#and also how Caleb is the opposite in rejecting his role and choosing his self. happiness. self fulfillment

[gaylos-lobos]

Belos is as much a role that he plays akin to what Philip was/is, but it’s a more authentic one. One he craved out for himself. Especially the public persona of Belos is a rejection of everything Philip is and stands for and in a bigger sense a rejection of the community that raised and shaped him, of the puritan ideals Philip was tailor cut to represent.

Belos is both a rejection and reclamation of his personhood. It’s the case of him being the witch, the witch hunter and curse all at once. Philip is as much a part of Belos as is Belos of Philip, one cannot exist without the other, but neither of them are real. However the mangled corpse of a monster is the melting point of these two roles. If he ever wants to truly and fully reclaim his personhood he needs to face himself, let the overabundance of piercing eyes fully look at himself and see both directly at his trauma and wrongdoings and beyond it. Stripping himself clean of everything after accepting it and look at the person that truly resides within.

Philip like Belos will however never choose this path. Because if he would, he would first have to acknowledge that his actions where wrong, and also that he was traumatized. If Belos has to accept the wrongness of his actions, Philip will have to acknowledge the trauma he suffered. This includes the façade that his live was before the isles. Which means also acknowledging that Belos is at least, a freer version of himself as he ever was and ever could have been if he stayed.