| Title: | Arcana Caelestia |
| Notice: | Directory listings are in topic 2 |
| Moderator: | NETRIX::thomas |
| Created: | Thu Dec 08 1983 |
| Last Modified: | Thu Jun 05 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 1300 |
| Total number of notes: | 18728 |
As George MacDonald's name has been raised, it is worth
mentioning that C.S. Lewis considered MacDonald to be
his "master" when it came to writing fantasy. MacDonald's
book "Phantastes" was said to have a profound affect upon
Lewis. I am not sure that I would give MacDonald's stories
to children however (at least very young ones) there is
a certain air of the macabre about most of them.
Lilith was an interesting book. (Name comes from Hebrew mythology
where Lilith was Adam's first wife) It demonstrates his variance
with orthodox theology of the time however, regarding the devil
and salvation. Certainly MaCdonald is worth looking at as an
example of early works of fantasy.
Andrew.
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 599.1 | AKOV11::BOYAJIAN | Spring forward, fall over | Wed Mar 30 1988 02:14 | 18 | |
re:.0
It should be noted that according to at least one source,
MacDonald was denounced as a heretic by his church (Scottish
Congregationalist) for his unorthodox views. He only became
a writer of fantasy in order to promote his beliefs because
he was unable to become a clergyman. Nevertheless, his
religious views not only had an influence on Lewis, but on
the other "Inklings", Charles Williams and J.R.R. Tolkien,
as well.
As for giving MacDonald to children, well, PHANTASTES, LILITH,
EVENOR, and others are generally acknowledged to have been
written for adults, but his three best-known works are all
considered to be children's classics: AT THE BACK OF THE NORTH
WIND, THE PRINCESS AND THE GOBLIN, and THE PRINCESS AND CURDIE.
--- jerry
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| 599.2 | ARCANA::CONNELLY | Hill of dreams | Wed Mar 30 1988 23:04 | 7 | |
MacDonald was a devout (if highly idiosyncratic) Christian, but even a pagan would be compelled to name him as one of the strongest forces for the Good in the last several hundred years: in terms of the depth of his moral insight, the creativity of his writing, the example of his own life, and the impact he has had on other writers. | |||||