(You all know what book I'm going to pick for this)
The Phantom of the Opera. Love. Passion. Operas. Masks. As soon as I read this chapter about physical imperfections, Gaston Leroux's classic novel flooded my mind. Following musicals, movies, and sequels also feature the main character with a physical imperfection, but we need to go to the original. The original Phantom (his name is actually Erik) wears a full black face mask. Erik has deep, deep set yellow eyes that can only be seen in the dark giving him the look of a person with no eyes. His skin is pale, deathly white and slightly translucent. His lips are paper thin as though they are not there at all. Creepiest of all, the cartilage of his nose is absent leaving only two holes in his face. The same situation applies to his ears. He has about three long hairs sprouting from his otherwise bald head. Not quite the sunburn-looking, not that bad, forgettable next to Gerard Butler's beauty deformities of the 2004 movie. Anyway, Erik was born with his deformities, causing his mother to cast him aside and society to reject him. That's what led him to the Paris Opera House and the catacombs underneath.
Not only do his deformities cause his living situation, but, as previously suggested, they alter his relationships. Those who seem his are frightened. Those who are not frightened become his only allies. When his falls in love with the young Christene Daae, she is initially drawn to his lies about being an angel and his voice. Once she realizes what he looks like, she tries to run. Still, she's drawn to his musical power and deep sadness. But the Phantom is frightening, and Christene is naive and scared. Trouble ensues as the Phantom becomes obsessed with the girl who cannot stay away.
Marred from birth, the Phantom was cursed to a lonely existance. His story is troubling and depressing. All I want to do is give him a hug. The sad part is, I don't know if I could.
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