Bonjour à tous! Longtime lurker, first-time poster here. Let me apologize in advance if this isn't sufficiently Chris-related to be in this forum.
I've been studying Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" lately, and I'm struck by the similarities between Chris and Papageno, one of the opera's main characters, at least in terms of how they approach romance. (Papageno is gainfully employed as the evil queen's bird-catcher, so obviously the parallel doesn't extend in that direction.)
Papageno is obsessed with finding love; he fixates on it continuously, but in a shallow way. He seems to view relationships exclusively in terms of sex (this is euphemized, having been written in the 17th century, but it's still pretty clear) and marriage/having kids. Papageno seems to believe that his currently troubled life would be immediately transformed into heavenly bliss if only he could find a girlfriend. I also have to note that he doesn't look at his love quest in terms of improving or modifying himself in any way, despite the fact that his cowardice and general incompetence (being the wacky comic sidekick to the hero) would presumably cut down on his odds of finding a mate.
Papageno has a brush with a potential mate but, unable to find her again, rapidly gives up hope and decides to commit suicide. However, at the last minute he remembers that he possesses a set of magic bells. He rings his magic bells, his mate appears, and they immediately declare their love for one another and decide to marry and have kids.
Of course, maybe I'm making too much out of this, but the image of a character throwing a tantrum over not having a girlfriend and then having one dropped into his lap when he rings a magic bell irresistibly reminded me of Chris.
What other fictional characters remind you of Chris?
Here's a clip from the 2006 film version of "The Magic Flute," with a libretto by Stephen Fry:
[youtube]7nzioN5rdf0[/youtube]
I've been studying Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" lately, and I'm struck by the similarities between Chris and Papageno, one of the opera's main characters, at least in terms of how they approach romance. (Papageno is gainfully employed as the evil queen's bird-catcher, so obviously the parallel doesn't extend in that direction.)
Papageno is obsessed with finding love; he fixates on it continuously, but in a shallow way. He seems to view relationships exclusively in terms of sex (this is euphemized, having been written in the 17th century, but it's still pretty clear) and marriage/having kids. Papageno seems to believe that his currently troubled life would be immediately transformed into heavenly bliss if only he could find a girlfriend. I also have to note that he doesn't look at his love quest in terms of improving or modifying himself in any way, despite the fact that his cowardice and general incompetence (being the wacky comic sidekick to the hero) would presumably cut down on his odds of finding a mate.
Papageno has a brush with a potential mate but, unable to find her again, rapidly gives up hope and decides to commit suicide. However, at the last minute he remembers that he possesses a set of magic bells. He rings his magic bells, his mate appears, and they immediately declare their love for one another and decide to marry and have kids.
Of course, maybe I'm making too much out of this, but the image of a character throwing a tantrum over not having a girlfriend and then having one dropped into his lap when he rings a magic bell irresistibly reminded me of Chris.
What other fictional characters remind you of Chris?
Here's a clip from the 2006 film version of "The Magic Flute," with a libretto by Stephen Fry:
[youtube]7nzioN5rdf0[/youtube]
