The Bangtan Theory: Prologue Analysis

All the boys of BTS, at one point, were alive. However Jin dies and ends up sharing all these past memories he has of them from before through these music videos. Eventually they all die because they are unable to move on. BTS portrays death as an event that shouldn’t keep you from living. By showing the effects of depression on youth and allusions to other pieces of literature or forms of art, including greek mythology and the band Nirvana, they show love is not over at death.

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Prologue

Please watch their video.

Disclaimer: This is a story line created by BigHit Entertainment and is completely made up for the sake of other's enjoyment.

BTS met in High School but they all have troubled pasts. Jimin got lost in the woods when he was younger, JHope was abandoned by his mother at a theme park and left him with a snickers bar, V's father was an abusive alcoholic, RM lived in poverty, Jin's father controlled his every move, and Suga's house was burned down with his mother inside. This information can be found in the notes that BTS releases in their albums and photo shoots.

The prologue shows the memories that the boys share or made while they were all alive. This is where Jin’s life flashes before his eyes.

In the beginning of the prologue, the song that starts playing is Clair De Lune. V, one out of seven members of BTS, is alone covered in blood after “killing” his father. Clair De Lune means moonlight in English. One of the stanzas that sticks out from the poem is the second one. It says, “Sad beneath their fantastic disguises. / They all sing in a minor key / About triumphant love and fortunate life, / They do not seem to believe in their fortune / And their song blends with the light of the moon” The poem talks about how people, which in this case I will refer to the boys of BTS, deep inside are sad but they are masking that sadness with their smiles while they are all together. They sing about how successful in their love life and fortunate but they don’t think their life is really that great. This is mostly because of the fact that their big brother Jin is dead. Therefore their songs blend in the sad, soft moonlight with their hidden meaning of missing Jin.

V is seen pouring water over himself, which represents him repenting or cleansing himself.

Later in the prologue, V calls Jin and says, “Hyung [a term of endearment for Brother], I miss you” while crying. This part of the prologue where V is alone in the corner is constantly a symbol of people who are depressed lost in their immense thoughts of giving up. It is important to note that this is after he kills his abusive dad but it is only a dream he has. In the novel Demian, written by Hermann Hesse, there is an important quote that connects to this scene. The quote is, "A recurring nightmare was that Kromer always maltreated me, spit and knelt on me and, what was worse, led me to commit the most horrible crimes... The worst of these dreams, from which I awoke half mad, had to do with a murderous assault on my father.."

In Demian, two characters (Kromer and Sinclair) are tangled together because Sinclair stole apples. He is tormented by Kromer but meets a different and mature boy named Max Demian. A slightly older, but amazingly mature boy, Max Demian, soon enters Sinclair's school. Demian literally means to tame in Greek. In Greek Mythology daemons are creatures that act as advisers and help you make decision. He approaches Sinclair one day after class and presents him with an inventive interpretation of the story of Cain and Abel. This interpretation challenges the Christian belief Sinclair learned and the new idea excites him. Eventually, Demian convinces Kromer to stop tormenting Sinclair and he is freed. After he is shown this new freedom, Sinclair abandons Demian and attempts to become a more of a model child. In this case, Max could represent RM and Sinclair is V.

Nearly all of these points are presented by the boys of BTS and their characters in the videos.

The prologue jumps into a scene where V is alone on a mattress in an empty and abandoned pool, holding a polaroid image of him and his mother before crumpling it up.

The prologue jumps into a scene where V is alone on a mattress in an empty and abandoned pool, holding a polaroid image of him and his mother before crumpling it up. V crumpling it up is his anger at his childhood. He is mad at how his life turned out, much like how Sinclair didn't like his life while he was being tormented by Kromer. All the boys except Jin are coming from the woods to find V. RM, one of the rappers of BTS, is seen with a Nirvana T-shirt. All people know the story behind the lead singer of Nirvana and his suicide. Many other people know that Kurt Cobain was depressed, shot himself and had a drug addiction. Kurt Cobain also spent a lot of time homeless, which the boys seem to portray through the setting of abandoned places and clothing choice. Another thing that the boys have shown in the video is V and RM spray painting and vandalizing property together, which Cobain himself admitted to being arrested for in the past in his hometown. This is only one theory. There is another theory that the boys are trying to portray them together as their Nirvana, as the final stage of enlightenment, as the place they are supposed to be. The boys proceed to spend the day together and spend it like little kids on the play ground. Jin documents everything which sticks out like he is trying to document everything so that he won't lose it and will remember it forever.

Jin is found in the background by Jungkook, another singer in BTS, and they all play around that day. Jin is found trying to document every little action that takes place amongst the boys from sleeping to just taking selfies. The words, “We can smile if we are together,” pop up across the screen. The whole time they are playing together and having the time of their lives. Which is, most likely, why the album(s) are called The Most Beautiful Moment in Life. This is his Nirvana.

In the second part of the prologue, RM writes, “You have to survive” which can represent him trying to bring the member out of their sadness masked by fake smiles and encouraging to go through life. The boys are together around a fire still celebrating.

However, when Jungkook joins Suga (also a rapper of BTS) it is shown that Suga is in a mind of his own and seems depressed. Many fans have the theory that he knows that life like this doesn’t last forever; you’re not young forever. Jin is seen holding an empty, white polaroid, which he says “Should we go here?” which is him referring to Paradise. He is basically saying, “Should we go to heaven together?” or “Shouldn’t we die together?” in this context. This is a representation of the fact that Jin is depressed but love his members. Jhope and V are the only ones who agree but Jimin and RM are hesitant, which goes back to the “We have to Survive” quote that RM wrote on the window. They want to survive but don’t say anything and sometimes silence speaks a thousand words.

Further into the prologue the boys go to the beach. In the background for most of the video their song Butterfly plays. The lyrics say not to say anything but just to smile. This represents Jungkook, who is singing it, not wanting to think about the negative thoughts clouding up everyone’s mind. They end up going to this gas station and RM is seen with a lollipop in his mouth. Lollipops are a constant motif in the MVs of BTS and the first thing one can think about when it comes to lollipops are childhood. Children are constantly yearning for these types of sweets and it goes with the image that the boys are young and just living their best life while they have it. This is only the first of many introductions of lollipops.

When they are at the gas station, RM takes a picture of Jin and Suga. This is one instance of showing that they love to be together and love to record these instances of being young because they want to stay in this moment forever.

Back at the beach, Jungkook is seen with Suga and it is evident that their bond is close because of the way that Suga holds him and the way that Jungkook looks at him. They go and wake up the rest of the boys. The end of the prologue shows V jumping off a platform and Jin notices this before anyone else. Many people theorize V does this because he is tired of all the struggle he faced and he wants to get out of this world.

The song Butterfly is heard again. “Don’t think of anything, Don’t say anything. Just give me a smile” is stated once again. The boys, or at least Jungkook, keep mentioning that they want to stay in the moment which is important in understanding the mindset of these individuals. They love being together. They love being with their friends and they love each other. Just like almost all people, they recognize their youth as their spring.

After the credits, Jin is holding the photo he took with Suga and Suga isn’t in it anymore. It means that Suga is not in the same state as him. He is dead now.