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Theological Visions of Community in Victorian Fantasy Literature

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Theological Visions of Community in Victorian Fantasy Literature Theological Visions of Community in Victorian Fantasy Literature by Christine Choi A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English University of Toronto © Copyright by Christine Choi, 2018 Theological Visions of Community in Victorian Fantasy Literature Christine Choi Doctor of Philosophy Department of English University of Toronto 2018 Abstract In this dissertation, I argue that George MacDonald’s, Charles Kingsley’s, and Christina Rossetti’s theological perspectives shape their aesthetic theories and practice of fantasy. More specifically, I demonstrate that their works of fantasy originate in their theological visions of community. These authors refashion wide-ranging fantastic source materials, creating new forms out of old, to represent their belief in the trans-historical, trans-cultural nature of Christian communion. In Chapter 1, I argue that MacDonald transforms Arthurian romance and fairy tales into parables of reformation that emphasize the need for continual spiritual reformation in each new generation. Individual and collective spiritual reformation are interrelated in these stories: the protagonists discover their identities to be branches of an old, collective story, thereby mirroring MacDonald’s vision of a sympathetic community of believers that simultaneously promotes unity and the independence of individual members. Continuing with the theme of promoting Christian unity through fantasy, Chapter 2 argues that Kingsley’s work as a fantasist is driven by ii his vision of a modern English Church that incorporates heroic aspects from non- Protestant cultures into the English Victorian Christian’s spiritual heritage. His use of the fairy tale as a catch-all genre that includes stories of Catholic saints and Greek heroes, makes him a precursor to mythopoeic fantasy, which syncretizes stories from different times and cultures. Rossetti’s fantasies are shaped by communal thinking of another sort: Chapter 3 argues that she uses the otherworldly landscapes of fairy tales and ghost stories to translate her eschatological vision of the earthly life as a time of preparation for heaven. She strategically uses different forms of fantasy to represent the experiences of earthly pilgrims, whom she depicts as heavenly citizens-in-waiting, looking forward to joining the harmonious community of saints in the afterlife. It was during the nineteenth century that the habits of adapting diverse fantastic source materials were definitively formed. By contending that it is because of—not in spite of—their religious perspectives that MacDonald, Kingsley, and Rossetti participated in these imaginative acts of adaptation, this project offers a corrective to histories of modern fantasy’s development that obscure the theological origins of Victorian fantasy. iii Acknowledgments I am thankful to have received funding from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council and the University of Toronto’s Department of English Doctoral Completion Award for this project. My heart is overflowing with gratitude as I reflect upon all the people who have helped me with this dissertation over the years. Firstly, I wish to thank my supervisors, Christine Bolus-Reichert and Mark Knight, for their support over the years. Christine, thank you for introducing me to the world of nineteenth-century romance. Mark, I am profoundly grateful to you for your mentorship, and for teaching me how to bring the religion and literature sides of my life together. I also wish to thank my external examiner, Krista Lysack, and the other members of my defense committee, Cannon Schmitt and Carol Percy, for providing me with such gracious and helpful feedback on my work. A special thanks goes to Marguerite Perry, Tanuja Persaud, and Sangeeta Panjwani of the Department of English: I could always count on you to light up my way and point me in the right direction, whatever questions I might have had. Countless individuals supported me through prayer over the years, especially members of my Young Nak family. But I wish to highlight three women whose intimate prayer support was especially indispensable for the completion of my thesis: Rachel Kim, Genie Kim, and Melanie East. Thank you for renewing my hope and strength in every dark valley, and for celebrating with me at every bit of good news. I am also truly grateful for those members of my graduate community who showed me that I was not alone. Jenny O’Kell (who “saved my thesis” multiple times), Elisa Tersigni, and Kai Hainer drew me into the Writing Boot Camp experience that proved to be a game- iv changer for me. Deirdre Baker, Joanna Krongold, and Katherine Magyarody of the Children’s Literature Reading Group, and Amy Coté and Kim Rodda of the Religion and Literature Reading Group gave me a real home in our Department. Abigail Dennis and Joel Rodgers re-entered my life at just the right time to help me with the final home stretch. I thank all of you for lightening my load along the way and for many soul- nourishing conversations. Most of all, I am so grateful to my beautiful family. I love you and appreciate you all very much. Umma, you are the spiritual mentor of my heart. Thank you for loving me unconditionally and for being present with me every step of the way throughout this journey. I feel overwhelmed when I think about all that you’ve done for me. Abba, thank you for teaching me the word “metaphor” and for buying me Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights when I was far too young to understand any of these things. Juns, you are the best brother in the world and wise beyond your years. Josie, thank you for being such a bright light to us. To the Lyeo clan, thank you for lovingly welcoming me into your family and for supporting me throughout this dissertation-writing process. Thank you for prayerfully and generously cheering me on. I especially want to thank my mother-in-law for constantly energizing me with her encouraging words and delicious food. And to my incomparable husband Bob: words are insufficient to express my thanks to you—knowing me, that’s saying enough, but I’ll say a bit more (as I always do). Simply, thank you for being you and for all that you do. You make me strong and you keep me safe. I love you so very much. v Table of Contents Acknowledgments ……………………………………………………………………….iv Table of Contents ………………………………………………………………………..vi Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………1 Chapter 1: George MacDonald’s Nonconformist Fantasy Aesthetics: Fantasy as Parables of Reformation ………………………………………………………………..23 Chapter 2: The English Church and Heroic Types in Charles Kingsley’s Mythopoeic Fairy Tales.………………………………………………………………..60 Chapter 3: Becoming Fellow Citizens: Christina Rossetti’s Eschatological Fantasies ………………………………………………………………………...……...103 Coda ……………………………………………………………………………………140 Notes ……………………………………………………………………………………147 Works Cited ……………………………………………………………………………160 vi Introduction In this dissertation, I argue that George MacDonald’s, Charles Kingsley’s, and Christina Rossetti’s theological perspectives shape their aesthetic theories and practice of fantasy. More specifically, I claim these authors’ works of fantasy do the work of mediating between past, present, and future Christian believers through theologically inspired visions of community. These authors refashion wide-ranging fantastic source materials, creating new forms out of old, to represent their belief in the trans-historical, trans-cultural nature of Christian communion. I focus specifically on Victorian genre fantasy, which is comprised of many different literary forms containing supernatural elements. Genre studies of Victorian fantasy literature face the challenge of defining a genre that is, like its cousin romance, “protean,” to borrow Ian Duncan’s term (10). In John Sutherland’s entry on “Fantasy” in his Longman Companion to Victorian Fiction , he notes, “Fantasy as a staple fictional commodity, for either juvenile or adult readers, first emerges in the Victorian period, although its origins can be traced back to the Romantic poets (notably Coleridge)” (220). He then goes on to list a wide range of representative texts, including the Grimms’ fairy tales, The Arabian Nights, Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales, Dickens’ Christmas Carol (which Sutherland describes as “fantastic”), gothic narratives, other “experiments in fantasy by major and minor British authors,” and proto-science fiction “as practised by H. G. Wells” (220). From our modern perspective, “fantasy” can serve as an umbrella term that encompasses works belonging to many sub-genres, and “Victorian fantasy” can potentially point in many different directions as a term that refers variously to the Victorians’ engagement with forms of romance, myths and other supernatural narratives 1 2 from different cultures, ghost stories, and the fairy tale. 1 Indeed, as I will discuss further below, I consider the nineteenth century to be a transitional period in the development of fantasy—an age in which the habits of adapting diverse fantastic source materials were definitively formed. While I find the umbrella term “Victorian fantasy” useful, I do not seek to delineate a sub-genre that can be labelled “Christian fantasy” in the larger body of Victorian fantasy. I focus instead on how the theological perspectives of faithful Christian authors shape their fantasy aesthetics. I define “fantasy aesthetics” as the artistic principles governing these authors’ practice of fantasy writing, and the formal strategies that emerge
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