Four Christian Fantasists. A Study of the Fantastic Writings of George MacDonald, Charles Williams, C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien

by Rector of Islip Diocese of Oxford Richard Sturch

J.R.R.Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings", it has long been recognized, was shaped and undergirded by his Christian beliefs. But he was not the only writer of fantasy to have a close relationship between his faith and his fiction. This book is a study of such relationships in four Tolkien himself, his friends C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams, and, from an earlier generation, George MacDonald. It seeks to look at their use of other worlds and other beings; at their attitudes towards 'escapism'; at the presence of symbolism and myth in their writings; at the themes and ideas they had in common; and at the extent to which their fiction has a value for Christian apologetics.

Genres: Nonfiction

148 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Skrivena stranica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book looks into the fantastic writings of four Christian fantasists, and the role of their Christianity is really important part of this book. In the first chapter, introduction, author introduces four authors and why he chose those four. Also, he explained why he didn't chose some others who belong to the same thought. He addresses these aspects of the books: other worlds and other beings, the charge of escapism, varieties of symbolism, themes and apologetics. It was really interesting read and it's evident that the author knows a lot about writings of these authors (he mentions some things from Tolkien that I have no recollection of). Still, some things that I know about Lewis didn't really match with what I was reading (these were some minor things, but still). The worst chapter was on "Varieties of Symbolism" and it's evident to me that this person does not know much on literary theory. He does not understand what an allegory is (he tried to follow Lewis's insistence that Narnia is not allegory not really understanding what he was talking about - I still don't agree with Lewis and believe Narnia could be called allegory, sorry Lewis), he does not understand what myth is (and this part was the worst of them all). So, many interesting and useful stuff, but in some aspects I expected more.

[Welwyn Wilton Katz · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was years ago. Then, I was fascinated by three of the four (I didn't know the work of Charles Williams). It seems a strange group, really, wherein lies the magic. What I learned was that even great writers in their own right can be wrong in their advice to another great writer.