Dragons and Modernity

In this engraving of The Temptation of St. Anthony, we see the dragon deploying his destructive force. On the contrary, the dragon can also symbolize modernity, its flames reminiscent of industrial furnaces, as in Tolkien's work. When it flies and spits fire, men can transform it into a contemporary weapon, bringing to mind aerial bombardments. At the beginning of Game of Thrones, dragons belong to an almost mythical past, but by the end of the series they have become a weapon of mass destruction. Such is the dragon’s eternal ambivalence!