A tragic story that relies entirely on religious and metaphorical symbolism to represent deception and the fall of innocence. The protagonist, "Dennis," begins a mission to herd sheep for 3 months.
The farm owner warns him very clearly: "Do not trust anything except the sheep."
A stranger, "Todd," appears, courts Dennis, and makes him fall in love with him.
This love represents "succumbing to temptation" and neglecting duty.
Todd is not human and is not just a hunter; rather, he is the embodiment of the "wolf" or the Devil.
In the end, Todd preys upon or takes all the sheep that Dennis was responsible for protecting.
Dennis returns to discover the massacre and realizes too late that the person he loved and trusted is the very same monster that devoured his sheep. Then Todd (or his voice) appears to Dennis from the edge of the cliff and tempts him again, so Dennis ends his life and throws himself off the cliff to join him in the darkness.
Todd was not interested in love; his goal was to destroy Dennis's trust, steal the sheep, and most importantly: obtain Dennis's soul and cast him into darkness.
There is a hint in the story that the farm owner knows about the existence of this entity in the mountains, and that Dennis is not the first victim, but rather it is a cycle that repeats with every shepherd who fails the test and trusts strangers.
Meaning that the farm owner represents God; He is the one who sets the laws, grants humans "free will" to choose, and warns them of destruction, but He does not intervene to stop them when they decide to walk the wrong path.
I got some help summarizing this 😀
refugee from Bato 💀🚩
