Student Student 1 Mrs. Fimbinger Freshman English, 1st hour 17 February 2012
Society’s Acceptance, Familial Impact, and Overall Themes in “Adam and Megan” and “The Phantom of the Opera” An anonymous poet once wrote, “Close your eyes and see the beauty.” In this profound
line, the author is attempting to convey the fact that beauty is not something expressed in a
person’s appearance, but rather, the impalpable qualities such as their actions and mindset. In
similar ways to those of this unknown poet, Dave Curtin and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s
distinguished pieces “Adam and Megan” and “The Phantom of the Opera” express the same
point. The main characters are seen in their struggles to earn acceptance after becoming severely
disfigured, and readers see the immense impact their deformities bear. Dave Curtin’s “Adam
and Megan” follows the lives of two elementary students, Adam and Megan, after a propane-gas
explosion ripped through their home, leaving them with defacing third-degree burns. However,
the story maintains a hopeful tone as readers see the children persevere through their difficult
lives and overcome the tragedy. Their courageous triumph is aided by the support of their family
and community, and their determined efforts to recover allow them to become a part of society.
“The Phantom of the Opera”, on the contrary, revolves around the life of solitude led by the
Phantom of the Opera and his rejection by society. Unlike “Adam and Megan” this despondent
story emphasizes the recurring theme of despair and loneliness, an effect of the absence of love
and nurture in the Phantom’s childhood. While both stories stress the desire to be accepted,
the Phantom’s tale is one of despair and loneliness, a consequence of his neglectful and
forlorn childhood, whereas Adam and Megan beheld a story of hope and were provided
with unconditional love and support from their family. Student 2
After being left with severely disfigured faces, the characters in both “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Adam and Megan” exhibited a strong desire to be accepted by society. The disfigurements faced by the main characters in both stories rendered them outcasts and readers see their attempts to rejoin society. In “Adam and Megan”, after being left with disfigured faces, the children were secluded from their peers for months and underwent hours of therapy and multiple surgeries. The disfigurements became a source of shame and frustration for the children as they strived to do things they used to easily be able. In the story, the children’s aunt painfully admits “they’re going to feel ugly, different, like they don’t fit in” (Curtin 375) in regards to their return home; but, Adam and Megan’s ardent efforts to fit in led to their eventual acceptance. This acceptance is exemplified during Adam’s seventh birthday party. At first,
Adam’s peers are hesitant to casually play with him and Megan, but eventually entirely disregard their disfigurements. Similarly, in “The Phantom of the Opera” the main character was made to be an outcast due to his severe disfigurement and exhibited the want to be accepted. However, while Adam and Megan were able to reenter society, the Phantom’s attempts met with no success, due partially to his life of seclusion and lack of assistance as a child. The Phantom led a childhood filled with neglect and mistreatment and was made to live in isolation. As a consequence, he was left entirely unaware of social values and standards. His disfigurements became a source of anger, and in livid efforts to force himself upon society, the Phantom ended up murdering, kidnapping, and committing other abysmal crimes. In a moment of rage, the
Phantom sings to Christine, “this repulsive carcass, who seems a beast/but secretly dreams of beauty,” (Webber). In this line, the Phantom is expressing his utmost desire for society to look past his deformity and earn acceptance. Although the Phantom and Megan and Adam’s attempts Student 3
to reenter society greatly differed, the three all demonstrated a passionate yearning to be accepted.
Another significant similarity between Dave Curtin and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s stories is the immense impact familial support, or lack thereof, had on the characters’ experiences. The entirely different environments Adam and Megan and the Phantom grew up in formed the groundwork for their later experiences in life. In “Adam and Megan”, the children grew up in a nurturing and loving family with a supportive community. After the tragedy, the children were supported in their struggles by their caring environment, and accepted. The members of the children’s community physically supported them as well; Adam and Megan were in desperate need of blood transfusions after the devastating explosion, and “104 people from the Walter family’s church, Mesa Hills Bible Church, respond to a call for blood” (Curtin 373) upon being informed. The kind milieu that Adam and Megan grew up surrounded by facilitated their recovery and encouraged their acceptance. Likewise, the Phantom’s childhood laid the foundation for his future experiences. The Phantom grew up in a harsh and cruel setting where he was isolated and left to fend for himself. The Phantom sings, “This face, which earned a mother's fear and loathing/A mask, my first unfeeling scrap of clothing ...” (Webber) in relation to his abandonment as a child and the inadequate guidance and care he suffered. The Phantom had no guiding hand or teacher to inform him of basic moral principles as he grew up and this absence of love and nurture led to his future life of wrongdoings and immoral behavior. In both
“Adam and Megan” and “The Phantom of the Opera”, the characters’ family and childhoods had enormous influence on their future lives.
While “Adam and Megan” and “The Phantom of the Opera” share several of the same aspects, the stories convey two overall diverse themes; while “Adam and Megan” is a story of Student 4
hope and perseverance, “The Phantom of the Opera” continually emphasizes the theme of despair and loneliness. The stories differ dramatically in this aspect and focus on separate themes. In “Adam and Megan”, the children are able to overcome their disfigurements to earn acceptance, and persevere through the tragedy. Through all the distress the children have encountered, the story ends on a hopeful note as “on this blustery, gray day of this devastating year, Megan shuffles up to the board and draws two smiling suns” (Curtin 386). Conversely, in
“The Phantom of the Opera”, the Phantom is unable to be accepted by society and leads a life of seclusion. The Phantom’s tale is one of despair and solitude, and his heart is left mangled and torn. Christine sings to him, “learn to be lonely/learn how to love life that is lived alone”
(Webber), and the Phantom is forced to do so as he lives isolated in his miserable dungeon. “The
Phantom of the Opera” is a story that accentuates the theme of desolation and misery whereas
“Adam and Megan” maintains a hopeful tone.
At a first glance, these appear incredibly different stories with very different plots and problems; however, it is evident that they share several of the same aspects. In both stories, the disfigurements faced by the characters leave immense impact on their lives. Adam and Megan and the Phantom are all left with a strong desire for society’s acceptance after becoming deformed, and by different means, they strive to attain it. In addition, the enormous influence familial support bore on the characters’ later experiences is another shared feature. However, while “Adam and Megan” emphasizes hope and perseverance, “The Phantom of the Opera” is a story of despair and gloom. In the end, the premises of these two stories epitomized the fact that while disfigurements bear immense impact, one must look past physical appearance to see the whole person.
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Works Cited
Curtin, Dave. “Adam & Megan.” Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph 8 Jan. 1989. Print.
The Phantom of the Opera. By Andrew Lloyd Webber, Gaston Leroux, Charles Hart.
Dir. Joel Schumacher. Warner Bros. Pictures, 2004. Film