Traditional Christians of both East and West are observing Great and Holy Friday today in remembrance of the sacrificial death of Jesus of Nazareth whom they revere as ‘Christ’ or Messiah. As one of those believers, I offer some thoughts I have had before and after, and, alas, even during the services of this past week along these lines. I have been startled by how much of the imagery of the books we discuss here resonate with the historical events and eternal verities we commemorate this weekend. If you are not a Christian, I doubt these musings below the jump will have any value to you; I will return to my more profane posts for all readers on Monday.
One Serious Reader’s Reflections on Holy Friday
April 22, 2011 by 12 Comments
Narnia Film Franchise Alive? ‘Magician’s Nephew’ on Deck
March 24, 2011 by 16 Comments
For those wondering if The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was the last Chronicles of Narnia book to be made into a film, the word today is that the film franchise is alive — and that the plan is to go with The Magician’s Nephew rather than The Silver Chair. [Read the story ‘New Narnia’ at fandango.com; H/T to Candice!]
Believe it or not, I rather like the idea of Nephew being chosen over Chair, though the latter is perhaps my favorite Narniad adventure (and a real shame it is that we don’t get to see more of Eustace Scrubb right away). As the fourth film, Nephew will be the center of the seven part series; this is a good thing because in several important ways it is the pivotal story in the collection.
It was the last book written, believe it or not, though Lewis began writing it almost immediately after The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was published and Nephew was published before Last Battle. In Nephew, I speculate, the author quite vividly reveals several important messages about his artistry and his meaning. Real quickly, the Wood Between the Worlds is a pointer to the “inside bigger than the outside,” the Logos beneath, behind, and within everything created, a theme Aslan’s creative song only reinforces. The magic rings are a transparency for the Ring Composition of each book. And the prize silver apple from the tree in the centre of the garden? The Rev. Michael Ward makes a good case for the astrological meaning of Nephew being venereal, but this light laden fruit is alchemical artistry.
Eighth Day Institute: Imagination and the Soul
February 1, 2011 by 11 Comments
I am just back from two days in Wichita, Kansas, where I gave two talks on ‘Imagination and the Soul,’ the Eighth Day Institute’s theme. I spoke about the Soul Triptychs, Literary Alchemy, and Ring Composition of the Hogwarts and Forks Sagas. The talks were recorded by Ancient Faith Radio, and, unbelievable to procrastinating me, both have already been posted with the lectures given by Fr. Josiah Trenham and Bryan Smith. The Potter talk was Whence Potter-Mania?: The Spiritual Content and Christian Message of the Hogwarts Saga and the Edward and Bella part Bedazzled at Twilight: What Bella and Edward Teach Us About God. If you want the Ring Composition slides I used for the Ring Composition part of the Hogwarts lecture, you can buy the book here.
Eighth Day Institute is an outgrowth of the unique and invaluable Eighth Day Books, which if you haven’t heard of it, you need to browse their web site, ask for a catalog (the only catalog in existence for which I think readers receive education and edification), and buy some books. In an age where even homogenized booksellers are struggling, Eighth Day Books is something of an icon of what Independent Book selling can be — ‘independent’ not only from corporate control but from the prevalent regime of conformity, consumerism, and conveyor belt complicity. Listen to Warren Farha’s talk Why Bother With Books? on AFR to learn more about this.
‘Story Time:’ Chronos and Kairos in Harry Potter
December 22, 2010 by 8 Comments
With this post, I welcome M. Brett Kendall of Muggle Matters and Fordham University to the Faculty of HogwartsProfessor.com. Longtime readers of this site and serious readers of Harry Potter know Professor Kendall as ‘Merlin’ and as the man who both predicted the central place Harry’s ‘Expelliarmus’ spell would play in Deathly Hallows as well as the chiasmus structure of the seven book series. This last is the foundation of all discussions of Ring Composition in the books and Prof. Kendall’s insight here reflects his background in Hebrew Bible studies and traditional literature. His opening post is a challenging piece on the understanding of time within the narrative of the Hogwarts Saga. I hope you will join me in welcoming Professor Kendall to the forward dais and faculty table here in the Great Hall.
Thank you, Professor Granger.
I have a joke that when I am not doing much and a friend asks what I am up to, I reply that I am busy committing “chrono-cide” … just killing time. “Chronos” is one of two Greek words for time. It means “clock time,” the simple material succession of events. The other Greek term for “time” is “kairos.” This is the term for “special time,” unique moments. In this post I will discuss narrative in Harry Potter (and in general) as an intersection, and special relation, between these two concepts of time. In short I will say that Harry Potter as “story time” is part of what attracts us so much to the works.
How does ‘Ring Composition’ Work, Anyway?
November 29, 2010 by 17 Comments
The big buzz among serious readers of Harry Potter at the end of 2010 is the revelation of Ms. Rowling’s use of traditional Ring artistry in putting together each of her books and the seven book series as well. The only thing in print on the subject so far are my Ring Composition lecture notes and, as hurried a production as that was, it succeeds in establishing the fact of Ms. Rowling’s circular wizardry — all the more apt given the assonance of her name with the word ‘rolling.’ After the fact, though, at least one reader was left wondering how such an arcane architecture for the world’s best selling books explains their popularity.
I downloaded and read your lecture notes about the ring structure of the seven books. They are convincing. This is clearly an intentional and foundational structure for the books.
My question is, “How does this particular structure increase the impact of the books for readers? How can it affect their experience of the books, especially since it is so subliminal for most people?”
What I mean is…
We connect characteristics and emotions with symbols. And we can identify with alchemical imagery through our own experiences of struggle and transformation.
But how does something as subtle as a ring structure influence a reader’s experience of a book?
Love to hear what you think.
Recent Conversation