The Metamorphosis Assignment
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Nov 24, 2024
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The Metamorphosis Assignment
Since ancient times, the
motif,
or recurring idea, of a metamorphosis has appeared in stories, poems, novels, and plays. A
witch casts a spell on a prince, and he turns into a frog. A young girl who is an expert weaver claims that she is even better
than Athena, incurring the goddess's wrath. She is changed into a spider. More recently, a dozen superheroes' stories of
physical transformation--to something stronger but sometimes also stranger--have graced movie theater screens around the
world. Describe a story you've heard or read in which a metamorphosis takes place; the story can be from a myth, a poem, a
book, a song, or a movie. In your description, identify what, if any, traits of the "new" creature remain as evidence of the original
being. Also explain what the metamorphosis is supposed to represent in the context of the story and a broader sense.
Smeagol - Gollum
Character from The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien
Smeagol is one of the most important characters in the iconic saga written by J.R.R Tolkien,
The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Smeagol's story involves a series of changes not only
physically but also within his personality and essence as a being.
Smeagol was an ordinary hobbit, who lived a quiet life
with his cousin Deagol, with whom he enjoyed daily
outdoor activities. One day, while fishing, he saw at the
bottom of the lake a small and shiny ring, the One Ring,
which has the power to corrupt even the purest and
most innocent beings such as hobbits. Blinded by a
feeling
of
greed
he
had
never
experienced
before,
Smeagol kills Deagol who wanted to keep the precious
ring, which would eventually become "his precious".
This
moment
spiraled
into
the
beginning
of
a
change,
a
metamorphosis one could say, of this being, who was once a
normal one to quickly being consumed in every aspect of his life
by greed, paranoia, and deep loneliness, turning him into a
different and unrecognizable creature, turning him into Gollum,
a monstrous-looking, hermit-like creature who feels no empathy,
caring
or
reasoning,
this
creature
has
been
stripped
of
everything that once made him a "being of light", now falling
into darkness and doom.
Gollum
is
characterized
as
having
an
obvious
relationship with the ring, but also as having an
extremely complex and strange relationship with
his inner self, his past self, with Smeagol, who, in
perhaps unconscious ways, is still there. Both in
the
books
and in the movies you can see this
relationship in which Gollum talks to himself, as if
he were having a conversation with someone else,
being this someone else, himself, Smeagol, not only
these
conversations
but
also
small
lapses
of
lucidity, memories, and even actions show that there is still a bit of his inner self in the
creature.
This change is key to the story of the saga as it not only serves as a reflection of the
protagonist who has to fight against greed and the desire for the One Ring but also as a
representation of how even the purest can change, blinded by the dark, by power, by greed.
Smeagol is not the only character or creature that reflects this in the story. However, it could
be said that it is the most complex and in which is more reflected the internal conflict of the
struggle of the being against the creature.
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