke about Opera music.}
So, Erik is a pretentious opera snob, then?
{'Erik,' I cried, 'show me your face without fear! I swear that you are the most unhappy and sublime of men; and, if ever again I shiver when I look at you, it will be because I am thinking of the splendor of your genius!' Then Erik turned round, for he believed me, and I also had faith in myself.}
That's quite a dramatic 180 there, Christine. The text doesn't say, but there has to be some sort of timejump between Erik going to his room to sulk and this declaration??
{He fell at my feet, with words of love}
Again, dramatic 180, but not exactly unwelcome. You SHOULD be falling at Christine's feet begging for forgiveness, Erik.
{"What more can I tell you, dear? You now know the tragedy. It went on for a fortnight—a fortnight during which I lied to him. My lies were as hideous as the monster who inspired them; but they were the price of my liberty.}
Owww this hurts. Christine, despite her admiration of him, still can't get over the horror of Erik's face and has to lie to him to spare his feelings and gain her freedom.
{I burned his mask}
Bold move, there, especially given that you actually can't stand to see his face.
{I managed so well that, even when he was not singing, he tried to catch my eye, like a dog sitting by its master. He was my faithful slave and paid me endless little attentions. Gradually, I gave him such confidence that he ventured to take me walking on the banks of the lake and to row me in the boat on its leaden waters; toward the end of my captivity he let me out through the gates that closed the underground passages in the Rue Scribe.}
The power dynamic is so weird and complicated here. He is her "faithful slave" and duitiful servant, and yet she is his prisoner who needs permission to take a walk outside.
Also for some reason I'm picturing the boat thing as some weird version of Kiss the Girl from the Little Mermaid except with candles and weird lake monsters instead of charming talking crustaceans.
{"Yes, dear, and I must tell you that it was not his frightful threats when setting me free that helped me to keep my word, but the harrowing sob which he gave on the threshold of the tomb. ... That sob attached me to the unfortunate man more than I myself suspected when saying good-by to him. Poor Erik! Poor Erik!"}
Ohhhh. Christine is SO GOOD. So caring. Able to even feel sympathy for people who've hurt her. Frankly, she deserves better than either of these two ridiculous men. (*cough* I still ship E/C though because their dynamic is interesting to explore *cough*)
I like this DJT better than ALW, I think. An artistic masterpiece, the effort of a lifetime, that expresses just how DONE Erik is with the world and how cruelly it treats him and all those who are different from the norm.
{Presently I heard the sound of the organ; and then I began to understand Erik's contemptuous phrase when he spoke about Opera music.}
So, Erik is a pretentious opera snob, then?
{'Erik,' I cried, 'show me your face without fear! I swear that you are the most unhappy and sublime of men; and, if ever again I shiver when I look at you, it will be because I am thinking of the splendor of your genius!' Then Erik turned round, for he believed me, and I also had faith in myself.}
That's quite a dramatic 180 there, Christine. The text doesn't say, but there has to be some sort of timejump between Erik going to his room to sulk and this declaration??
{He fell at my feet, with words of love}
Again, dramatic 180, but not exactly unwelcome. You SHOULD be falling at Christine's feet begging for forgiveness, Erik.
{"What more can I tell you, dear? You now know the tragedy. It went on for a fortnight—a fortnight during which I lied to him. My lies were as hideous as the monster who inspired them; but they were the price of my liberty.}
Owww this hurts. Christine, despite her admiration of him, still can't get over the horror of Erik's face and has to lie to him to spare his feelings and gain her freedom.
{I burned his mask}
Bold move, there, especially given that you actually can't stand to see his face.
{I managed so well that, even when he was not singing, he tried to catch my eye, like a dog sitting by its master. He was my faithful slave and paid me endless little attentions. Gradually, I gave him such confidence that he ventured to take me walking on the banks of the lake and to row me in the boat on its leaden waters; toward the end of my captivity he let me out through the gates that closed the underground passages in the Rue Scribe.}
The power dynamic is so weird and complicated here. He is her "faithful slave" and duitiful servant, and yet she is his prisoner who needs permission to take a walk outside.
Also for some reason I'm picturing the boat thing as some weird version of Kiss the Girl from the Little Mermaid except with candles and weird lake monsters instead of charming talking crustaceans.
{"Yes, dear, and I must tell you that it was not his frightful threats when setting me free that helped me to keep my word, but the harrowing sob which he gave on the threshold of the tomb. ... That sob attached me to the unfortunate man more than I myself suspected when saying good-by to him. Poor Erik! Poor Erik!"}
Ohhhh. Christine is SO GOOD. So caring. Able to even feel sympathy for people who've hurt her. Frankly, she deserves better than either of these two ridiculous men. (*cough* I still ship E/C though because their dynamic is interesting to explore *cough*)
