The Translation of “El Laberinto del Fauno” to “Pan’s Labyrinth” and What Gets Lost on the Way
The story of rebellion is one that is not only prominent in American history but also in the popular culture that is prominent in our lives. Films Like Star Wars, Braveheart, and the Hunger Games Trilogy all exemplify rebellion. The Spanish Civil War is another story of rebellion and the result of a politically divided nation that occured around the same time as World War II. On one side were the Nationalists, led by Francisco Franco, they were on the facist side of the political spectrum and were a very militant group. The Republic of Spain was much more resembling a democracy and were in charge of the government. Pan’s Labyrinth, a film by Guillermo del Toro, is set following the end of the civil war in what is known as the Francoist age in Spanish history. The story follows two narratives: one of a little girl whose mother married a Spanish General and one about a group of guerilla fighters leading a rebellion against the Francoist government in their home. In both of these stories there is an overarching theme of independence against an authoritative figure who is limiting the freedoms of their lessers. As independence and, subsequently, individualism are two cornerstones of American philosophy, the film translated very well with American audiences and spanned the bridge between language and culture for two of the world’s most populous and influential nations.
The underlying theme of independence against a tyrant is understood across borders but the nature of each rebellion varies and alienates Americans slightly from the rest of the world.
The story of America’s Independence, although it has many parallels, is very very different from what Spaniards, along with anyone who has lived under a dictatorship, experienced. In Spain’s case, they already had a government and had been around for many years and, until Franco had overthrown the government, were a fairly independent country. In comparison to America, whose residents were frustrated by being ruled from across the ocean and not having much say in their taxes or legislation. The similarities are still plentiful, as The common enemy of both stories is a flawed government, more specifically one that is governed by a strict and harsh monarch/general.
Vidal, the main antagonist, is a high ranking official of a bygone era, one with no rights or free will for his subjects, who further fuelled American audiences with disdain for his character and ensured that his demise would bring them happiness. His attitude, especially concerning the life of his son, is representative of how dominant males are in this society. When confronted by the doctor about how he knows that his child will be a male, his response was “don’t fuck with me” (Pan’s Labyrith 15:40). This response, which has an arrogant tone to it which parallels Vidal’s final words in the film, “tell [my son] what time his father died” (1:48:00 Pan’s Labyrinth). This is a reference to a motif, Vidal’s watch, which was a gift to him from his father when he died and represents a family honored tradition passed on from father to son. He is denied, however, by Mercedes, a housekeeper and ally of the rebels; this denial of passing on this tradition shows how this society is being broken and the distant universe that Vidal recognizes as his own is no more. Vidal is further painted as a tyrannical maniac in the film when he encounters a farmer and his son; he treats them with hostility and dismisses whatever they tell him as he rummages through their belongings and, with no hesitations, beats the son to death and shoots the farmer(17:30 Pan’s Labyrinth). There are many more moments like this in the film where Vidal’s actions are way beyond anything rational and show the true malice of his nature. The last of these scenes is when he kills his step daughter, Ofelia, at the end of the film. This moment is symbolic of how he is trying to drown independence and free thought, as Ofelia is an innocent child trying to make sense out of a corrupt and evil world on her own.
Ofelia, and her individual approach towards independence, gave American audiences a character to rally behind. She is an only child, until her brother is born, and lives in a society that looks down upon her, especially with regard to her fantasy driven “imagination.” Ofelia is scolded for ruining her dress in the woods while completing one of her three trials by her mother, her step-father, and whatever other members of this hauter society were present (42:10 Pan’s Labyrinth). Later in the film, Ofelia uses a magical root to heal her mother, but when her parents find out they’re furious and balme these fantasies on the fiction she reads(1:22:00 Pan’s Labyrinth). The oppressive nature of her parents and the world she lives in forces her on a tough and lonely path which helps her grow in character and morality. Given that Americans take such pride in their independence, seeing an innocent, young girl be abused and silenced by an oppressive authoritarian is enough to make audiences proud of, and sympathetic to, her cause.
The rebels are the last remnants of the old Spanish republic, a government which had much more established freedom than the government during the Franco Era. Furthermore, they are a group of disorganized freedom fighters who are doing all that they can, sacrificing life and limb, so that generations to come do not endure the same struggle. They are low on supplies, dirty, and living in caves. These gritty fighters share a tremendous amount of character with the Sons of Liberty, an early anti-colonial militia who used social tactics to disrupt the rule of the colonies by the English tyrant King George III, amongst other groups of American patriots (History.com). The doctor, an ally to the rebels in the film, says “to obey, like that, for the sake of obeying, without question, only a man like you can do that” (1:24:00 Pan’s Labyrinth). These were his last words and a testament to what fascism and freedom represent. This quote shows how the government has stripped the people of their fundamental right to choose, and therefore are regarding them with an inhumane level of respect.
The irony, however, of America’s obsession with this film comes in a very ethnocentric form. As Americans, we believe that we are a beacon of hope, freedom, and democracy so when there is a story about rebellion, we sympathize with the rebels. This sympathy is wrongly apportioned as Americans should be sympathizing with the dictators. Spanning over many presidents and many decades, the American government has organized coups in their own self interest which leave the subjects of their intervention in disarray, much like the Francoist Era of Spain. Our naive attitude concerning foreign policy is an alienating factor that America faces on a global, partly because we don’t comprehend the repercussions of our actions and partly because we don’t have violent transitions of power in common with the rest of the world. At least not yet. The significance of this film breaking through to the American cultural bubble is that it shows how Americans process cultural exchange in a black and white fashion. America is always the good guys and everyone else is always the bad guy and they have to deal with it. Unfortunately, this is a terribly ethnocentric way to view the world and although it may allow for us to accept products from all over the world, the value gets lost in translation.
Kiger, Patrick J. “Who Were the Sons of Liberty?” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 19 Aug. 2019, www.history.com/news/sons-of-liberty-members-causes.
Toro, Guillermo del, et al. El Laberinto Del Fauno: Pan’s Labyrinth. [Madrid] : Burbank, CA: Telecinco, 2007. DVD.
