Monday, January 16, 2006
Chronicles of Good and Evil
I saw "The Chronicles of Narnia" last night. It was a well-produced film, if overly long. It also was no more a "Christian allegory," as numerous excited little groups have claimed, than any other piece of fictional literature that reflects the culture in which it was written. Perhaps "Narnia" draws upon those traditions, but its basis lies in the struggle between good and evil. "Star Wars," "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter" all feature a battle between good and evil. You may call it "Heaven and Hell" if you wish, but Good and Evil are concepts that extend beyond one particular religion. The search for understanding of just what "Good and Evil" means may, in fact, have led to the development of religion.
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Not a Christian allegory? Let's see. The lion, Aslan (Christ), takes it upon himself to die for the traitorous brother's sins. He is then bodily resurrected. The stone table (the Hebrew Temple) which He was sacrificed on is then destroyed. He raises the dead by giving them his breath of life. He is shown to be the "King of Kings" after appointing the four lesser Kings to their thrones, and it is then revealled that he will be back at a time of his own choosing, and not to press him. And oddly enough, Santa Claus also makes an appearance.
While Santa Claus may be linked with Christmas, he's turned into such a commercial icon that I wouldn't dare call him part of the Christian allegory.
I think what Rich meant, BTW, is that the religious aspect of the film was not shoved down our throats. Some of those panicked "OMG it's RELIGIOUS!" groups indicated that it would do that. I saw it as a nice fantasy movie and barely registered the parallels at all.
It was probably dubbed a "Christian allegory" by the same folk who made a big deal over Passion of the Christ, which, I might add, was not a life changing event for me.
And Santa Claus is used for nothing but marketing anymore. How many products advertised on television or on billboards had Santa Claus? M&M's, Coke, I think every cell phone company, Best Buy...the list is endless.
You think Santa, you think money.
Every piece of fiction, in that it reflects the society in which it was written, may be seen to have religious aspects, whether intentional or not (Narnia being intentional). That does not make "The Chronicles of Narnia" a "Christian" movie. It is a film that uses Christian elements to tell a story. Creative work does not exist in a vacuum. It draws upon the experiences and beliefs of the artist.
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