Head to Head: How might a Christian respond to “The Amber Spyglass’

“The Amber Spyglass’ is the final book in the Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman. I though the book was exceedingly well written, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Even though this is what I think, some Christians might think quite the opposite. Some Christians may feel that Pullman presented the wrong message to younger Christians around the world. There are two different opinions to his story, and here they are.

Some Christians could be totally against this story, and maybe the rest of the Dark Materials, and I have discovered many reasons why this would be so. Witchcraft is a sign of the occult, and is evil, in all respects. It does not matter what type of witch, all witches are evil. Pullman seems to show completely the opposite theory. In all three of his stories he involves witches, and these witches are protectors of good, and are good people. This is completely contrary to Christian belief, and some Christians may have trouble accepting these characters as “the good guys’.

In his first two stories, Pullman presents Lord Asriel as an extremely evil man, whose main ambition is to destroy the Kingdom of Heaven. Obviously according to Christian belief, the Kingdom of Heaven is paradise for all those who pass on in life. Again, you could say that Pullman seems to show completely the opposite theory. Throughout “The Amber Spyglass” he makes constant references to Heaven being almost completely the opposite of paradise. You can spot this the most with the involvement of The Metatron. The Metatron is regarded as one of the most powerful and evil angels in Heaven. If Heaven is such a wonderful place, why is evil allowed to reside there?

The main ending to “The Amber Spyglass” is the battle between Lord Asriel’s forces and the Kingdom of Heaven, and the ending to this battle could affect both arguments. Basically, The Metatron battles with Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter, and both humans unite and drag the angel down a cliff to all of their deaths. In case no one has read the Dark Materials, Mrs Coulter is the mother of the main character, Lyra. Mrs Coulter is an evil woman, who has kidnapped her child on several occasions, once keeping her in a deep sleep. The ending to the battle could be interpreted both ways. Firstly, angels are supernatural beings, however, Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter are able to touch Metatron, harm Metatron and even kill Metatron. How are you able to touch a supernatural being? How are you able to harm a supernatural being, and how is it possible that you can kill supernatural beings? You could say that Pullman is almost showing the main characteristics of a human in an angel, and could be comparing an angel as human-like.

On the other hand, Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter are presented throughout the Dark Materials as evil people. The ending to this battle shows Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter both sacrifice their own lives for each other and the protection of their child, Lyra. Pullman creates the message that family conquers all. Even though Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter hate each other with a passion, they were still willing to give their lives for the protection of their child. Pullman shows that love and compassion for one another conquers over all kinds of evil. Almost a perfect ending to a religious battle, such as this.

Adam Hellier
Ranelagh School, Bracknell