And I am okay with that! Just as I can interpret Lewis's books without considering Aslan an analogue of Jesus, other people can interpret any portrayal of Aslan that I write as if he is Jesus, whether that's what I was thinking as I wrote or not. It would be hypocritical of me to suggest otherwise. *grin* I just can't write with that interpretation held in my mind.
I guess it boils down to the fact that an Aslan written in fanfic should, in theory, be written as a character with attributes almost identical to Christ's, but that you, as an author, don't have to write Aslan with Christ in mind, just the attributes. That makes sense.
And I think that lack of strict one-to-one correlation is what allows the books to be read as if there is no correlation at all. The parallels are there if you approach the books from a certain point of view, but they vanish or twist if your initial point of view is different.
Valid point, and I think Lewis would agree. Tolkien would certainly agree, as he was none too fond of strict allegory.
I do wonder, actually, if the 'variant' characterization of Aslan in LWW might be one reason Lewis eventually said the books should be read in internal chronological order. Because if your first impression of Aslan is from LWW, you're much more likely to miss the Christian underpinnings than if you first meet him creating a world and a garden that has a Tree of Life. *grin* (I still think publication order is best, regardless of what that does to people's view of the religious subtext in the series, because LWW stands alone much better than MN, and is much more likely to lure people into reading further.)
Though I usually cringe at any mention of reading the series in chronological order first (I'm a member of the 2456317 club) you may have a point. I'm also under the impression that Lewis intended to go back and rewrite the earlier books with the later books in mind, but died before he could, which might have led to a different characterization of Aslan in LWW.
And while Pullman is in some ways more technically skilled than Lewis (there are fewer holes in his world-building and his characters are more rounded), he's much less successful at subordinating his ideology to his story.
That's what I understand, from what I've heard. It sounds like he just ran off the road with it at the end. And I truly dislike it when people have such a narrow focus of institutions and history. Yes, the church did bad things. Guess what, it's made of people and people do bad things. As my pastor says, a church is a hospital for the sick, not a museum of saints. But the church has also done a whole lot of good over the years, too.
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Re: on theology, ethics, and authorial intent, part 3
Date: 2009-05-12 04:54 am (UTC)I guess it boils down to the fact that an Aslan written in fanfic should, in theory, be written as a character with attributes almost identical to Christ's, but that you, as an author, don't have to write Aslan with Christ in mind, just the attributes. That makes sense.
And I think that lack of strict one-to-one correlation is what allows the books to be read as if there is no correlation at all. The parallels are there if you approach the books from a certain point of view, but they vanish or twist if your initial point of view is different.
Valid point, and I think Lewis would agree. Tolkien would certainly agree, as he was none too fond of strict allegory.
I do wonder, actually, if the 'variant' characterization of Aslan in LWW might be one reason Lewis eventually said the books should be read in internal chronological order. Because if your first impression of Aslan is from LWW, you're much more likely to miss the Christian underpinnings than if you first meet him creating a world and a garden that has a Tree of Life. *grin* (I still think publication order is best, regardless of what that does to people's view of the religious subtext in the series, because LWW stands alone much better than MN, and is much more likely to lure people into reading further.)
Though I usually cringe at any mention of reading the series in chronological order first (I'm a member of the 2456317 club) you may have a point. I'm also under the impression that Lewis intended to go back and rewrite the earlier books with the later books in mind, but died before he could, which might have led to a different characterization of Aslan in LWW.
And while Pullman is in some ways more technically skilled than Lewis (there are fewer holes in his world-building and his characters are more rounded), he's much less successful at subordinating his ideology to his story.
That's what I understand, from what I've heard. It sounds like he just ran off the road with it at the end. And I truly dislike it when people have such a narrow focus of institutions and history. Yes, the church did bad things. Guess what, it's made of people and people do bad things. As my pastor says, a church is a hospital for the sick, not a museum of saints. But the church has also done a whole lot of good over the years, too.