The Phantom of the Opera Group

Question:


spazzer23
Student
College - Freshman

Was the Phantom from Phantom of the Opera born deformed?

Does anyone know if there is more detail on the phantom because he's my favorite character. Also was he born with the scarred face or did he get burned that way?

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Posted by spazzer23 on Tuesday October 27, 2009 at 2:52 PM and tagged with phantom, the phantom of the opera.

Answers:


  1. scarletpimpernel Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Best answer as selected by question asker.

    Erik, the Phantom, was born deformed.  Leroux uses this information to demonstrate that even from birth and childhood, Erik had to fight for his place in society and acceptance.  His own mother encourages him to wear a mask, and he becomes part of a "freak show" of sorts as a child.

    Leroux's phantom is very similar to Mary Shelley's monster in Frankenstein.  They both are physically unacceptable to society and after experiencing humans' repulsion and abandonment, they begin to exact revenge upon the human race.  Interestingly enough, both men see women, or a female companion, as the solution to their problems.

    I, like you, favor the phantom over most of the novel's other characters.  The Persian is also a very interesting character who, for some reason, is cut from the film and musical versions of the novel.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/phantom/characters

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    Posted by scarletpimpernel on Tuesday October 27, 2009 at 5:08 PM