Who is the real Beast?
Do you know Gaston, who appears as a notorious antagonist in Walt Disney’s film, is not present in the original Beauty and the Beast fairy tale? Surprisingly, he is a pure invention by Walt Disney Pictures. Nevertheless, he plays such an important role in the movie that most of us can’t imagine the Beauty and the Beast story without him. But I believe one of the most critical roles of Gaston is that he asks us a question of who the real beast is in the movie (or in our real life).
In the movie, Gaston is a handsome and good looking ex-soldier. He is braver and stronger than any other man in the town. Every maid in the town tries to attract and marry him. But Gaston has a strong desire to marry beautiful Bell. He believes that only Bell can make the best match for him. So, he does his best to court her as far as he knows.
Bell, however, is quite different from any other maid in the town. First, she is literate: she can read and write. She enjoys reading books and imagining the world outside her own town. In addition, she is quite practical in that she can use her knowledge to make some devices to ease her daily chores: in the movie, she devises an automatic washing system. In a word, she is the total difference itself from others in the town. She is considered to be odd. The only person who understands her is her father.
Needless to say, Bell doesn’t like Gaston. She rather hates such a sinewy but imprudent person. Soon, she happens to meet the Beast in order to save her father and falls in love with the Beast even though it is a beast. The way the Beast says and behaves betrays its appearance because the Beast has knowledge and generosity. When she reaches its inner self cloaked in an ugly appearance, she cannot help caring for the Beast.
On the other hand, Gaston, possessed with the drive to marry Bell, does not cloak his inner self in his strength, bravery, and good looking appearance. He seems to help Bell’s father to save Bell but later he intentionally deserts Bell’s father in the woods in order to fall prey to wolves. Even when Bell’s father manages to return to the town and accuse Gaston of his violent and barbaric behaviors, Gaston forces everyone into accepting Bell’s father is not sane. Then, he starts to hunt for and kill the Beast, whom Bell loves. In the final battle scene between the Beast and Gaston, Gaston shoots at the Beast even though the Beast gives up the chance to kill Gaston and let him go. In these ways, Gaston and the Beast reveal their inner selves.
Now, it can be a good time to ask again the same question that I mention in the introduction. Who is the real beast, one who has a human appearance but brutal animal nature, or the other who has an ugly appearance but a warm heart and a pretty decent knowledge? Who do you believe the real beast is in the movie?
Interestingly, the word “BEAST” has several meanings. According to DICTIONARY.COM, as a noun, it means “any nonhuman animal, especially a large, four-footed mammal.” Under this definition, the Beast is a Beast and Gaston is a human being. But the same word can refer to “the crude animal nature common to humans and the lower animals” as in “Hunger brought out the beast in him.” It also means “a cruel, coarse, filthy, or otherwise beastlike person.”
Now, it can be safe to say that Gaston is the Beast. He is the real Beast in human form. This conclusion implies that there might be another Gaston around us. So, be careful not to be attracted someone’s appearance because the one that you are falling in love with may be a beast in human form. Please don’t be fooled by someone’s appearance but try to penetrate it.
