Epiphany
[Disclaimer: speculation and observation, a.k.a. just a theory]
Definition of epiphany:
1) a sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something
2) an intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually simple and striking
3) an illuminating discover, realiztion or disclosure -a revealing scene or moment
Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/epiphany
In the opening scene there are two Jins and everything is coloured grey. There are 6 Army bombs used as a light source, which I think symbolises the other 6 members. There is a separate 7th light which I believe represents Jin, however, unlike the 6 that are attached, this singular light is switched off. In this screenshot I circled two other light sources, the one above the mirror where one of the Jins is standing and prepping himself, and the standing lamp near the Jin that is sitting down. Notice that the standing light is switched off, while the mirror light is on. Also note the source of light coming from outside the room/house in the first shot.
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Special attention is also placed on the lilies. I'll come back to this. I once read a VC article in which he explained that clothes also represent multiple alters/personalities of MK ultra victims. The closet is filled with them, and Jin neatly selects one to put on. What's interesting is that despite there being an entire closet dedicated to the clothing, there's a single coat/gown thing hanging
outside of the closet, seperate from the others. I believe that this one represents Jin's core personality, his real self. Another interesting thing was that as the Jin that was seated gets ready, we see yet another version of himself sitting in the pool of natural light from outside, and his head drops just as the couch-Jin rises -as though each personality switches off or is reset after its served its purpose.
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Jin preps himself, like the previous one did (showing the repitition of switching alters), and leaves after switching the light off. It's also while he gets ready that the colour starts creeping back in, which I took as a sign that Mk Ultra victims are blank slates (grey) until their alters are triggered (clothes on, colour). The next scene is the rain one. Other people have already brought up the meaning of rain, so I won't go into detail about that. However, what I did find odd was that at the 2:00 min mark, lightning strikes and Jin leans his head back and lets the rain fall on his face. Rain is said to represent blessings, propserity, rebirth and the cycle of life. However, at 2:14, the rain is actually reversed.
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It appears to be drawn back up into the sky. The scene ends. Upon entering the room again, one of the first things he does is touch the side/back of his hand to his mouth. This is not the first time he does this in the video. Even while he does this, his face remains completely neutral throughout both scenes.
"The face is used more than any other part of the body to cover up lies. We use smiles, nods and winks in an attempt to cover up, but unfortunately for us, our body signals tell the truth and there is a lack of congruence between our body gestures and facial signals. A composed face, lacking expression, is the one that may be masking emotion. It's a technique known as a 'poker face'and is the easiest and most successful way of concealing what you'd rather not show. Narrowed eyes, a tense forehead and tightened jaw muscles are small, subtle signs that an emotion is being supressed."
Source: http://westsidetoastmasters.com/resources/book_of_body_language/chap7.html
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Might be a reach but I think that the wiping of the mouth could be an ode to the vow of silence. Or maybe another way of wiping off emotion from his face. Again, there are two Jins in this scene and one of them is sitting down. But something weird happens. The Jin who has just walked in goes to the window and is no longer on camera while the seated Jin gets up. He also moves toward the window, only the second Jin is gone and he is alone in the room. He looks out the window and closes the curtains -shutting out the only natural source of light in the room.
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If you look carefully at this scene, you'll see that Jin is standing in between the sort of orange-coloured light and a painting to his back that was also featuring an orange colour scheme on the far side of the room. I don't have a screenshot of that but you can see it at around the 3:05 min mark. His hair is also orange. Two possible meanings:
"Orange -these special protector alters are scouts who warn of
danger from internal or external threats. Alternatively, guard alters are heavily programmed for
obedience."
Source: http://educate-yourself.org/mc/illumformula11chap.shtml
Why would he shut the curtain?
Finally, one of the parts that bothers me the most is that in this final scene, you'd think that everything is being repeated just the same as it was the first time we see Jin leave. But it's not. This time, he seems to linger a bit and takes the book with him and both the standing and mirror lights are switched off. There is also no second Jin left in the room. Before, there was always one other Jin left in the room, as seen in shot 1 and 2. But by the time the video is over in shot 3, he's gone for real.
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Thanks to @Bae Yeon Hee for the translation which fits the now empty room:
"At the end of my journey to find myself, everything else is back in place. What I have to look for is a map of the soul that is the beginning and milestone of everything, but I can not find anyone that I am looking for from now on."
The last part of the video shows him "reunited" with the other 6, but they're more like ghosts than actually present with Jin. The background also shows the ocean, ironic since that was how Jin was theorised to die in another video, through drowning.
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About the lilies, they've obviously had a history throughout BTS's mvs. I wasn't sure whether or not the flowers in the mv were lilies or the other one whose name I'm too tired to remember to spell correctly right now, lol, but I'm pretty sure they are lilies in Epiphany.
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White flowes have had an interesting history throughout their concepts: from the INU mv in which JK burns the petals, as well as Suga standing in front of a painting of the white flowers as it burns, to V throwing 6 petals down while Jin lays on a bed of them.
White flowers in general represent purity and innocence, and they tend to be destroyed in several of their mvs. However, the lily specifically is linked with death and funerals.
@DarkAndWild pointed out that the date shown at the very beginning of the mv is the same date as Tae's grandfather's funeral. Again, Jin and Tae are linked through their loss, but also the reference to masks in Epiphany's lyrics (like the masks used in Tae's
Singularity). Finally, this is what I noticed. Compare Jin's hands holding the white flowers to Tae's bloody ones:
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Take that as you will.
(Finally, sorry if I rambled on a bit, I'm so tired so it might not all make sense lol.)
whyy?
