Éire Literature

The metaphorical meaning behind spiderwebs has been explored in literature for thousands of years, dating back to the 6th century BCE, when it was often used in Greek philosophy to convey fragility and political discourse. Spiderwebs or cobwebs can be seen as intricate, fragile, yet dangerous and trapping at the same time. Spiders place bait to catch their prey, leading them to their demise. They are also similar to snowflakes; the designs have radical symmetry and no two webs are the same. They are beautiful yet eerie in their purpose. We don’t often see hunting as something that is breathtaking. We wince every time we see gazelles being torn apart by lions on nature channels. Why is it that spiders get away from this conception? 

The new ‘Chainsaw Man’ movie that recently aired this month briefly touches on this concept. The film is supposed to mess with our preconceived notions of fear and beauty. One of the most influential moments of the film is when the two main characters are teaching each other how to swim. While we watch this seemingly sweet and innocent action, we are clearly able to see the progression of a spider spinning its web. As the moment becomes more sinister and we feel a sense of dread as onlookers, we see a moth caught in the web, covered in drops of water above the pool. Once the scene ends, the spider is seen devouring the moth tangled in the web. This represents the ending of their childhood or innocence. They are both swimming without clothes on, but the scene is depicted in such a light and hopeful manner that it seems completely natural and childlike. The story depicts exactly this progression. 

The story deeply explores the loss of innocence and how the characters seem much older than they are. We never realize this fact as watchers until they return to a school-like setting, and we realize that normal kids their age should be in classrooms. While the film explores innocence, it also carefully suggests that this is the product of raising children as weapons and state-directed violence. Although watchers are heavily targeted towards the main character, by the end of the film, we can see the battle between good and evil and the manipulation of both young characters. They were both used as assets by two different sides and never got to experience a real childhood. They never had a chance at real life. The spiderweb is the perfect analogy for what both characters experience. The web is the system that controls them, and the spider is the character who consumes the other, leaving them both with nothing.