The Pale Man from “Pan’s Labyrinth”: origin and meaning

The Pale Man from “Pan’s Labyrinth”: origin and meaning.

In the credits of Guillermo del Toro’s film: The Pan’s Labyrinthhe is mentioned as the Pallid man: a creepy creature sitting at the head of a long table, immersed in a kind of lethargy, until the recklessness of Ofelia, the protagonist, disturbs him.

Then, slowly, the creature places a pair of eyes in the palms of its hands, and wakes up.

Many of those who have seen The Pan’s Labyrinth Surely you have wondered who this mysterious being is, the Pallid manwhich is by far the most interesting and terrifying of the film.

Next we will try to trace the true identity of the Pallid man of The Pan’s Labyrinth; first, analyzing its characteristics, the mythological roots that could explain its origin, and finally its physical features, as unique as they are chilling.

He Pallid man, in symbolic terms, is actually a metaphorical representation of totalitarianism—in the context of the film, the government, and the church—which literally devours innocence; in this case, represented through the fairies and even Ofelia herself.

This detestable predilection of Pallid man for innocence as the main course is an indication of the direct influence of Francisco de Goya, and more specifically of his painting: Saturn devouring his children.

If we look closer, we see that the Pallid man of The Pan’s Labyrinth He has a real banquet in front of him, with all kinds of delicacies that, of course, he has not touched, since he prefers the flesh of the innocent.

His figure even resembles that of an extremely obese man who has lost a large amount of weight, with folds of sagging skin hanging from his arms, neck and abdomen, as if a long time had passed between feasts.

In part, we said, the Pallid man It is a representation of Saturn, which in turn is the Roman version of the Greek god Cronus.

Ofelia’s second test consists of visiting the chambers of the Pallid man. Curiously, the Faun warns him not to eat anything while he is there; something quite curious, certainly, if one takes into account the little appetite one would have in the presence of such a creature. However, everything has an explanation.

Ofelia disobeys the Faun, and eats a couple of grapes, which leads us to think of the myth of Persephone, who ate a pomegranate seed in Hades, and, because of that indiscretion, had to remain in hell for a long time. .

Around the Pallid man You can hear the tireless crying of his victims, and we even see piles of little shoes piled up there. On the walls there are frescoes showing the creature devouring children; But what really confirms that this is a representation of Cronus, the god of time, is the hourglass, and the fact that the creature—like the god—is blind.

To avoid sterile controversies, Guillermo del Toro makes the Pallid man uproot and chew the heads of the fairies that have the misfortune to pass by, almost in the same way that Goya’s Saturn (Cronus) devours his offspring.

Now, Cronus is basically the personification of time, but also of the status quo, and although his actions seem to be the product of a grotesque, extremely cruel and senseless nature, in reality they hide a universal fear: the fear of losing time. control.

The god devoured his children, his innocence, for fear that they would dethrone him in the future. In the context of The Pan’s Labyrinththat fear represents the inhuman actions of a totalitarian, fascist state that fears being overthrown from power.

Sigmund Freud himself, and later Carl Jung, dealt with this universal theme, and synthesized it in the disturbing characteristics of the Cronos Complex: a destructive process by which the father metaphorically eats away the possibility of his children becoming into autonomous individuals, capable of thinking for themselves and making decisions that may reverse the order of things.

This is observed in all patriarchal societies: parents want their children to follow in their footsteps, to perpetuate the same ethical and moral values, which, within the Cronus Complex, is equivalent to maintaining the status quo, that is, ensuring that nothing changes, let the course of things continue to be unalterable.

Needless to say, fascism, the true monster of The Pan’s Labyrinthis the most extreme manifestation of the patriarchal system.

Now, up to this point we have analyzed the mythological characteristics of the Pallid man and, if you like, its psychological background; However, its physical form, its unpleasant, repulsive appearance, and the quality (or disadvantage) of having to place its eyes in the palms of its hands to see, have their origins in both mythology and fiction.

The fact that the Pallid man does not have eyes in its head, but at the same time can use them in the palm of its hands when the occasion requires it, immediately reminds us of the myth of the Grayas, those three hateful sisters of Greek myths, who had a single eye and a single tooth, which they reluctantly shared, and which were opportunely defeated by Perseus.

But beyond this, the physical aspect of the Pallid mannot its symbology, also finds a parallel, perhaps fortuitous, perhaps intentional, in the horror story.

He Pallid man It physically resembles a dark creature from the Cthulhu Mythos: Y’Golonaccalled the Corruptor, created by Ramsey Campbell—a member of the Lovecraft Circle—in the 1969 story: Cold Edition (Cold Print).

While Y’Golonac is one of the Primeval gods, like Cthulhu, Dagon or Nyarlathotep, the truth is that he is not very similar to the rest of HP Lovecarft’s pantheon. He is a sadistic, perverse creature, who only seeks to devour his prey, never convert them into devotees or worshippers.

Y’Golonac, pale and repulsive, dwells in the void of the subterranean night, surrounded by sinister creatures who, like himself, are also blind. In that impenetrable darkness he sleeps on the lookout, motionless, waiting for the presence of some unwary person to disturb his rest. He has no eyes in his head; However, he has a large number of eyes in the palms of his hands, which, in turn, can be replaced by infinite mouths.

At this point it would be redundant to clarify the great influence that the Cthulhu Mythos and HP Lovecraft’s Dream Cycle—and also the stories of Lord Dunsany—had on Guillermo del Toro’s film production.

In any case, the symbols that represent the Pallid manand above all the atavistic, archetypal terror that emerges from its repugnant appearance, seem to be eloquent enough to avoid any controversy in this regard.

Horror cinema. I Mythology.

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