Film is a form of storytelling, and all stories are, in essence recycled, contemporary films must modernize a story of the past to make it accessible to modern audiences. This is the case with the film, Pan’s Labyrinth. The myth of “Theseus and the Minotaur” has been rewritten and modernized in the 2006 film, Pan’s Labyrinth. The myth “Theseus and the Minotaur” and the morals that exist within it, present a context in which it will be possible to interpret and analyze the film Pan’s Labyrinth as a modern day rewriting of the myth.
In order to understand how Pan’s Labyrinth has been rewritten, it is important to first understand the original myth of “Theseus and the Minotaur”. According to Edith Hamilton’s Mythology, the story of Theseus and his quest to slay the Minotaur begins long before Theseus’s birth. “Minos, the powerful ruler of Crete, had lost his only son…while the young man was visiting the Athenian King” (Hamilton 211). In order to seek revenge, Minos invaded Athens and “declared that he would raze it to the ground unless every nine years the people sent him a tribute of seven maidens and seven youths” (Hamilton 212). When the victims reached Crete, they would be sacrificed to a beast that was “half bull, half human”, known as the Minotaur (Hamilton 212). The Minotaur was housed in a labyrinth where “escape was impossible” (Hamilton 212). “To this place, the young Athenians were each time taken and left to the Minotaur” (Hamilton 212). This ritual continued until one year, Theseus, son of the Athenian king and heir to throne, offered to be one of the victims. Unbeknownst to the people, Theseus had every intention of slaying the beast. “When the young victims arrived in Crete they were paraded before the inhabitants ...
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... bravely and defiantly act against authority rather than blindly remain obedient. This film shows the power of innocence over evil and the triumph of imagination over colorless servitude just as the original tale of Theseus and the Minotaur, but with a darker new interpretation.
Works Cited
Filmtracks Modern Soundtrack Reviews. (2007, January 05). Retrieved May 04, 2012, from http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/pans_labyrinth.html
Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. P. (2011). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. https://content.ashford.edu
Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. 1942. N.p.: Back Bay Books, 1998. Print
VC. (2010, September 23). The Vigilant Citizen. Retrieved May 05, 2012, from The Esoteric Interpretation of Pan's Labyrinth: http://vigilantcitizen.com/moviesandtv/the-esoteric-interprentation-of-pans-labyrinth/
One of the myths was, Polyphemus was in love with a sea nymph named Galateia, a sicilian nereid who had cheated on him with a man named Acis. When Polyphemus discovered this he crushed Acis under a rock. Another myth was the story of Odysseus. This story was when Polyphemus had captured Odysseus one of victorious greek leaders and twelve of his crew members when they were sailing for home from the trojan war. They became captured when they arrived to an unknown island of cyclopes. Odysseus and his men came upon the cave of Polyphemus, and went inside in hopes to steal food while Polyphemus was away tending his flock. Curiosity got the best of Odysseus as he wanted to see what a cyclops looked like. Odysseus and his men hid in the cave waiting for Polyphemus to come back.
The story of Jason and the Argonauts’ quest for the golden fleece and his ultimately ill fated love affair with Medea is told with stunning, sometimes humorously self-referential, deceptive simplicity. Right from the start, Argonautika pulls the audience in its prologue with chants of dramatic events, leaving the spectators with a desire for more. The heroes who make up the crew
Fitch, John. Archetypes on Screen: Odysseus, St. Paul, Christ and the American Cinematic Hero and Anti Hero. Vol. 9. No. 1.
The movie Minority Report and the book Oedipus the King both explore similar themes, and imagery. Consistently throughout both features, the idea of presumed murder, the imagery of sight, and the question of predetermined fate shape each storyline and provoke similarities between them.
Lehman, Peter and Luhr, William. Thinking About Movies: Watching, Questioning, Enjoying. 2nd ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003.
In Oedipus Rex by Sophocles and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, there is a deception where readers think one thing, but are presented with a different point of view. They are profoundly similar for various reasons regarding structure and theme. They are complementary in establishing the primary conflict of drama during the storyline; however, Oedipus Rex encompasses foreshadowing that divulges drama from past experiences. Additionally, the authors incorporate violence as a key component in the conflict presented. However, the drama differs in plot, as well as symbolism, in which the reader understands it before or amid the story through gradual discovery. The themes and presentation of these dramatic plots are initially compelling, distinctive,
Fascism and neglect being a reoccurring theme in Pan’s Labyrinth, triggers the audience to question and challenge what they are watching; bringing them to the understanding that what they are watching is inhumane and should not be inflicted on anyone. Therefore, the film, though in subtle way, challenges ideologies and the lack of use of our conscience, which is what reminds us that we are all the same: we breathe, eat and feel just like anyone else. Therefore, Pan’s labyrinth directs us all back to humanity and sanity by displaying what the world would be like without that
Adler, Ronald B., Judith A. Rolls, and Russell F. Proctor. LOOK: Looking Out, Looking in. Toronto: Nelson Education, 2012. Print.
One of the most interesting qualities of Greek mythology is probably the depiction of monsters in the myths. However, these monsters are not all unique. In fact, they all fall into very distinct categories, making them almost the same. Most monsters in Greek mythology look and act in the same ways. Several monsters from these myths look the same in that they have very similar qualities such as being large, snake or human like. However, they are also very alike in that they behave in very similar ways, from guarding something or roaming freely and causing chaos. Generally, the monsters in Greek mythology follow this outline and are depicted in a way to show these qualities.
Myths relate to events, conditions, and deeds of gods or superhuman beings that are outside ordinary human life and yet basics to it” ("Myth," 2012). Mythology is said to have two particular meanings, “the corpus of myths, and the study of the myths, of a particular area: Amerindian mythology, Egyptian mythology, and so on as well as the study of myth itself” ("Mythology," 1993). In contrast, while the term myth can be used in a variety of academic settings, its main purpose is to analyze different cultures and their ways of thinking. Within the academic setting, a myth is known as a fact and over time has been changed through the many different views within a society as an effort to answer the questions of human existence. The word myth in an academic context is used as “ancient narratives that attempt to answer the enduring and fundamental human questions: How did the universe and the world come to be? How did we come to be here? Who are we? What are our proper, necessary, or inescapable roles as we relate to one another and to the world at large? What should our values be? How should we behave? How should we not behave? What are the consequences of behaving and not behaving in such ways” (Leonard, 2004 p.1)? My definition of a myth is a collection of false ideas put together to create
In conclusion, Mary Wroth’s sonnet “In This Strange Labyrinth” alludes to the myth of Theseus and Minotaur in the title and in the symbolism found throughout the poem. Theseus had to defeat a Minotaur, just like the speaker has to get conquer a monster. The sonnet tells the story of a woman’s struggle to make choices regarding love and also revolutionizes the topic of an abusive romance.
The Lives of Others- Film Education 2007, Education guide, Lionsgate, viewed Monday 4th of April 2011,
Adler, Ronald B., Judith A. Rolls, and Russell F. Proctor. LOOK: Looking Out, Looking in. Toronto: Nelson Education, 2012. Print.
Often times people neglect the fact that the things- such as films- that they see and hear day to day can actually be worthwhile in teaching them. They come into contact with them purely for the purpose of being entertained and, sometimes, do not even realize that they are being taught valuable life lessons in the process. In conjunction with this theory, Professor Michael Taylor once said, “We don’t often think of the value of media beyond its entertainment, but there is a whole area that has to do with education through entertainment. As filmmakers, the work that we do has a huge impact on our culture. With that comes an opportunity, and may be even a responsibility, to use that impact for greater good.” Many French and Francophone films
Nolan, Amy. "Seeing is digesting: labyrinths of historical ruin in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining." Cultural Critique 77 (2011): 180+. Literature Resource Center. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.