The Phantom of the Opera Lesson Plan

What does the prologue add to the narration? Does it render the story more believable, or less so?

The prologue, in which the author insists that his account of the Opera Ghost is true, renders the story more believable. In the prologue, the author inserts himself in the narrative, giving it the feel of a “true crime” story rather than a fictional mystery. The prologue makes it more difficult to discount the narration as merely a story since the author himself insists that it is true. In answering this question, it's important for students to try to put themselves in the position of readers from Leroux's time—that is to say, first-time readers would not have the benefit of...