DOCSLIB.ORG

The Portrayal of the Main Female Characters in Philip Pullman's His

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Portrayal of the Main Female Characters in Philip Pullman's His The Portrayal of the Main Female Characters in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Trilogy Fanny Sundman ENGK01 Degree essay in English Literature Spring semester 2013 Centre for Languages and Literature Lund University Supervisor: Birgitta Berglund Sundman Abstract This thesis, based on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, analyses, from a gender perspective, the depiction of the two main female characters, the main protagonist Lyra and her mother Marisa Coulter, by contemplating their developments throughout the story and by comparing them to the depiction and development of their male counterparts: the second protagonist Will, and Lyra's father Lord Asriel. By examining how they relate to stereotypes and traditional gender roles; how femininity and masculinity are applied to the characters; how power is attributed differently depending on gender and by demonstrating how Lyra and Marisa both undergo radical transformations during the course of the plot, inhabiting conventional female roles, I argue that the novels support notions of innate inequality between men and women, from a feminist viewpoint, on the level of character portrayal. Sundman Contents Introduction..............................................................................................................1 The mother and the patriarchy..................................................................................2 Lyra and Will and the new Genesis..........................................................................9 Conclusion...............................................................................................................16 Works Cited.............................................................................................................18 Sundman Introduction Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, a fantasy trilogy consisting of Northern Lights (1995), The Subtle Knife (1997) and The Amber Spyglass (2000) (abbreviated into references as NL, SK and AS), tells a story about a war between science and religion, which takes place across several parallel worlds; a war in which all of human consciousness as well as free will is at stake. The trilogy partially alludes to John Milton’s Paradise Lost, inventing a modern version of Genesis: the story of Eve and Adam committing Original Sin in the Garden of Eden – but instead of condemning this “Fall of Man” the trilogy celebrates mankind’s “fall” into knowledge and consciousness. In the story, the Church is trying to reset the innocence of man by trying to eliminate consciousness altogether (consciousness takes physical form here as a newly discovered type of particle, named “Dust”), whilst their opponents, depicted as the righteous forces, counter their attempts by endeavouring to destroy the very core of Christianity, through killing the Authority himself, i.e. God. The protagonist is Lyra Belacqua, a young girl who is prophesied to play a great part in this war by taking the role of the second Eve and so again “fall into temptation” and thus hinder Dust from draining out from existence. Despite being symbolically presented as the not-yet-seduced Eve, Lyra is not the vision of an innocent little girl; instead she is vigorous, headstrong and disobedient. Thus, Pullman adopts one of our most ancient myths, that of Eve, representing woman, causing humanity to fall into sin, and inverts it, making a new Eve the very saviour of humanity. From a feminist viewpoint it would be close at hand to argue that this is a tale which brings redemption to womankind in rewriting this legend to women’s advantage, and in doing so using not only a strong heroine, but a number of strong female characters, as Robin Anne Reid mentions in her book: “The worlds of Pullman’s imagination are populated by scores of strong, dynamic female characters [...] Pullman’s characters transcend traditional gender roles” (248). The purpose of this essay is to critically analyse whether or not Pullman has really succeeded in creating characters that “transcend traditional gender roles” and if the story is as feminist as it may appear. In applying a gender analysis on this trilogy my main intention is to reveal underlying messages concerning masculinity and femininity. This essay departs from the feminist notion that femininity and masculinity are cultural constructions, as Mary Evans mentions in her book on gender and social theory: “we construct our gendered selves 1 Sundman through ‘performativity’ – the ‘performance’ of socially established expectations of the masculine or the feminine” (57). Feminism is as much about looking at how masculine ideals affect men as it is about how feminine ideals affect women and in my analysis I will look at the portrayal of men as well as women. However, I will mostly examine the male characters for comparison-purposes as my main focus will be on the female characters. I will focus my analysis on the female protagonist, Lyra, and her mother, Marisa Coulter, who besides Lyra is the most prominent female character, and like her daughter, she also changes considerably through the tale. My main focus will be on Lyra and Marisa, and during the analysis I will compare them to their male counterparts: Will, who is Lyra’s symbolical Adam and the trilogy's second protagonist, and Lord Asriel, who is Marisa’s former lover and Lyra’s father. I will argue that both Lyra and Marisa undergo a softening process through the trilogy, starting out in unconventional female roles, but ending up in more traditional ones. Regarding Marisa, the main issues addressed will be how female sexuality is depicted and related to the gaining of power, how her role as a powerful woman contrasts to powerful male characters, Lord Asriel in particular, and how her personality changes as her latent maternal feelings come to surface. Thereafter, I will consider the meaning of the inversed Genesis narrative and contemplate Lyra’s maturity process, looking at how she adapts herself to Will, and argue that both Lyra and Will assume more conservative gender identities in the end. The mother and the patriarchy Power and motherhood are two central themes in His Dark Materials. In Marisa Coulter, we find the two concepts combined with femininity, making her the perfect candidate for a feminist analysis. Although the first description of Lyra’s mother announces her as seemingly “angelic” as well as “sweet and kind” (NL 42), we soon learn that this is just a deceitful appearance concealing her cold and ruthless nature. She is the perfect charlatan, because “[w]ho could doubt someone so charming, so well- connected, se sweet and reasonable?” (NL 317). She is the ego-centric beautiful femme- fatale and callous career woman, whose thirst for power seems endless. Facing the 2 Sundman hardships of gaining power in a patriarchal society, she both hides behind and uses her femininity in order to get power. The men do not have to try as hard to gain power. The word “powerful” is frequently used to describe several of the main male characters, and most notably Lyra’s father, Lord Asriel. When we are first introduced to Asriel, we find that he is “a tall man with powerful shoulders, a fierce dark face, and eyes that [seem] to flash and glitter with savage laughter. It [is] a face to be dominated by, or to fight: never a face to patronise or pity” (NL 17). He is presented with straightforward and exceedingly masculine characteristics, which he keeps throughout the story. He is depicted as strong, brave and utterly consumed by his ideological mission: destroying, what is illustrated as, the ancient dictatorship of God, in order to create the “Republic of Heaven” – which, though never really thoroughly explained, indicates democracy and freedom. A rebelling angel tells Mrs Coulter: if Asriel does not succeed in “destroying the tyranny at last”, then “we shall all be destroyed, and cruelty will reign for ever” (AS 822). Though Asriel is the leader of all those representing the good side, he is hard and pitiless, as he does not let anything stand in his way when it comes to reaching his goal – not the life of Lyra’s best friend Roger, whom he kills for the good cause, and, as it turns out, not even his own life. It is, Claire Squires points out, uncertain “whether Asriel is in fact a force for good or for evil” (60). His power seems infinite and innate, which is described, for example, when he is imprisoned by armoured bears1, who “had never met anything quite like Lord Asriel’s own haughty and imperious nature. He dominated even Iofur [the bear king]” (NL 307). Even to the witches his power seems supernatural, as one of the witches expresses in awe after witnessing Asriel’s massive fortress and war supplies: I think he must have been preparing for this for a long time, for aeons. He was preparing this before we were born, sisters, even though he is so much younger... But how can that be? I don’t know. I can’t understand. I think he commands time, he makes it run fast or slow according to his will. (SK 580). There are four other male characters in the trilogy, which, like Asriel, are described as “powerful” by the omniscient narrator (NL 101; SK 452, 614; AS 982) and their 1 Bears wearing armor, who, like people talk, and have their own society. 3 Sundman powerfulness is thus presented as a natural fact, rather than someone’s subjective opinion. Although Marisa Coulter is a female character that is also described as powerful, it seems that her power is not a natural trait, like it appears to be with the male characters; instead her power comes as a result of her eagerness to have it, which Lord Asriel tells his daughter: ...your mother’s always been ambitious for power. At first she tried to get it the normal way, through marriage, but that didn’t work... So she had to turn to the Church. Naturally she couldn’t take the route a man could have taken – priesthood and so on – it had to be unorthodox; she had to set up her own order, her own channels of influence and work through that.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Subversive Female Mentors in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials
    This is the published version of the bachelor thesis: Baró González, Jana; Martín Alegre, Sara, dir. "Witch-oil" : subversive female mentors in Philip Pullman’s ’His Dark Materials’. 2015. 29 pag. (801 Grau en Estudis Anglesos) This version is available at https://ddd.uab.cat/record/137417 under the terms of the license “Witch-oil”: Subversive Female Mentors in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials TFG Estudis Anglesos Supervisor: Dr Sara Martín Alegre Jana Baró González June 2015 Table of Contents I. Introduction 3 II. His Dark Materials as Children’s Fantasy 4 III. Deceiving the Authority: Marisa Coulter as a Subversive Mother 8 IV. The Wicked Hag and the Joyful Goddess: Serafina Pekkala as a Contemporary Witch 15 V. Serafina Pekkala and Mrs. Coulter as Lyra’s Contrasting Mentors 22 VI. Conclusions 25 VII. Bibliography 27 Abstract Philip Pullman’s fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials follows Lyra Belacqua’s journey across different worlds, where she meets a series of adult figures who act as her guides and mentors – and also as tormentors and pursuers. This paper will focus on two of the women who teach and nurture Lyra: Serafina Pekkala, a witch, but a benign figure; and Marisa Coulter, an intelligent, glamorous woman who turns out to be her mother, and one of the main villains. In my view – from a Gender Studies perspective –, Serafina and Coulter offer positive examples of the representation of women in fantasy literature, which their role as mentors for the protagonist, with all their differences, prove. Their memorable personalities go beyond stereotypes, and they are characters with agency and believable motives.
    [Show full text]
  • Mcsporran, Cathy (2007) Letting the Winter In: Myth Revision and the Winter Solstice in Fantasy Fiction
    McSporran, Cathy (2007) Letting the winter in: myth revision and the winter solstice in fantasy fiction. PhD thesis http://theses.gla.ac.uk/5812/ Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] Letting the Winter In: Myth Revision and the Winter Solstice in Fantasy Fiction Cathy McSporran Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English Literature, University of Glasgow Submitted October 2007 @ Cathy McSporran 2007 Abstract Letting the Winter In: Myth-Revision and the Winter Solstice in Fantasy Fiction This is a Creative Writing thesis, which incorporates both critical writing and my own novel, Cold City. The thesis explores 'myth-revision' in selected works of Fantasy fiction. Myth- revision is defined as the retelling of traditional legends, folk-tales and other familiar stories in such as way as to change the story's implied ideology. (For example, Angela Carter's 'The Company of Wolves' revises 'Red Riding Hood' into a feminist tale of female sexuality and empowerment.) Myth-revision, the thesis argues, has become a significant trend in Fantasy fiction in the last three decades, and is notable in the works of Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman and Philip Pullman.
    [Show full text]
  • The Exploration of Will's Maturation Through Intersubjectivity in Philip
    DOI: 10.7816/idil-06-35-03 idil, 2017, Cilt 6, Sayı 35, Volume 6, Issue 35 THE EXPLORATION OF WILL’S MATURATION THROUGH INTERSUBJECTIVITY IN PHILIP PULLMAN’S HIS DARK MATERIALS TRILOGY1 Gözde ERSOY2 ABSTRACT This paper, through focusing on Philip Pullman’s The Subtle Knife (1997) and The Amber Spyglass (2000) from His Dark Materials trilogy, analyses the maturation process of young co-protagonist Will, who in the beginning is introduced to the readers as a boy carrying the world on his shoulders. It showcases his gradual coming of age through the effect of his actions with others, and whilst doing this social thinker Jürgen Habermas’s interpretation of the intersubjectivity theory helps to trace the changes in him. Moreover, the article briefly discusses the way in which intersubjectivity differs from Bakhtinian interpretation of multi-voiced narratives. Therefore, concepts such as mutual understanding and self-reflection are shown to affect the process of maturation in quest style young adult narratives. In the meantime, the whole discussion is backed up with a framework belonging to the doyen of fantasy literature critic John Clute, whose “full fantasy Story” (1997; 2011) model with its gradual four phases, is incorporated into the analysis. Keywords: Intersubjectivity, Growth and Maturation, Philip Pullman, Full- fantasy Story, Jürgen Habermas. 1 This article has partly been produced from the author’s Ph.D. thesis, for which she was awarded the degree in 2016 from Brunel University London, entitled: “Trajectories, Theresholds, Transformations: Coming of Age in Classic Modern Fantasy Fiction.” 2 Research Assistant Dr. Gözde ERSOY, Süleyman Demirel University (Isparta / Turkey), Faculty of Arts and Letters, Department of Western Languages and Literatures, contact e-mail: gozdeersoy(at)sdu.edu.tr 1915 www.idildergisi.com Ersoy, G.
    [Show full text]
  • Being Alone: Experiences of Isolation in the Imaginary Worlds of “His Dark Materials”
    Being Alone: Experiences of Isolation in the Imaginary Worlds of “His Dark Materials” Graham Law Waseda University Abstract: Because of its apparently unlimited freedom both to play with material settings and to explore the human consequences, fantasy fiction seems an appropriate context in which to consider the relationship between being alone and feeling alone. In other words, to consider the extent to which isolation as a psychological experience is shaped by isolation in the physical sense. To be published in: “Literary Geographies in Isolation,” Literary Geographies 6:2 (Dec. 2020) https://www.literarygeographies.net/index.php/LitGeogs Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy * at the narrative level, a series of novels founded on the idea of a multiplicity of parallel worlds (like the 'Narnia' Chronicles of the Christian apologist C.S. Lewis, of which it is in many respects a deconstruction) * at the philosophical level a Blakean critique of the dichotomization of body and soul typical in the Christian tradition * at the psychological level a sustained analysis of the experience of sexual maturation The characteristics of social interaction ... 1) ... within the virtual classroom * using a laptop camera at home occasionally brings alien beings into view or even into the conversation = house-mates, family members, domestic animals, 2) ... throughout the imaginary worlds of Pullman’s fantasy novels * preoccupied with the physiological and psychological complexities of the state of being ‘alone’ = in adjectival form, attributed to a human or humanized agent, and with the various senses of unaccompanied, single-handed, or solitary (OED A.1.a-c), = this term occurs in this sense more than 50 times in the course of a narrative not far short of 400,000 words.
    [Show full text]
  • Extract from Chapter Ten of La Belle Sauvage Eleven-Year-Old Malcolm
    Extract from chapter ten of La Belle Sauvage Eleven-year-old Malcolm lives with his parents at the Trout Inn near Oxford, across the river Thames from Godstow Priory, where the nuns are looking after a special guest. One night his father comes to Malcolm’s bedroom. Now read on: “Malcolm, you en’t in bed yet—good. Come downstairs for a minute. There’s a gentleman wants a word with you.” “Who is it?” said Malcolm eagerly, jumping up and following his father out. “Keep your voice down. He’ll tell you who he is if he wants to.” “Where is he?” “In the Terrace Room. Take him a glass of Tokay.” “What’s that?” “Hungarian wine. Come on, hurry up. Mind your manners and tell the truth.” “I always do,” said Malcolm automatically. “News to me,” said his father. But he ruffled Malcolm’s hair before they entered the bar. The gentleman waiting gave him a start, though all he was doing was sitting still by the cold fireplace. Perhaps it was his dæmon, a beautiful silvery spotted leopard, or perhaps it was his dark, saturnine expression; in any event, Malcolm felt daunted, and very young and small. His dæmon, Asta, became a moth. “Good evening, sir,” he said. “Your Tokay what you ordered. Would you like me to make up the fire? It’s ever so cold in here.” “Is your name Malcolm?” The man’s voice was harsh and deep. “Yes, sir. Malcolm Polstead.” “I’m a friend of Dr. Relf,” said the man. “My name is Asriel.” “Oh.
    [Show full text]
  • The Subtle Knife Is the Second Part of the Trilogy That Began with the Golden Compass
    The Subtle Knife is the second part of the trilogy that began with The Golden Compass. That first book was set in a world like ours, but different. This book begins in our own world. * * * * * In The Subtle Knife, readers are introduced to Will Parry, a young boy living in modern- day Oxford, England. Will is only twelve years old, but he bears the responsibilities of an adult. Following the disappearance of his explorer-father, John Parry, during an expedition in the North, Will became parent, provider and protector to his frail, confused mother. And it's in protecting her that he becomes a murderer, too: he accidentally kills a man who breaks into their home to steal valuable letters written by John Parry. After placing his mother in the care of a kind friend, Will takes those letters and sets off to discover the truth about his father. Will does indeed make an astonishing discovery, but it's not about his father. Along a busy road, he happens upon an extraordinary window in the air. Almost invisible to the eye, it opens into an entirely different world. Anxious to remain hidden, Will ventures through this window into the shimmering, haunted city of Cittàgazze, where he meets Lyra Belacqua and her dæmon, Pantalaimon, who have also wandered into Cittàgazze from yet another world while searching for the answers behind Dust. Aside from Will and his new companions, this city is eerie, empty and silent. The people have fled to the hills to escape the Specters, phantom-like beings that feed on the consciousness of grown-ups, leaving them zombie-like and void forever after.
    [Show full text]
  • Satanic Characters in Philip Pullman's Trilogy, His Dark Materials
    1 Dreadful Monsters or Self-sacrificing Parents? Satanic Characters in Philip Pullman’s Trilogy, His Dark Materials Zsuzsanna Tóth * University of Szeged, Hungary Abstract Within a close transtextual inheritance of John Milton’s Paradise Lost (1667) and William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1790-1793) starring Satan, Philip Pullman’s contemporary fantasy trilogy, His Dark Materials (1995-2000), retells the Judeo-Christian myth of the Fall of Man in order to criticize the grand narrative of Christianity. From the theoretical position of myth criticism, the paper proves that on the one hand, in Pullman’s mythopoesis the symbolic role of Satan is divided into two characters, a man called Lord Asriel and a woman called Mrs Marisa Coulter. On the other hand, their about-turn cannot be considered a real character development even though both the public and private purposes of Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter diametrically change at the end of Pullman’s story. Keywords: character-development, fantasy literature, myth-criticism, Satan 1. Introduction: On the Devil’s Party Satan as the embodiment of antagonism has been a recurring character in Judeo-Christian literature. Since the era of Romanticism, he has been interpreted as a tragic, heroic figure (Pál and Újvári, 2001: 364), also as one of the embodiments of man’s intellectual freedom (405). The most prominent examples are John Milton’s Paradise Lost (1667), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust (1808; 1832) and Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita (1966). The list continues with a British author of children’s and adolescents’ fiction, namely Philip Pullman (1946- ) who retells the Judeo-Christian myth of the Fall of Man in his post-modern fantasy trilogy, entitled His Dark Materials .
    [Show full text]
  • The Subtle Knife Ebook, Epub
    THE SUBTLE KNIFE PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Philip Pullman | 368 pages | 03 Oct 2013 | Scholastic | 9781407139760 | English | London, United Kingdom The Subtle Knife PDF Book They break in and soon reach the tower where they find a roughed-up elderly man bound and gagged. Frequently Bought Together. John tells Will that the subtle knife is the most powerful weapon in the world, that it is the only weapon that can destroy God, and that Will must find Lord Asriel and force the ultimate confrontation between good and evil. In stock online Available in stores. This content is imported from YouTube. Popular pages: His Dark Materials. The season will pick up exactly where season 1 ends: like, hours after. Internet Explorer. Immediate Media Company Limited publishers of radiotimes. On set, the threads and portals or windows were real, created with wire by the VFX team to allow the actors to more easily interact with them. Chrome On the Control button top right of browser , select Settings from dropdown. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Anything more than that will just be spoiler territory. Meanwhile, the witch Serafina Pekkala is searching for her clan, when she comes across Mrs. The narrators really bring the story to life. Rate Product. Now, for the first time ever, Lois H. Edition Horoscopes. And something to run it down. Sign me up! Back to top. He returns to camp only to find the witches are gone, two angels have arrived, and the only sign left of Lyra is her alethiometer. Did he spoil his own return? She kills John and then herself, and Will is left bereft.
    [Show full text]
  • His Dark Materials" and Tolkien’S "The Lord of the Rings"
    University of Dayton eCommons Joyce Durham Essay Contest in Women's and Gender Studies Women's and Gender Studies Program 2009 Medieval Romance and British Romanticism: Gender Constructions in Pullman’s "His Dark Materials" and Tolkien’s "The Lord of the Rings" Emily Elizabeth Howson University of Dayton Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.udayton.edu/wgs_essay Part of the Women's Studies Commons eCommons Citation Howson, Emily Elizabeth, "Medieval Romance and British Romanticism: Gender Constructions in Pullman’s "His Dark Materials" and Tolkien’s "The Lord of the Rings"" (2009). Joyce Durham Essay Contest in Women's and Gender Studies. 3. https://ecommons.udayton.edu/wgs_essay/3 This Essay is brought to you for free and open access by the Women's and Gender Studies Program at eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Joyce Durham Essay Contest in Women's and Gender Studies by an authorized administrator of eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Medieval Romance and British Romanticism: Gender Constructions in Pullman's His Dark Materials and Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings by Emily Elizabeth Howson Winner 2009 Joyce Durham Essay Contest in Women's and Gender Studies Medieval Romance and British Romanticism: Gender Constructions in Pullman's His Dark Materials and Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings In a 1999 interview, Philip Pullman, author of His Dark Materials, replied to a question about gender, saying, "Eve is the equal of Adam and shares in whatever it is that happens" (Pullman, Parsons par. 30). J.R.R Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings expressed a different attitude toward male and female.
    [Show full text]
  • <I>His Dark Materials</I>
    Volume 24 Number 2 Article 1 10-15-2004 His Dark Materials: A Look into Pullman's Interpretation of Milton's Paradise Lost Karen D. Robinson Texas A&M University and Purdue University, IN Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.swosu.edu/mythlore Part of the Children's and Young Adult Literature Commons Recommended Citation Robinson, Karen D. (2004) "His Dark Materials: A Look into Pullman's Interpretation of Milton's Paradise Lost," Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature: Vol. 24 : No. 2 , Article 1. Available at: https://dc.swosu.edu/mythlore/vol24/iss2/1 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Mythopoeic Society at SWOSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature by an authorized editor of SWOSU Digital Commons. An ADA compliant document is available upon request. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To join the Mythopoeic Society go to: http://www.mythsoc.org/join.htm Mythcon 51: A VIRTUAL “HALFLING” MYTHCON July 31 - August 1, 2021 (Saturday and Sunday) http://www.mythsoc.org/mythcon/mythcon-51.htm Mythcon 52: The Mythic, the Fantastic, and the Alien Albuquerque, New Mexico; July 29 - August 1, 2022 http://www.mythsoc.org/mythcon/mythcon-52.htm Abstract Explores ideas of duality and other concepts from Milton’s Paradise Lost that influenced Pullman’s Dark Materials trilogy. Additional Keywords Milton, John. Paradise Lost; Pullman, Philip.
    [Show full text]
  • Lyra Belacqua in His Dark Materials
    REWRITING THE FALL: LYRA BELACQUA IN HIS DARK MATERIALS REWRITING THE FALL: LYRA BELACQUA’S RESISTANCE TO ADULT IDEOLOGY IN HIS DARK MATERIALS By DANIEL T. MOORE, B.A. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts McMaster University © Copyright by Daniel T. Moore, September 2014 ii McMaster University MASTER OF ARTS (2014) Hamilton, Ontario (English) TITLE: Rewriting the Fall: Lyra Belacqua’s Resistance to Adult Ideology in His Dark Materials AUTHOR: Daniel T. Moore, B.A. (McMaster University) SUPERVISOR: Professor Iris Bruce NUMBER OF PAGES: v, 100 iii ABSTRACT This thesis examines resistance to adult ideology by child/adolescent characters in Philip Pullmans’ His Dark Materials. Drawing on terminology provided by Maria Nikolajeva (aetonormativity) and Roberta Trites (power within repression) this paper describes the development of Lyra Belacqua, the protagonist of The Golden Compass. It identifies in Pullman’s text a particular emphasis on allowing children to develop into adolescents before subjecting them to religious or secular ideologies. This thesis works with the terms Entwicklungsroman and Bildungsroman in order to illuminate and complicate the subject- positions: adolescent, child and adult. This thesis demonstrates the particular attention to qualities of adolescence and childhood in Pullman’s works, and the effect that reconstructing adolescence as an end-point for child characters has on child protagonists, by contrast to adulthood as a destination. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my mother and father, without whom I would not have been able to pursue my degree, and who have encouraged me and supported me every step of the way.
    [Show full text]
  • Lord Asriel, Experimental Theologian : Man, Maker, Media and the Challenges of Seeing the New
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE Lord Asriel, Experimental Theologian : Man, Maker, Media and the Challenges of Seeing the New journal or Notre Dame Seishin University kiyo. Studies in publication title foreign languages and literature, Studies in culture Notre Dame Seishin University kiyo. Studies in Japanese language and literature volume 38 number 1 page range 10-23 year 2014 URL http://id.nii.ac.jp/1560/00000125/ 10 紀要 Vol. 38 No. 1（通巻第 49 号）10 〜 23（2014） Lord Asriel, Experimental Theologian: Man, Maker, Media and the Challenges of Seeing the New ※ Kate Bowes 実験的神学者 ﰀアズリエル ― 人、創造主、メディア、新しいものを見るという挑戦― ケイト・ボウズ フィリップ・プルマンの三部作『ライラの冒険』には「実験的神学者」が登場する。実 験的神学とは作者プルマンが作り出した虚構の分野で、これは究極の現実的実存である神 について知られていることは真実で信用できると断言できるのか、そうであれば、どのよ うにして断言できるのか、という重要な質問に焦点が絞られているように思える。この質 問を検討するために、作家は生存の核にある神秘を理解するための二つの異なる方法を取 り入れている。すなわち、科学（実験）と宗教（神学）である。純粋なる現実・実存の識 別は我々には不可能なため、我々にできる精一杯のことは現実のように思えるものを解釈 することであるが、これは修練を伴い、想像力を駆使することが要求される。本稿におい が撮影し、手を加えて披露する写真ﰀ、のカメラﰀては、『黄金の羅針盤』のアズリエル の人物像を明らかにし、さらに、見ることに専心し、多くの光学ﰀ等を通してアズリエル 的器具が発明されたヴィクトリア朝にも言及する。加えて、これまで見たことがなかった ものを見るということはどういうことか、知られているものをどのように伝えるのかとい の写真が掲げる中心的問題から、実験的神学者が現実を境界付けるためﰀう、アズリエル に使用する質問方法を考察していく。 キーワード：実験的神学、カメラ、見ること This essay is the first of a proposed series looking at the so-called Experimental Theologians who appear in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy. It will explore the methods they use to interrogate the boundaries of reality in and beyond which God is. Experimental theology, a fictional discipline created by the author, seems to revolve around the central question: are the things claimed to be known about God true or reliable, and if so, how? In asking such a question the author puts into the ring Key Words: experimental theology, camera, seeing ※ 本学文学部英語英文学科 11 two different, but ultimately complementary, modes of apprehending the mystery at the core of life.
    [Show full text]