Dark Messages & Opaque Plots

[Aberforth's Goat]

Amy quoted Tabouli quoting me,

> > > However, as a guy who who puts up with long hours
> > > and a low salary to work for a Christian church, I have trouble not
> > > resenting Pullman's wholesale condemnation of his religion.

You know, one of these days I'm *really* going to have to learn how to
write. Assuming I do, I'll also have to get around to the difference between
the third ("his" religion) and first ("my" religion) person singlular
possesive pronouns. So no, I wasn't accusing Pullman of religious masochism;
I was just being illiterate.

* * * * *

Tabouli wondered,

> Third, would Pullman's portrayal of Christianity
> bother you less if you *weren't* working for a
> pittance for a Christian church?  If, perhaps, you
> were a senior figure of a different religion?
> Hmmm...

I think it would - and the more closely Pullman could be associated with my
own religion (and paycheck), the more uncomfortable I would feel.

In fact, it comforts me to know that Pullman *isn't* a Christian. If he
were, and if he were writing popular, mainstream books that pilloried, say,
Confucians the way he pillories Christians, I would feel accutely
embarassed. Being irritated with a mildly deranged gadfly is more pleasant
than having to aplogize for it and is better for public relations, too.

Of course, if I were a Parsi priest, I might not care one way or the other.
I might feel that a careful reading of Zarathustra on topics like God, evil
and freedom would have been helpful for everyone involed - but since Parsis
generally avoid proselytization, I don't suppose I would write a letter to
the editor about it. (Sincerest apolgies to any Parsis here, if I've missed
the boat!)

BTW, there are, and always have been, Christians writing books that
constitute a theolgical (if not aesthetic) mirror image of Pullman's work. A
gentleman called Frank Perretti wrote a whole series back in the 80s (This
Present Darkness); Tim Lahay and Jerry Jenkins are still at it (in the Left
Behind series). The aesthetic, philosophical and moral qualities of their
work can be summed up rather quickly: drivel. (Those are books my children
will *not* be reading, btw.)

* * * * *

Tabouli also mentioned the Overdog / Underdog problem

I won't quote here, but it makes sense. I think it's coupled with an insider
/ outsider syndrome: Some people (not all) in some cultures (particularly
western, more or less emancipated ones, I think) find it much easier to
criticize things if they perceive themselves as party to the things they
criticize. Take the paragraph above: even if I disliked Pullman as much as
Perretti or Jenkins-LeHay (which I don't - I may not like the chip on his
shoulder, but he's still an artist), I still wouldn't call *his* book
drivel.

Or is this just a post-modern attempt at noblesse oblige?

* * * * *

Tabouli admitted to being puzzled

> that the new Adam
> and Eve *don't* succumb to the far more tempting
> temptation offered them at all, they behave like
> good children, do what they're told by a higher
> authority (Xaphania), and sacrifice their own self-
> interest to save the universe.  Which sits a little
> awkwardly with Pullman's overall message.

Err ... yeah.

Pullman seems to think Christians think the Fall was all about sex. A few
Christians *did* used to think that, but they're all dead now. The more
common Christian interpretation of the Fall is that Adam and Eve's decision
to eat the fruit of "the knowledge of good and evil" was an act of radical
self-assertion, a declaration of ultimate moral autonomy or "me-first-hood."

The interesting thing is that when the children in HDM decide to sacrifice
their love for the sake of an (intangible) benefit to the universe as a
whole, as dictated by Xaphania, they seem to be wrestling with a very
compatible question, posed in very similar terms. The only major difference
is that they make the "right" decision.

And somewhere in the background, we hear Aslan purring happily.

(BTW, I know that there are some weak links in that chain, but I'll let
someone else yank them loose!)

Baaaaaa!

Aberforth's Goat (a.k.a. Mike Gray)
_______________________

"Of course, I'm not entirely sure he can read, so that may
not have been bravery...."