The Metaliterary Complex

“We must begin to understand the nature of intertextuality, the manner by which texts, poems, and novels respond to other texts. After all, all cats may be black at night, but not to other cats.” (Henry Louis Gates)

It has been said that no story is original, that every narrative has its roots in another work. Whether that work be The Bible or another piece of literature, there will always be an essence or relation to other compositions that can be found in each and every “original” piece. This concept is referred to as metaliterature or intertextuality, which refers to one piece of literature referencing another, usually older, piece of literature. The interrelationship between the two works allows the newer piece to either play off the older work in the form of a remake or satire. In the case of Jean Cocteau’s The Infernal Machine and Raymond Queneau’s The Flight of Icarus, both tune in to their original versions, Oedipus Rex and The Story of Icarus, respectively, and are different retellings of the same story. While The Infernal Machine provides a different twist and outlook to the unfortunate account of Oedipus’ life, The Flight of Icarus includes a rather comic representation of Icarus’ tale. In regards to the comic retelling of Icarus’ story, it is crucial to understand how a work’s comic treatment of previous literature plays into intertextuality and how it affects both of the works mentioned above. Therefore, in order to understand how intertextuality has influenced both these works, it is important to address how the relationship between metaliterature and comic treatment is evident in The Infernal Machine and The Flight of Icarus as well as comprehend how myth plays into childlike desires and its relation between the two works and how it has been changed between the new versions and the original. While metaliterature / intertextuality is an aspect that can essentially be seen everywhere, it is interesting to discern how both works engage with the concept.

It is surprising that centuries later, Sophocles’ story of Oedipus would still be so engrained in literary history. Its prominence gives reasoning as to why French playwright Jean Cocteau would reimagine the story in an entirely different era. With The Infernal Machine, Cocteau takes the essence of Oedipus Rex, however the differences are present more so in the characters rather than specific events. For example, in Oedipus Rex, Oedipus is more temperamental than his recreation in The Infernal Machine. In Cocteau’s version, the prodigal son behaves like an overconfident teenager and believes that there is no danger in his way. While in Sophocles’ narration, Oedipus’ temper was virulent in that he would threaten to kill anyone who opposed him, this retelling portrays Oedipus as pompous. He counter argues Tiresias and states, “I have killed the Sphinx, freed the city, and I am claiming what you promised. Tell me this: why have the gods thrust me forward till I have reached this room in this palace if my marriage displeases them?” (Cocteau 65). As evident, Cocteau has used the Sophocles version of Oedipus to create a more venerable character so that the revelation of the prophecy at the end would be more drastic. In addition to this, Cocteau altering Oedipus’ behavior would result in more childlike feelings towards Jocasta, whereas before, both were considered equals in mannerisms and attitudes. That being said, Cocteau has also added elements of comedy in his version which were not present in the original work. These instances include the relationship between Jocasta and Oedipus which is more of a satire on Freud’s complex theory rather than what it was meant to be initially. Since Freud conceived the Oedipus Complex centuries after Sophocles wrote his drama, Cocteau was able to play upon the theory and implement it in his version. The relationship takes on that of a “mamma’s boy” rather than Oedipus being the husband. His naïve playfulness adds comedic flairs to the entire affair. Another example of comic treatment in The Infernal Machine is during the interaction between Oedipus and the Sphinx. Unlike originally where Oedipus kills the truly violent Sphinx in order to become esteemed in the eyes of the citizens of Thebes, Cocteau includes a comedic twist to the victory wherein the Sphinx simply tells Oedipus the secrets he needs in order to become the king of Thebes. Even the characteristics of the Sphinx are induced with comedy in that she is portrayed as a young girl that is bored and becomes infatuated with Oedipus. Through these instances, it can be evident which parts Cocteau has relied upon Sophocles’ original story and which parts he has stretched to make it his own rendition. While this is one Greek play that has been given a French retelling, many Greek myths have also been used intertextually.

Raymond Queneau’s The Flight of Icarus takes on the Grecian myth of Icarus and his ignorance towards his father’s direction of flying not too far or close to the sun. While Queneau keeps the main character of Icarus in his version and even stays true to his ignorance of most things, he includes multiple instances of comedic treatment that were not present in the original myth. For example, Icarus is the protagonist of a story written by a man named Hubert who oddly flies off the pages Hubert has written and personifies into a real human. Icarus goes around town and tries new experiences and is being chased by a detective to get him back into the story. His thirst for freedom is still as evident as in the initial story as Icarus declares, “I am in fact happy; I’ve been rescued from my originator and I’m as free as the air” (Queneau 41). Him flying of Hubert’s pages can be comparable to that of Icarus escaping Crete. While the concept of metaliterature is not as prominent in this work as it is in The Internal Machine, however, Queneau makes use of Icarus’ personality and integrates into his version and provides a comedic take on the otherwise somber story. Thus, the effects of intertextuality can be seen through the evolution of both the story of Oedipus and Icarus and portrays how both myths have been given a new meaning years later with the addition of childlike desires and fantasies.

While Cocteau enhances Oedipus with more teenage qualities such as wittiness, arrogance, and overconfidence, it allows the play to incorporate Freud’s notions of childhood desires and opens the floor for Cocteau to include the concept of the Oedipus Complex which Sophocles was not able to do in his play. Freud’s theory of child desires can be seen in the relationship between Oedipus and Jocasta more so in The Infernal Machine than can be seen in Oedipus Rex. Their relationship in Cocteau’s version is more like parent and child as opposed to Sophocles version which displays their relationship as mature equals. Oedipus’ childlike qualities allows for him to want the love of Jocasta even more than before and causes him to be more vulnerable than prior. While the ending of both versions are essentially the same, the changes evolve the myth to a more dramatic character arch throughout. While Cocteau has added this childlike nature to Oedipus, Queneau has been able to use Icarus’ naiveté to create this new journey for him. Icarus’ childlike nature can be seen through his desire for freedom and new experiences in The Flight of Icarus which is similar to how Icarus yearned to fly away from Crete in the original myth. With this, Queneau was able to update the myth by providing a whole new setting and adventure for Icarus while staying in touch with the essence and moral of the myth.

While both The Infernal Machine and The Flight of Icarus update their respective original stories by using intertextual elements and adding comedic treatment to many of the situations. Jean Cocteau retells the story of Oedipus by altering the behaviors and personalities of the characters and therefore leading to different actions. On the other hand, Raymond Queneau uses Icarus’ personality to concoct a new story that can still be noted to have aspects of the original myth. With these two works, it is evident that metaliterature is a heavily used literary tactic even if both works are centuries apart. That being said, it would be interesting to see which modern story would receive the same treatment years later.