“Dream Not of Other Worlds”: C.S. Lewis, Philip Pullman and the Ghost of Milton Ulrike Susanne Scherer A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand 30 June, 2010 ii Abstract This thesis examines how two authors of fantasy fiction attempt to re-imagine Paradise Lost in their works and analyses how they each deal with Miltonic influence in a markedly different way. The two works that are the main focus of this thesis are C.S. Lewis’s science-fantasy novel Perelandra, and Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, a young adult trilogy consisting of the volumes Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. I will draw on Harold Bloom’s theory of poetic influence outlined in The Anxiety of Influence for my reading of these texts as two distinctive ‘misreadings’ of Paradise Lost. Whereas C.S. Lewis reads Paradise Lost as representing Christian orthodoxy, Philip Pullman is partial to a neo-Romantic interpretation of the epic as highly subversive, even satanic. Both of these readings are misreadings in the Bloomian sense, which seek to clear creative space for these authors and their own retellings of the Fall myth. I argue that both Lewis and Pullman intend to strengthen their own authorial profile by intertextually linking their works to Milton’s epic; Lewis, in his self-fashioned role of ‘Christian fantasist’, sets out to correct supposed poetic mistakes that weaken the Christian message of the epic with Perelandra, whereas Pullman highlights the subversive elements present in Paradise Lost in His Dark Materials, in order to support his image of ‘atheist rebel’. Their opposed readings of Paradise Lost profit from the critical debate surrounding Milton’s intentions with his epic that has been going on almost from the moment of its publication, and William Blake’s famous notion that Milton was “of the Devil’s party without knowing it”. It is not my intention to uncover or defend a ‘true’ or ‘correct’ reading of Paradise Lost; rather, this thesis seeks to highlight how two authors use the intriguing appeal of Milton and his greatest work to enrich and support their respective self- fashioned authorial images. This thesis will illustrate that Perelandra and His Dark Materials are so highly indebted to their predecessor’s work, however, that they both are haunted by what I call Milton’s ‘ghost’; Miltonic influence seeps into Lewis’s and Pullman’s works, so much that any attempt to break free from this strong literary predecessor results in a weakening of plot, story and characterisation in Perelandra and His Dark Materials. By trying to escape Milton’s influence, both authors end up being trapped by it. iii Acknowledgments I have been surrounded by wonderfully supportive people at this university, and I owe so much to them. First, I would like to thank the University of Otago and their generous support for the past three years via the Otago Postgraduate Scholarship. My heartfelt thanks furthermore go out to the English department of Otago, all the academic staff members who have supported me in various ways, and the wonderful administrative staff who were so very kind in helping me through my last, laptop-less months by organising a departmental laptop for me. I would also like to thank the English department of Victoria University, Wellington, for giving me the opportunity to present a paper on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials at the 2008 ACLAR conference, for which I received valuable feedback. I have been gifted with the loveliest ‘office mates’ any postgraduate student could wish for. Sharing an office space with other people is not always easy, but these girls have been my pillar of strength all these years, and I would not have made it through the PhD without them: Neale, Poppy, Febe, and especially Josie, who showed such patience in the face of even my most intense drama queen moments—I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I would also like to give thanks to my other friends who were there for me especially during a time of illness: Teresa, Sabine, Inas, Antje, Adrian, and Jo—you have all contributed to this thesis, in one way or the other. My family, so far away in Germany, yet always close to my heart, has never been anything but amazing all these years. It was not easy for them to accept my decision to stay here and choose an academic career path, yet they have been so enthusiastic and generous in every way, and I thank them for it. To my supervisors Dr. Paul Tankard and Prof. Evelyn Tribble, I cannot give enough thanks. Truly, words fail me in the face of their wonderful generosity and patience, their steadfast belief in my project and incredible support, both academically and personally. I am so very grateful to both of them, but Prof. Tribble especially has been amazing, and I feel so blessed that she has been my mentor these past three years. iv Table of Contents ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................... II ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................................... III TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................................... IV INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 5 THE FACTS BECOME MYTH: C.S. LEWIS’S AUTHORIAL PROFILE .................................. 28 “THE FIRST STEP IS TO TRY TO FORGET ABOUT THE SELF ALTOGETHER”: THE SELF-FASHIONED CHRISTIAN WARRIOR AND THE DENIAL OF THE SELF ......................................................................... 28 CHRISTIAN FANTASY AS “SUB-CREATION” ........................................................................................ 37 TO DREAM OF OTHER WORLDS OR: THE DARK SIDE OF PERELANDRA ............................................... 47 C.S. LEWIS’S “SUPPOSALS” AND THE CHARGE OF CHRISTIAN ALLEGORY ......................................... 55 C.S. LEWIS AND PERELANDRA: “OF THE DEVIL’S PARTY WITHOUT KNOWING IT”?64 FACING THE GHOST OF MILTON ......................................................................................................... 64 THE UN-MAN: A PORTRAYAL OF THE CHRISTIAN ‘OTHER’ ................................................................ 71 MISREADING GENDER RELATIONS IN PARADISE LOST: C.S. LEWIS’S LOVE AFFAIR WITH ‘NATURAL’ HIERARCHY ........................................................................................................................................ 83 PARADISE RETAINED, YET FREEDOM LOST: PROHIBITION, TEMPTATION AND OBEDIENCE IN PERELANDRA ..................................................................................................................................... 103 “THE MOST DANGEROUS AUTHOR IN BRITAIN”: PHILIP PULLMAN’S SELF- FASHIONED IMAGE ....................................................................................................................... 124 “APPARENTLY, I HAVE MY OWN SINISTER AGENDA”: PHILIP PULLMAN AND THE MEDIA .............. 124 ESCAPING THE ANXIETY OF INFLUENCE: WILLIAM BLAKE, THE GNOSTIC HERESY AND HIS DARK MATERIALS ........................................................................................................................................ 139 ECLIPSING THE FOREFATHERS OF FANTASY LITERATURE: HIS DARK MATERIALS AS “ANTI-NARNIA” ......................................................................................................................................................... 150 MILTONIC INFLUENCE IN HIS DARK MATERIALS: UNDERESTIMATING THE “GREAT INHIBITOR” ...................................................................................................................................... 162 “MORE TRULY MILTONIC”: PHILIP PULLMAN AND PARADISE LOST .................................................. 162 “UNLESS THE ALMIGHTY MAKER THEM ORDAIN”: PULLMAN’S MATERIALISM AND MILTON’S GOD ......................................................................................................................................................... 174 “FEMINIST MILTON” VERSUS “MILTON’S BOGEY”: GENDER IN HIS DARK MATERIALS ..................... 191 “FULL OF DOUBT I STAND”: FATE, CHOICE AND FREE WILL IN HIS DARK MATERIALS ...................... 206 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................... 222 BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................................................. 227 5 Introduction When the blind, politically disillusioned poet John Milton decided to craft a grand English epic retelling the story of mankind’s fall from a state of innocence told in Genesis, his proclaimed aim was to “justify the ways of God to men” (I, 26). Addressed specifically to a “fit audience […] though few” (VII, 31), Paradise Lost can undoubtedly be seen as a cornerstone of the English literary canon. Not only does the epic’s main subject matter intertextually link it to the most canonical work of all, the Bible, its highly polished poetic language, meticulous compliance with epic conventions and Milton’s complex interweaving of scriptural tradition and Greek and Latin mythology all guarantee Paradise Lost a permanent spot in the literary canon. What is surprising, however, is the prevalence of quotes, imagery, characters