Tea at Trianon: "The Golden Compass"

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, September 3, 2007

"The Golden Compass"

It sounds perfectly terrible. Kimberly Wasson has a write up about it, with a link to an article by Peter Hitchens about the author Philip Pullman. Apparently, the atheists want Mr. Pullman's work to supplant C.S. Lewis. They want God removed from all children's literature. Share

13 comments:

Anonymous said...: +JMJ+

I have one friend who adores C.S. Lewis and manages to love Philip Pullman anyway. She has been trying to get me to read The Golden Compass and Pullman's other novels for several years. I've been valiantly resisting--not because of any real animosity towards Pullman, but because I'm simply not interested. :S; September 3, 2007 at 12:32:00 PM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: It would be interesting for me to have your feedback on Pullman's novels, Marissa, but I completely understand the feeling of apathy about certain books. It is difficult enough to make time for all the good books one WANTS to read without having to waste time with weird ones.; September 3, 2007 at 12:36:00 PM EDT
Anonymous said...: +JMJ+

That's exactly what I told her!!! How did you know??? ;)

To be more specific, I told her that, given all the books I was certain I wanted to read, I'd probably find time for Pullman's notorious trilogy only when I entered my forties! :P I was only half joking, too!; September 3, 2007 at 12:46:00 PM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Lol! I'm in my forties and have less time than ever!!!!!!; September 3, 2007 at 1:11:00 PM EDT
Vara said...: Well, by the time you turn fifty (I am 53), you learn how to say NO with some finality.

If the atheists and secularists wish to flog Mr Pullman's books, so be it. They shall not remove Mr Lewis from the shelves, for his books sell, and that is what counts for a bookseller. As for the contents of the Pullman trilogy, I shall pass on the (dubious) pleasure, for I have better things to do with my God-given time.

Vara the Puckish and Grumpy; September 3, 2007 at 3:33:00 PM EDT
Kimberly said...: Ladies, I am in absolute agreement! The way I feel about Pullman's work is the same way I feel about the Harry Potter series...I simply am not interested nor do I have the time, when there are so many other incredible works of fiction to delve into!

And you are so right, Elena. Having "hit forty" a few years ago, I have less time than ever!

I remain concerned, nonetheless, that our youth are being assailed with such "pulp". Marketing for these books is so slick and well-packaged that the very young succumb so easily.; September 3, 2007 at 3:37:00 PM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: The only reason I would read it would be so that I could analyze it and write some reviews. Sometimes shedding a little bit of light does a lot to dissipate the darkness. But there is always the matter of finding the time.....; September 3, 2007 at 3:41:00 PM EDT
Anonymous said...: +JMJ+

I should add that I once sat in on a few lectures in a course about Children's Fantasy, in which the required texts were Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, Ursula LeGuin's Earthsea Cycle and Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy. The lecturers made much of the writers' religious beliefs: Christianity for Lewis, Taoism (if I remember correctly) for LeGuin, and atheism for Pullman. The question was whether Children's Fantasy is the best genre for such cosmic, eternal issues.; September 3, 2007 at 11:36:00 PM EDT
Anonymous said...: Someone I know kept on hounding me and pestering me to read The Da Vinci Code. I got so fed up, I called her bluff. I told her I would read it if she read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. That shut her up!!! LOL :); September 4, 2007 at 1:48:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...: +JMJ+

Oh, Margaret, I wish I had known that comeback when someone was pressuring me to do the same!; September 4, 2007 at 10:15:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...: One of Pullman's novels was adapted for TV earlier this year. "The Ruby in the Smoke", the first book in the Sally Lockhart trilogy, was on PBS's "Masterpiece Theater" starring Billy Piper as Sally. Since it was historical fiction, I watched it and enjoyed it. The Sally Lockhart trilogy is set in late 19th century England. Quite a story with all the adventurous elements.
I've never had an interest in reading Pullman although I'm familiar with his books.
Over the weekend I went to see the new Harry Potter movie (I'm a Harry Potter fan) and there was the trailer for the "Golden Compass". Great marketing but it'll be nothing in comparison to the "Chronicles of Narnia" another series I've recently read and love.
When adaptations for books are made, stuff is altered but I'm sure those dark overtones are there in an implict manner.; September 4, 2007 at 11:13:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Great idea, Margaret!

Elisa, I did not know that Pullman wrote the Sally Lockhart books. I saw "Ruby" on PBS, too, and I thought it was good, too. Thanks for your feedback!!; September 4, 2007 at 11:25:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...: The children I know who have the "Harry Potter" books read to them do not get the implications, nor, most likely, does the mother who is reading the books to her children. But that does give me the idea to introduce her to some of the Narnia series, and encourage her to read those to her children.

As a young mother I was wary of my children reading too many fantasy type stories because I was troubled by how the books would affect them. As for me, as a child I devoured books about horses and to this day have no interest in fantasy.; September 4, 2007 at 10:46:00 PM EDT