Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Phantom of the Opera, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Natural vs. the Supernatural
Love vs. Jealousy
Violence, Revenge, and Redemption
Beauty vs. Ugliness
Summary
Analysis
The narrator describes the two new Opera directors. Though a charming man, Moncharmin knows little about music. His colleague Firmin Richard, by contrast, is a famous composer and musician, beloved by most artists of the time. Richard, though, is prone to fits of temper. One morning, when Richard, arrives at the office, he receives a letter written with the same red ink and handwriting as the notes in the memorandum he consulted with the ex-directors. In the note, signed “P. of the Opera,” the author, who claims to have extensive musical experience, notes that Carlotta is a terrible singer and that Christine Daaé should be allowed to take on new roles.
In this episode, the Phantom of the Opera suggests that he knows more about music than the directors themselves. Christine’s previous success gives credibility to his assertions and suggests that the new directors are perhaps not as capable of running the Opera as it may seem. This letter thus highlights the Phantom’s experience as a musician and suggests that he—not the directors themselves—plans to assert his power by taking control of life at the Opera House.
Themes
Literary Devices
The Phantom asks for Christine to sing Siebel and also demands that his box be liberated, since it has been occupied in the past few days. He initially failed to complain, because he thought that the ex-directors might have failed in their duty to communicate his demands, but has now learned differently after exchanging letters with them. He concludes his letter with a threat, saying that the directors will only be granted peace if they give the Phantom his box.
Although threatening violence, the Phantom proves logical and polite in his note. This gives him an aura of respectability and intellectual elevation. It also suggests that he does not necessarily use violence indiscriminately, for gratuitous purposes, but that he considers it fair punishment when his demands are not met.
Themes
Richard and Moncharmin both believe that this is a prank. Instead of agreeing to the letter-writer’s demands, they decide to reserve Box Five for Debienne and Poligny, who they assume want it. That night, though, they fail to check whether the ex-directors have come. The next day, they receive a note from “P. of the O.” extolling last night’s performance and demanding the money that the new directors owe him. They also receive a note from the ex-directors, who explain that they cannot possibly occupy Box Five, which belongs to the ghost. Annoyed by this seemingly endless joke, Richard and Moncharmin make the box available for the public the next night.
The contrast between the old directors and the new directors’ attitudes suggests that Richard and Moncharmin are behaving foolishly and are unable to learn from their predecessors’ experience. Although the new directors’ behavior is understandable, since they do not want to believe in the supernatural, their efforts to hold onto reality seem foolish in light of the narrator’s earlier assertion that the Phantom does exist—and thus, that he is capable of causing harm.
Themes
The next morning, the directors receive a report from the house manager, who explains that he had to force the spectators in Box Five to leave, because they frequently disrupted the performance with rambunctious behavior. Richard tells his secretary, M. Rémy, to call the house manager. When the manager arrives, he says that, upon entering, the spectators in Box Five heard a voice saying that the box was occupied. They called the box attendant, Mme Giry, who could see no one in the box or on either side of it. The manager notes that the attendant believed this to be the ghost’s doing. Furious at this series of events, Richard demands for the attendant to come and says that he plans to dismiss anyone who has not seen the ghost, since he expects his staff to do their job more thoroughly.
Although the Phantom is not yet behaving violently, the spectators’ disruptive behavior is highly unusual in such an elevated, well-behaved setting. This, combined with their assertion that they heard the ghost speak, suggests that they were probably under the ghost’s influence. It seems that the ghost might be capable of controlling other people’s minds—or, perhaps, that he was the one disturbing the performance. Richard’s anger at being the victim of a prank or at having incompetent staff keeps him from reflecting on the situation rationally and realizing that all members of his staff cannot possibly be insane or misguided.
Themes
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