Here's my interpretation. As a young man, the artist, as the bully, killed a boy (the snowball fight) and covered it up. As he grew, he became an artist, not interested anymore in fighting (the artist ignoring the battle outside), a consequence probably of his conscience. He became involved with a woman (the statue, the card player) who knew nothing of his past. This, I think, is so deep and meaningful, that we never know the history of the person we are with unless they choose to share it. The artist is so filled with self-loathing that he commits suicide. This explains the revolver, and even the firing squad. The mirror, the reflection of ourselves, draws the artist into his own mind where he has trouble escaping. While there, he views many escapes for himself, including death, opium, flying away (a fantasy).
The mouth on the hand seems to me much more symbolic of narcissistic behavior. It is masturbatory. This concept is fortified such various elements as the artist being half-dressed, showing off, and even the hermaphroditic scene. The artist lives in a world of self-love but it cannot bury the past, the killing of the boy, which haunts him.
I do not know if Cocteau drew on his own experience here, or if this was anecdotal to his life, or even if it was imagination.
Anyway, just some food for thought!
The mouth on the hand seems to me much more symbolic of narcissistic behavior. It is masturbatory. This concept is fortified such various elements as the artist being half-dressed, showing off, and even the hermaphroditic scene. The artist lives in a world of self-love but it cannot bury the past, the killing of the boy, which haunts him.
I do not know if Cocteau drew on his own experience here, or if this was anecdotal to his life, or even if it was imagination.
Anyway, just some food for thought!