We've seen a lot of examples of transformation from animal to human on film so far, most of which haven't come off very well in practice (they work better in imagination). It's interesting that the two animal metamorpheses we're looking at this week (if you count today's film as one of those) involved food in some fashion. The people were turned into gingerbread and the boy was chopped up into a stew and, as a bird, sat upon a Juniper tree, whose berries caused his birth in the first place. I don't know if there's anything to the food link; it's just something I noticed.
Most of the transformations we've seen have been into animals that aren't really desirable, in my opinion. They don't use lions or tigers or bears (oh my) - the boys are all turned into birds. But they're all incredibly wily in figuring out how to use their position for the best. They make the most of what they've been given.
In reference to the song, can I ask a semi obvious question: Why is that song so beautiful? Every person in the story comments on how beautiful his song is. I don't think that song is beautiful, so maybe they are all referring to his voice? Which would be perhaps saying something about how his voice (his agency) is pure and true, and how innocent children who have been abused by their bad mothers can be beautiful?
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I think you're right when you talk about the song representing the boy's innocence. He is telling the truth, albeit an ugly one of cannibalism and murder, and for that his song is beautiful. If we are to look at fairy tales as moral tales, then I see this as saying that one must tell the truth even when it is uncomfortable.
ReplyDeleteSimilarily, the only way for him to come back to being a human is to have his home life resolved, no matter what it takes. He murders the evil step-mother but there is no guilt on his soul. He did the right thing and that is what is truly important.