The Phantom of the Opera: An Analysis

The Phantom of the Opera will always be among my favourite musicals of all time.  The musical and the original novel by Gaston Leroux explore themes of unrequited love, jealousy, innocence, horror, appearance versus reality, and the social outcast.  Above all, the novel-turned-musical explores the power of music and its potential to unite.  For reasons unknown to me, I have always been fascinated by this show.  Perhaps this is because many of the underlying themes are extremely significant in my life.  

Although the novel is much darker than the musical, the general plot intrigues me.  I was fortunate enough to see the show in London, produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Really Useful Theatre Company.  And I cried.  So, while I’m feeling sentimental and overly-emotional, I would like to indulge in a brief analysis of the musical while shamelessly admitting my unhealthy obsession for the Phantom (this is by no means a comprehensive analysis of the entire novel!).  Please don’t judge me until you've actually seen the show.  You might fall in love yourself.

“Music oft hath such a charm

To make bad good, and good provoke to harm.”

~ Measure for Measure (Act IV, sc. 1)     

The power of inspiration is invaluable to any artist.  Painters, writers, poets, and musicians all rely on inspiration to fuel their work.   Here, one might consider the significance of the word “muse.”

Muse

(verb) to reflect deeply on a subject.

(noun) the source of an artist’s inspiration.

Despite his life of isolation and recluse, the phantom is a creative genius.  He is a composer, playwright, architect, magician, and poet.  Christine is his muse, in the oldest sense of the word.  In Greek mythology, a muse was one of the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (dictionary.com).  The Muses inspired and presided over the creative arts. 

Under the guise of “The Angel of Music,” the phantom trains Christine to become a great opera singer.  All the while, Christine thinks of him as the angelic visitor her father promised to send after his death.  In her innocence, the phantom falls in love with her.  She is the sole source of beauty that inspires his creative genius.  His jealous love for her touches everything he creates.  Indeed, Christine is intoxicated by Don Juan Triumphant, claiming it “expressed every emotion, every suffering of which mankind is capable” (Leroux).  It is through the power of music that the phantom carefully builds a relationship with his beloved Christine.  His training makes her an accomplished opera star; her beauty stimulates his creative genius.  It seems like a perfect balance.  Yet, the phantom wants more than just inspiration from Christine – he wants her to be completely his.  His jealousy of Raoul, Christine’s childhood sweetheart, puts him into a rage. 

What are we, the readers/audience, supposed to take from all of this? Do we rationalize the phantom’s jealousy because of his exclusion? Do we justify his madness because he has been treated like a monster his entire life and Christine is the only person to show him kindness? Are we to excuse his lie to Christine (“I am your angel of music!”) simply because we feel bad for the poor guy with the misshapen face and really bad social skills? It seems impossible to suspend any judgment of this cold-hearted killer. How can he claim to love Christine, but be so demented as to kill with abandon? All of these questions cloud my mind.

Despite his cruelty, I cannot stop myself from feeling compassion for the phantom.  And Christine, in her innocence, does the same.  Her conflicting feelings eventually give way to the sincerest form of love at the climax of the novel/show.  Her pure heart resolves to show kindness and sympathy to the very creature that tormented her for many months.  Truly, the ending speaks to the triumph of good over evil, and certainly reinforces the idea that music creates the most powerful connection of all.  Christine cannot ignore the musical power of “the unseen genius.”   She also realizes that, in his anguish, the phantom suffers for something he cannot change about himself: his disfigured face. 

“This face – the infection which poisons our love…” ~The Phantom of the Opera

I would also like to critique Christine’s behaviour and examine her motives for staying with Raoul.  Throughout the story, we watch Christine grow up.  She matures from an insignificant chorus girl to a rising opera star, with the help of the phantom.  Her talent is natural and the progression seems inevitable, but if it weren't for the phantom, the opportunity to perform the lead would never be hers.  Indeed, Christine has grown up with the phantom’s instruction and essentially owes the development of her talent to him.  For a good portion of the novel/musical, she remains convinced that the phantom’s voice is actually an angel of music sent to watch over her after her father’s death.  It is obvious that Christine was very close to her father in the reverent way she obeys “The Angel of Music.” 

Although Christine is torn between three significant men in her life (Raoul, her father, and the phantom), she ultimately chooses to be with Raoul.  Given the circumstances, what else could she possibly do but accept Raoul’s proposal?  He is kind, gentle, and demonstrates his love in a tender way.  But his love is not passionate like the phantom’s love.  Raoul practically forces Christine to sing in Don Juan Triumphant, using her as prey to lure the phantom into the hands of the police!  Yet she trusts Raoul enough to do this... to help capture the man who loves her so violently. 

Because the majority of novel/musical is set in an opera house, appearance versus reality is certainly the most obvious theme of all.  An opera house is similar to a playhouse in that it attempts to represent real life, but never actually achieves the status of reality. An actor or vocalist can convince the audience that he is sad, but is he truly sad?  Of course not.  It only appears this way because he or she is acting.  Props, scenery, and costumes all contribute to the false reality that is created onstage.  The phantom personifies this theme because of his masked face.  Although he is hideous and disfigured, he is capable of creating great beauty. The music he writes, his own voice, his architecture, and above all, his love for Christine, prove that he is capable of more than just bitterness and resentment.  The culmination of the phantom’s beauty is realised when he finally sets Christine free and allows her to be with Raoul.   He demonstrates that he is not at all what he appears.  He allows love to overcome the bitterness in his heart. 

The importance of outward appearance is present in most societies.  Although the superficiality of human nature continues to be painfully obvious, the phantom reminds us that true beauty is found on the inside.  As cliché as this may seem, the qualities of an individual that extend beyond the physical prove to be the most important. 

At first, in an effort to hide his true appearance, the phantom masks his imperfections from the world.  I think many of us have “masked” ourselves in order to hide so-called embarrassing, shameful, or less-than-perfect aspects of our appearance (whether it be physical or emotional).  Specifically, in Music of the Night, the phantom sings very openly about his shelter of eternal darkness.  He hides himself in the shadowy labyrinth below the opera house, where he finds the ever present darkness to be safe and comforting. 

Like Beauty and the Beast, Frankenstein, King Kong, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and others, The Phantom of the Opera aims to teach readers/audiences that an isolated, ostracized, and lonely creature can give and receive love, if he is given the chance.  At the same time, the phantom is still a dark character because he murders freely and terrorizes the opera house.  Although she is incredibly naïve, Christine is able to see past the phantom’s twisted face and point out the true problem:

“This haunted face holds no horror for me now. 

It’s in your soul that the true distortion lies.” ~ Christine

Christine fills the void inside the phantom’s empty heart.  It is Christine who realises that the phantom’s wretched appearance does not determine his capacity to love.  Think of the hope of such a message!  I love this.  The world needs to learn this.   

The Phantom is overcome with true, selfless love for Christine... and he releases her.
The music here is so powerful.  It certainly speaks to the main theme of the show.