Bevis wrote:

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Originally posted by D. McDonagh:
The translation I've read he's called ""the Opera Ghost"" (or Erik), and what the hell are you on about it isn't gothic fiction? It's about as gothic as fiction gets, for christ's sake. .


See, I don't think it is though. It's got gothic elements but the way it's written, the structure of the story, is much more... real, I guess, than most gothic fiction. It does have a bit of a deux a machine (in the Persian as you say) and some very melodramatic points (like the floating skull, but that's one of the best bits) but it's not the same as the other gothic fiction I've read. Same as Gormenghast. You could class it as gothic fiction but it doesn't quite fit the mould to my mind. I may have the exact definition of gothic wrong but the examples we looked at in English Lit at A-Level and Uni don't seem to be the same thing.

[QOUTE]It's stated in the novel (by the enigmatic Persian who provides a deus ex machina to bail the other characters out) that the ghost used to work for some Persian sheikh who employed him as an architecht, and is the man who designed the opera house.[/QUOTE]

The explanations are all very vague though, which I like. I do remember almost being dissappointed when you actually got told his name was Erik. Didn't quite seem to fit for some reason. Is it stated he actually built the opera house? it's a while since I read it and while i remember it being said he was a designer and architect I wasn't sure if he built the opera. I should re-read it. It's not a long book and quite easy to read. Difficult to put down too.

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If you enjoyed Leroux, there's a novel by Susan Kay, called Phantom, which fills in the rest of the details of his history, ands carefully avoids contradicting anything in the original novel.


Does it not take away something from the mystery of the ghost? That's why I really liked the book, the fact that you're not given all the answers. I'm not sure if I'd really want to know who he was exactly and all that sort of stuff. I may well check it out though.

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