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Chapter 26
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
After transcribing the Persian’s narrative, the narrator explains that Christine’s elevated sense of self-sacrifice saved both Raoul and the Persian’s lives. The narrator explains that he was able to meet with the Persian, who was gravely ill. The Persian became agitated while recounting his memories, overwhelmed by the trauma of what he experienced.
The Persian’s emotional trauma highlights the extent of Erik’s cruelty, which Christine’s capacity for forgiveness has occasionally obscured. Although he claims not to help Erik, he remains highly aware of the injustice of Erik’s deeds and the long-term, pernicious effects of his actions.
Themes
Daroga recalls waking up next to Raoul on a sofa in a small, well-decorated room. Erik whispered in Daroga’s ear when he awoke, telling him that this furniture was all he had left from his mother. Meanwhile, Christine remained silent, behaving obediently. Erik told Daroga that both Raoul and he were safe, and that he would soon take them outside to please his wife. Erik then gave Daroga a potion that made him fall asleep again.
Although Erik’s mention of his mother recalls the suffering he has been forced to endure his entire life, as he has never been loved like other human beings, his mention of Christine as his wife serves as a reminder of his inability to express his suffering in benign ways, since he seems intent on forcing others to suffer.
Themes
When the Persian woke up once more, he found himself in his own apartment. He learned that Count Philippe was dead, having been found by the lake under the Opera. Daroga concluded that Count Philippe must have remembered Raoul’s stories about Erik and searched for him, dying in the lake in an attempt to save his brother.
Despite Count Philippe’s irritation with Raoul’s decision to run away with Christine, he proved deeply committed to his family. His capacity to trust Raoul and go to the lake, despite the seemingly crazy stories he used to tell about Erik, reveals the Count’s intelligence and devotion, as well as his desire to protect his younger brother.
Themes
Appalled by this series of events, the Persian contacted the authorities. However, the examining magistrate, M. Faure, believed Daroga to be mad. Daroga thus resolved to write down his memories, hoping that the press might be interested in it. Later, though, Daroga suddenly received a visit from Erik.
The authorities’ inability to trust Daroga emphasizes the fantastical nature of this tale for people who do not understand Erik’s complex intelligence, and explains why the police couldn’t solve the mysteries that took place at the Opera.
Themes
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Although Erik looked extremely weak, Daroga immediately attacked him, accusing him of murdering Count Philippe. Erik replied that that was why he came—he wanted to tell Daroga that Count Philippe’s death was an accident, as Philippe was dead before the siren began to sing. Daroga called him a liar and interrogated him about Raoul and Christine’s fate, but Erik avoided the question and claimed to be dying of love. While Daroga asked him various questions about Christine, Erik simply said the she was not dead. He explained that she saved Daroga’s life, because she promised, with full sincerity, to live a happy wedded life with Erik instead of killing herself. Then, she begged for him to release Raoul and the Persian.
It remains ambiguous whether Erik’s desire to justify himself for Philippe’s death is sincere, since the actual circumstances of Philippe’s death (namely, why he would have died during a harmless boat trip) remain unexplained. Erik’s initial unwillingness to answer Daroga’s questions about Christine and Raoul make him seem even more suspicious, as it appears that he might be trying to distract the Persian in the same way he once tried to divert Christine’s attention from the torture room. However, Erik’s narrative is made more credible by the fact that he did actually release the Persian, as Christine asked.
Themes
Erik initially locked Raoul up but an extraordinary event happened: Christine let Erik kiss her on the forehead without recoiling in horror. Since no one had ever done that for Erik—not even his own mother, who found him too hideous to contemplate—he was deeply moved. As both of them began to cry together, Erik removed his mask, once again noticing that Christine did not flee or react negatively. Instead, she said: “Poor, poor unhappy Erik!” and took his hand.
In this scene, Christine’s compassion reaches extreme heights, since she shows compassion for the man who has just tried to kill her, her lover, and the rest of the people in the Opera House. At the same time, since the reader only hears Erik’s perspective, it remains impossible to determine how much Christine is dissimulating.
Themes
Literary Devices
Erik then gave Christine the ring she had lost, which he had searched for himself. He told her that this was a wedding present for her and Raoul. Knowing that Christine loved Raoul, not him, Erik decided to let the two of them go. However, he made Christine swear that, once she heard of Erik’s death, she would bury him with the gold ring. Erik then goes silent, and the Persian feels reassured by Christine and Raoul’s fate. Erik then tells the Persian that he will deliver his possessions to him, including Christine’s papers, and that Christine and Raoul planned to marry in the North, where they would stay. Three weeks later, according to Erik’s wishes, Daroga posts an announcement in a newspaper saying that Erik was dead.
Erik’s decision to free Christine derives from his understanding that Christine is a kind, honest, respectful being—and that he will probably never receive more from her, since she loves Raoul, not him. However, once again, the reader’s capacity to trust Erik’s narrative relives exclusively on whether or not one decides to believe in Erik’s sincerity. Indeed, no concrete proof of Raoul and Christine’s existence remains, besides the narrator’s recollection of the Persian’s testimony.
Themes
