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Analysis Of ' The Cyclops And Pan 's Labyrinth '

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It seems fitting that analysis of The Cyclops would be done alongside Pan’s Labyrinth given the satyric nature of the former and the allusions to the greek god Pan of the latter. However, while the monstrous Pan (or, the Faun) may be represented as such in the film, the purpose for his inclusion is largely different from the purpose for the inclusion of Polyphemus in Euripides ' play. Modern storytellers having recognized that monstrosity may exist in any number of forms helps to develop a basis for the claim that the two previously mentioned stories depict very different monsters, and by association, very different humans. While on the surface, primitive arguments about the appearance and actions of Polyphemus and the Pale Man being similar may seem compelling, monstrousness in The Cyclops and Pan’s Labyrinth is handled very differently from one another. Given the depictions of monsters and the monstrous in the two works it is clear that the ancient work serves to contrast the barbarism of monsters with the wit and culture of humans, thus creating a divide between the two, whereas the modern work serves to provide commentary on monstrosity in many forms; more specifically, Pan’s Labyrinth uses fantastic monstrosity in comparison to the actions of a human to illustrate that human’s monstrous nature, thus associating humans and monsters. To begin, it should be noted that there are many monsters in Pan’s Labyrinth, though Captain Vidal is of the most significance, and there

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