The Butterfly and Christian Spirituality (2): The Holy Fool

In the September /October 2005 issue of Spirituality, Anton Karl Kozlovic explored a spiritually uplifting reading of Tom Shadyac's Patch Adams. However, the film is also amenable to a significant counter-reading because the butterfly can legitimately function as a dual symbol. In addition to a spiritually uplifting message, the butterfly can also signify futility, empty vanity and nothingness because of its short life span and transient beauty. In Christian art, butterflies are a symbolic reminder of transience, particularly the transitoriness of human life in addition to the concepts of imper­manence, ephemeralness, delicacy and fragility. Therefore, on an­other sub textual level within Patch Adams (1998, dir. Tom Shadyac), its butterfly symbolism resonated with the beautiful medical stu­dent Carin Fisher (Monica Potter). Her life was tragically cut short by the murderous, rogue mental patient, Lawrence 'Larry' Silver (Douglas Roberts). Therefore, she did not complete her educational chrysalis process (i.e., medical school) that would have allowed her to blossom into a fully-fledged doctor and spread her professional wings.