End of Book 1: Northern Lights. I really struggled to enjoy this book the way I have in the past.
I cannot deny that it is well written but it puts value on things like deception, and places these concepts in a dangerous light for the mind of a child. It weaves adult experiences, ideas, and themes subtly into the narrative and from it into the mind of the target audience. At my current age I can read the intentions of the author. His primary philosophy being to encourage and esteem maturity. Equating maturity with wisdom. A synonymity which does not hold up to much scrutiny. In the words of someone young can be found wisdom which the battle hardened heart of maturity must relearn; or did not know. This philosophy mostly surfaces in his treatment of the church.
Some of Philip Pullman’s grievances with the church I can understand and agree with. The church’s history is long, complex and in many instances dark. Yet, he mischaracterises the aims of the church multiple times and twists quotations from the Bible to fit his world and the point he wishes to make. It is boldly uncharitable and his argument loses much of its strength due to the mischaracterised caricature of the church it is founded upon. I find it hard to feel as though it isn’t purposefully designed to force the reader, the young audience to grow up and to look disdainfully at Christianity.
I believe in the freedom of ideas and in the liberty to be a free-thinker. However, the problem I take is not with his ideas primarily; but with the direct intention of presenting them to an audience who is not yet developed enough to understand what they are reading, and comprehend the subtly with which it is done. It prevents them from being able to form their own opinions rather than being unwittingly influenced by the text. This is the third time I have read Northern Lights in my life and only the first I have truly been able to discern the full extent of the ideas at play. This for me at least tarnishes the experience.
There is a great story here which the themes pull me away from enjoying. It may be a fictional world but we are supposed to be able to generalise to the Christianity of the real world. If Pullman wishes to make a point against it, the least he could do is represent it accurately.
This seems like a lot of negativity I know. But it is far from all bad. Lyra as a character is an exemplar of resilience. Pan often is the telltale sign of her fear yet it is remarkable how she carries on, and the deftness with which this interplay between dæmon and person is told is brilliant. The way she is contrasted against her parents only hammers this home all the more. Marisa has Lyra’s strength but her better nature is stifled by her self-hatred. This is presented with tact, with nuance, and ultimately with compassion. We see this through the broken relationship between herself and her dæmon and her acceptance of Asriel’s cruel treatment of her.
Asriel on the other hand is motivated completely by rebellion. He cares little for morality altogether. His characterisation is best explained by his dæmon. Stelmaria is a snow leopard: most at home in a harsh environment, willing to wield their strength to achieve their aims, and ultimately ambivalent if not disdainful to the feelings of others. Lyra has this same burning will to power, but has not closed herself off from compassion. She is the best of both her parents despite possessing some of their flaws. It is excellent character work made possible by the concept of dæmons.
I cannot think of another example where animal companions work in a similar manner or as well. They give us unparalleled insight into the true nature, hidden agendas and feelings of the characters. It is a masterful way to bring the reader into the interiority of the characters without using multiple perspectives of writing in the third person. It is pieces like his character work and Pullman’s imaginative storytelling that keep me returning to Lyra’s ‘worlds’.
I still love the characters and many of the story beats. I just cannot engage with it with the same ease I once did. The level of care and compassion with which he creates his characters is too often absent from the point he is trying to make about Christianity and about maturity. I cannot help but think of Prometheus giving fire to humanity without warning them first of the destruction it can unleash.
End of Book 1: Northern Lights. I really struggled to enjoy this book the way I have in the past.
I cannot deny that it is well written but it puts value on things like deception, and places these concepts in a dangerous light for the mind of a child. It weaves adult experiences, ideas, and themes subtly into the narrative and from it into the mind of the target audience. At my current age I can read the intentions of the author. His primary philosophy being to encourage and esteem maturity. Equating maturity with wisdom. A synonymity which does not hold up to much scrutiny. In the words of someone young can be found wisdom which the battle hardened heart of maturity must relearn; or did not know. This philosophy mostly surfaces in his treatment of the church.
Some of Philip Pullman’s grievances with the church I can understand and agree with. The church’s history is long, complex and in many instances dark. Yet, he mischaracterises the aims of the church multiple times and twists quotations from the Bible to fit his world and the point he wishes to make. It is boldly uncharitable and his argument loses much of its strength due to the mischaracterised caricature of the church it is founded upon. I find it hard to feel as though it isn’t purposefully designed to force the reader, the young audience to grow up and to look disdainfully at Christianity.
I believe in the freedom of ideas and in the liberty to be a free-thinker. However, the problem I take is not with his ideas primarily; but with the direct intention of presenting them to an audience who is not yet developed enough to understand what they are reading, and comprehend the subtly with which it is done. It prevents them from being able to form their own opinions rather than being unwittingly influenced by the text. This is the third time I have read Northern Lights in my life and only the first I have truly been able to discern the full extent of the ideas at play. This for me at least tarnishes the experience.
There is a great story here which the themes pull me away from enjoying. It may be a fictional world but we are supposed to be able to generalise to the Christianity of the real world. If Pullman wishes to make a point against it, the least he could do is represent it accurately.
This seems like a lot of negativity I know. But it is far from all bad. Lyra as a character is an exemplar of resilience. Pan often is the telltale sign of her fear yet it is remarkable how she carries on, and the deftness with which this interplay between dæmon and person is told is brilliant. The way she is contrasted against her parents only hammers this home all the more. Marisa has Lyra’s strength but her better nature is stifled by her self-hatred. This is presented with tact, with nuance, and ultimately with compassion. We see this through the broken relationship between herself and her dæmon and her acceptance of Asriel’s cruel treatment of her.
Asriel on the other hand is motivated completely by rebellion. He cares little for morality altogether. His characterisation is best explained by his dæmon. Stelmaria is a snow leopard: most at home in a harsh environment, willing to wield their strength to achieve their aims, and ultimately ambivalent if not disdainful to the feelings of others. Lyra has this same burning will to power, but has not closed herself off from compassion. She is the best of both her parents despite possessing some of their flaws. It is excellent character work made possible by the concept of dæmons.
I cannot think of another example where animal companions work in a similar manner or as well. They give us unparalleled insight into the true nature, hidden agendas and feelings of the characters. It is a masterful way to bring the reader into the interiority of the characters without using multiple perspectives of writing in the third person. It is pieces like his character work and Pullman’s imaginative storytelling that keep me returning to Lyra’s ‘worlds’.
I still love the characters and many of the story beats. I just cannot engage with it with the same ease I once did. The level of care and compassion with which he creates his characters is too often absent from the point he is trying to make about Christianity and about maturity. I cannot help but think of Prometheus giving fire to humanity without warning them first of the destruction it can unleash.