Perceptions of Jareth

[Bezzo]

We need a bit of life in this place so let's have a discussion. My question to you all is.....

What is your perception of Jareth? What kind of person do you think he is? Did he really love Sarah or was he just "living up to her expectations of him"?

I believe that he didn't love her. We all know that Toby wasn't the first child he has stolen so I'm guessing he's been doing it for a very long time. How do we know that he hasn't used the same lines on girls that came before Sarah?

I do think that he is lonely and I think that the air of desperation in the final confrontation was more to do with him losing someone he could actually have a conversation with, someone who was his equal rather than an an undying love.

Helen

[telegramsam]

I tend to hold to the school of thought that the shape and form of the Labyrinth is essentially a creation of Sarah's subconscious. Ergo, Jareth was whatever Sarah wanted him to be at the time (hence being so exhausted living up to her expectations, which tended to be rather contradictory and conflicting as she cannot quite decide if she wants to grow up or be a child - she can't decide if she wants Jareth to be an adult or a child either) while she was in the Labyrinth.

Not to say that he's not real, because in a sense he is real, I don't think the whole thing was "just a dream" either but the Underground is definitely shaped to reflect the mortal mind inhabiting it at any given time. And I think while Jareth and the other characters (Ludo, Hoggle, etc) have a certain amount of autonomy I think they're also all somewhat confined to acting within the framework of Sarah's personality. Basically they don't have true free will as long as a mortal is within the Labyrinth

Did he love her? Well yes and no, because, as she told Toby in the beginning of the film, "The king of the goblins had fallen in love with the girl" so he had to love her because that is what he was inside her imagination. He didn't choose to love her, she chose it for him. But I don't think Sarah herself really understood what she was asking for in the film so it's not fully realized and is a very incomplete and childish expression of love that Jareth reflects back at her.

I think Jareth, in the film, is basically a child himself, despite his appearance as a adult man, because Sarah is still mostly a child herself. His mannerisms are really more akin to that of a neglected kid wanting attention ("What do you think of my Labyrinth?") than an adult pursuing a serious relationship, except perhaps in the ballroom-in-a-bubble scene.

I do agree Jareth is a very lonely character. If he can only act as a mirror to the people who come into his Labyrinth, then he's basically a prisoner. What's really sad is that once the person leaves, he reverts back into a barn owl - He's not even a whole person when he's alone, but when someone enters the Labyrinth he can't be his true self either because they won't allow him. What a frustrating existence that would be, no wonder he wants Sarah to just stay behind and, for once, let him call the shots.

tl;dr - Jareth is a Sad Panda.

[Bezzo]

Aww, he his a kind of tragic character. I know David once described Jareth as having the title of Goblin King thrust upon him against his will. I think he definitely longs to have a life of his own.....and now I'm starting to think would this have been possible if Sarah had accepted his offer? Would it have freed him from his duties?

I guess we'll never know. Poor Jareth.

Helen

[telegramsam]

I don't know that it would have freed him from his duties as Goblin King, but it would have given him free will, albeit at the cost, possibly, of Sarah's (hence "love me, fear me, do as I say").

The whole thing's kind of like some perverse co-dependent relationship really. Maybe they just need couples therapy.

But yea, I kinda got the feeling in the film that Jareth was a character just trying to make the best of a situation he's wholly fed up with. He seemed very flippant and largely frustrated for the duration of the film. You could practically see "I DON'T REALLY WANT TO BE HERE" stamped on his face in more than a few scenes.

If nothing else, it's got to be a drag changing diapers and entertaining and feeding a crying baby for 13 hours. I'd be a bit peeved too.

(cos let's face it, none of those goblins around him were competent enough to be trusted with a goldfish, let alone taking care of an infant!)

[Bezzo]

LOL He definitely looks like he'd rather be raising some hell than be stuck with goblins and chickens!! ;D

Helen

[Sonata]

Sept 20, 2009 20:13:18 GMT telegramsam said:

But yea, I kinda got the feeling in the film that Jareth was a character just trying to make the best of a situation he's wholly fed up with. He seemed very flippant and largely frustrated for the duration of the film. You could practically see "I DON'T REALLY WANT TO BE HERE" stamped on his face in more than a few scenes.

This.

Isn't it amazing how a bit of good acting and a few mysterious lines can give a simple kid's movie enough depth that we're still wondering about it years later?

[Bezzo]

Absolutely!! I love the fact that Jareth's character is still quite mysterious even today, I think it's what makes him such an intriguing character.

Helen

[Seri]

Ah, Jareth. I love Jareth. I wrote a research paper for my mythology class about Jareth. My professor got a hoot out of the fact that I turned Labyrinth into Serious Business.

What we all need to realize is that Brian Froud, a scholar of celtic mythology and renowned fairy artist, had an enormous influence on the movie on all fronts: the script, the look, everything. If you're at all familiar with celtic folklore, then you know how dark the themes are because such is the nature of fairy folklore; it's not for kids. As such, the entire movie is watered down for the children. (Jim Hensen pretty much outright says this in the Makinig the Movie special, when he‘s talking about the battle in the goblin city.) Hoggle is not a dwarf, he is a red cap. Ludo isn't a friendly, goofy beast, he's the maze's minotaur. Diddymus, I've never been entirely sure of, since he doesn't fit into Fraud's world of celtic folklore, but I imagine he is more akin to a kitsune. And lastly, Jareth, the world's charming and dangerously sexy ruler, is a Sidhe. Labyrinth has a huge potential for badness, but they made it child-friendly.

There is a reason Jareth comes across as childish, petulant and selfish. There is a huge disconnect between humanity's moral base/social ideals and that of the fairies; in many of the legends surrounding the fair folk and mortals, there is some misunderstanding or insult to the Sidhe caused by blundering mortals who have no idea they've done anything wrong, or visa versa, where the Sidhe thought they were perfectly within their rights to take a baby or a steal a young woman and were outraged that the humans were going after them by digging up their raths (fairy forts/mounds). Humans and the fairy folk just inherently don't understand each other.

Jareth seems to behave like a child because, in the eyes of mortals, the fairies are selfish, temperamental, manipulative and mean-spirited. They tolerate not eve the slightest insult, their mood swings are literally things of legend, and they punish morals who transgress upon them with alarming cruelty. Of their positive traits, however, they are creatures of luxury and beauty who love bright colors, fine clothing and they are often seen entertaining themselves by singing or dancing. Unfortunately, their love for beauty also leads them to envy mortal babies, whose chubby softness is the complete opposite of the wrinkled, wizened appearance of a fairy child (which is what's left in the crib of the mortal parents, typically called a changeling), and young women, like Sarah, who are frequently carried off in the night to become fairy wives. It should also be noted that they are also notorious tricksters who will strike bargains and make bets with mortals and lead them through all manner of mind-twisting games -- except that where the fairy's pride is all they have to lose, mortals put their very lives and souls at risk from entering into a contest with a fairy. Despite the fantastic tales of old where the brave hero outsmarts the wicked Sidhe, it is well known that mortals rarely escape these games unscathed, if they escape at all.

Labyrinth contains all of the aspects of a classic fairy story. Sarah unwittingly makes a gift of Toby to a fairy king; in exchange for the child, because a fairy cannot accept a gift without giving a gift in return (there is no such thing as a gift in fairy society; there is only trade, and the things traded must be of equal value), he offers Sarah her dreams. Sarah refuses his gift, not realizing that this is an enormous insult to a Sidhe. To balance the scales (and exact revenge, I‘m sure), Jareth gives her an opportunity to win her brother back. What Sarah doesn't understand is that if she loses, she becomes Jareth‘s prize, because again, the prizes must be of equal value and the only thing she has to trade to match the value of her brother is herself. Sarah enters the realm of the fairy and makes it out with her brother and her health because she understands the deceit and trickery used by the fairy and uses it against the obstacles thrown in her way. Jareth didn’t count on her being so cunning and crafty and his lazy arrogance and confidence ultimately leads to his defeat. He attempts a game of seduction and temptation at the end but Sarah is wise to his trickery by then and once again refuses him. A fairy king whose gifts have been twice-refused and who was badly defeated at his own game would be absolutely brimming with rage; a fairy’s pride and ego is enormous and easily damaged and fairies hold grudges for eternity. This girl has made an immortal enemy. Makes for some good fic.

Jareth is my favorite character because he embodies everything a Sidhe king should: arrogance, a sense of entitlement, aloofness, pride, ego, beauty, elegance, mystery and sex. I would scream and run the other direction if I ever met him in real life, mind you, because I know what he’s about, but I can respect and adore him from a distance juuuust fine.

[Bezzo]

Wow, that's one heck of a post!!! I bow down to you!!

Helen

[Seri]

Hahaha what can I say, Labyrinth has turned me into a fairy folklore nerd.

[telegramsam]

That's an interesting take on it. I kind of figured he was one of the babies that the goblins had stolen at some point and then they made him their king. Either way is interesting though.

[Seri]

I thought you guys might get a kick out of this.

I just read something interesting in the comments of a beautiful DeviantArt entry (http://mimi-na.deviantart.com/art/As-the-World-Falls-Down-60097727) featuring Sarah.

Apparently Jim [Henson] was never happy with the fan response that Jareth and Sarah's relationship was romantic. It wasn't meant to be. Jareth was trying to seduce Sarah to stay in her comfy little bubble of childhood fantasy. He was the villain and the message of the movie is knowing when it's time to grow up and put away childish things like the Goblin King.

Tsk, tsk. Jim, if you didn't want people to go all gooey and romanticize (and ultimately sexualize) the relationship between Sarah and Jareth, you shouldn't have chosen an actor who radiates sex appeal like a prowling tomcat. It was over the day you chose David Bowie and his Area.

[telegramsam]

Oct 8, 2009 10:10:54 GMT Seri said:

Tsk, tsk. Jim, if you didn't want people to go all gooey and romanticize (and ultimately sexualize) the relationship between Sarah and Jareth, you shouldn't have chosen an actor who radiates sex appeal like a prowling tomcat. It was over the day you chose David Bowie and his Area.

EXACTLY!

LOL, he completely underestimated the gravitational pull of The Area. I mean, c'mon, did they really think they could put David Bowie in tights that, well, tight and not have anyone notice?

Though in truth I question the veracity of that quote. If you watch the documentary on the anniversary DVD it's stated that Bowie's casting, and his revealing wardrobe, were both done very deliberately, even though they got some flack for it. Jareth was very much intentionally alluring. Yes, the movie is about growing up, and learning to deal with one's own sexuality (and, hopefully, not allowing it to completely dominate your behavior) is part of maturity, but Jareth was clearly never meant to be a typical villian.

So I think that "apparently" is not so apparent, and unless that deviantart quote can be sourced back to a particular interview, I'd take it with a grain of salt..

[Seri]

Well, the person I quoted is loosely involved with the Labyrinth manga (and I say loosely because he/she is apparently doing some promotional artwork for the manga but is not one of the main artists) so he/she MIGHT know something about it. It would probably be more like shop-talk and rumors after so many years have passed though.

That opinion could have also come after the movie had been out for a while and Jim realized what a monster he had created. ;D

[Bezzo]

I'm probably one of the few that doesn't feel the whole Jareth/Sarah thing. Never have done.

Helen