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Friday, January 11th, 2008 02:06 amHow can you be an adult fan of the books and not know The Chronicles of Narnia is heavily based on the Bible?
Seriously?
I guess it's another one of those stories I'm close to. They were the first books that ever hit me emotionally because the wake-up call at the end was shocking and powerful. But... in re-reading them several times over the years, it's hard not to see them for what they are. But at the same time, I don't see it as a negative thing as some people do. I don't watch the new The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe film and think, "Aslan = Jesus" because influences and being based on something do not mean it's basically two and a half hours of preaching. Did people walk away from the book and start worshipping Aslan? For that matter, did people walk away from The Matrix and start worshipping Neo?
... Well, some weirdos might have, but that's not the point. They weren't asked to.
So I also don't see why having that pointed out to you suddenly taints them forever. I suppose religion doesn't interest most people, and symbolism of it (however subtle) doesn't, either. But hey... why is it not okay for them to put it in The Chronicles of Narnia, and it is okay for various Goth bands, and U2, and any other number of things the same person enjoys to use the same kind of symbolism? Not all of them shine negative light on it. And if you think about it, a person/creature/deity sacrificing themselves for mankind is a pretty broad subject.
It's a little confusing, isn't it? If religion is so uncool, even when it's just an undercurrent, and grounds to abandon something you enjoy... what about the other stuff? Is it turning a blind eye to it, or... maybe it's, "hey, faith in something being shown in a positive light? gotta avoid that or I might catch it!"?
I don't think faith is a bad thing necessarily. To each their own. I just don't like having people try to prove that theirs is correct and to force their values on me, or express views that really shouldn't have anything to do with religion. It's up to your God to judge, not your peers, and that's how it should be. But hey, I'm agnostic with an interest in the stories that come with deities, like mythology. I'm not really into the side of things that brings the religion into your life on a daily basis, and is laced through everything you do.
... Yeah, I broke one of my rules. Avoiding religion and politics with friends is really the best thing to do. People feel too strongly about it, so do I, and I'm too much of a power-Aquarian to stand by and hear someone be so silly and hypocritical about it without saying something. I NEED TO WORK ON HAVING A LESS INTENSE SENSE OF JUSTICE AND EQUALITY AND UNDERSTANDING. And while I'm at it, I should work on not reading into things so deeply and placing hidden meanings where there are none, though it's fun on a creative, fictional level. And I'm sure CERTAIN PEOPLE are enjoying the plot bunnies that come with that.
But on a less serious note, I really liked the film despite the overuse of CGI. I thought it was done well, and kept the fearsome and magical aspects of the book intact. And the cast was great. The kids did a fantastic job, and c'mon... Tilda Swinton. I feel so alone in having enjoyed it as much as I did. But considering the fact that I wore out the budget BBC production tapes as a child, it's not very surprising that I love being able to see a larger scale production.
I think my brain is hungry again.
Seriously?
I guess it's another one of those stories I'm close to. They were the first books that ever hit me emotionally because the wake-up call at the end was shocking and powerful. But... in re-reading them several times over the years, it's hard not to see them for what they are. But at the same time, I don't see it as a negative thing as some people do. I don't watch the new The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe film and think, "Aslan = Jesus" because influences and being based on something do not mean it's basically two and a half hours of preaching. Did people walk away from the book and start worshipping Aslan? For that matter, did people walk away from The Matrix and start worshipping Neo?
... Well, some weirdos might have, but that's not the point. They weren't asked to.
So I also don't see why having that pointed out to you suddenly taints them forever. I suppose religion doesn't interest most people, and symbolism of it (however subtle) doesn't, either. But hey... why is it not okay for them to put it in The Chronicles of Narnia, and it is okay for various Goth bands, and U2, and any other number of things the same person enjoys to use the same kind of symbolism? Not all of them shine negative light on it. And if you think about it, a person/creature/deity sacrificing themselves for mankind is a pretty broad subject.
It's a little confusing, isn't it? If religion is so uncool, even when it's just an undercurrent, and grounds to abandon something you enjoy... what about the other stuff? Is it turning a blind eye to it, or... maybe it's, "hey, faith in something being shown in a positive light? gotta avoid that or I might catch it!"?
I don't think faith is a bad thing necessarily. To each their own. I just don't like having people try to prove that theirs is correct and to force their values on me, or express views that really shouldn't have anything to do with religion. It's up to your God to judge, not your peers, and that's how it should be. But hey, I'm agnostic with an interest in the stories that come with deities, like mythology. I'm not really into the side of things that brings the religion into your life on a daily basis, and is laced through everything you do.
... Yeah, I broke one of my rules. Avoiding religion and politics with friends is really the best thing to do. People feel too strongly about it, so do I, and I'm too much of a power-Aquarian to stand by and hear someone be so silly and hypocritical about it without saying something. I NEED TO WORK ON HAVING A LESS INTENSE SENSE OF JUSTICE AND EQUALITY AND UNDERSTANDING. And while I'm at it, I should work on not reading into things so deeply and placing hidden meanings where there are none, though it's fun on a creative, fictional level. And I'm sure CERTAIN PEOPLE are enjoying the plot bunnies that come with that.
But on a less serious note, I really liked the film despite the overuse of CGI. I thought it was done well, and kept the fearsome and magical aspects of the book intact. And the cast was great. The kids did a fantastic job, and c'mon... Tilda Swinton. I feel so alone in having enjoyed it as much as I did. But considering the fact that I wore out the budget BBC production tapes as a child, it's not very surprising that I love being able to see a larger scale production.
I think my brain is hungry again.
