The Leroux Novel
The Opera Ghost really existed…
The novel “Le Fantôme de l’Opéra”, by Gaston Leroux, is the beginning of the whole Phantom story and holds a special place of honour in my own library. The novel, told in a journalistic style, but mostly from the viewpoint of Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny, describes the events surrounding the “haunting” of the Opera House and Christine Daaé’s relationship with the deformed genius by the name of Erik living in the depths of the Opera’s cellars.
Those familiar with only the stage version will find a few characters in the novel that do not appear in the show, most prominently, Count Philippe, Raoul’s older brother, and the Persian, a mysterious person who knew Erik in an earlier time. The role of Mme. Giry has been changed profoundly, from a box-keeper with special correspondence with Erik, to the ballet mistress who always seems to know a little more than everyone else, although exactly how she knows is never explained.
If you want to see how well you know the novel, take my Leroux quiz!
The novel has had numerous film adaptations, but I believe it’s most successful portrayal thus far has been the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Although there is dispution as to whether or not it does justice to the characters of Raoul and Christine, its Erik is one that almost every fan of the novel feels they know already.
In case it is not quite obvious yet, Erik is my favorite character in this story. Here is a man who is both cruel and tender, dangerous and protecting, threatening and vulnerable. The world has made him what he is, yet refuses to accept him. There is one line in Leroux’s novel that makes me cry every time I reach it: