Exploring the Interconnectedness of Nature and Perception: A Deeper Look at Symbolism in Literature
I love exploring the layers of meaning in literature and pondering what lessons I can take away from them. I am reading George MacDonald’s Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women right now. After spending last month at The Kilns outside Oxford England continuing my study of C. S. Lewis as a Scholar in Residence, I needed to spend some time digging in on the man who Lewis considered to be one of his biggest influences, both personally and in a literary sense. C. S. Lewis spoke of reading Phantastes and it changing his life. Just as one can tell the influence different artists have had on rock bands, I believe I can sense the influence MacDonald had on Lewis’s writing. One of the first things that has jumped out at me is the attention to detail and use of imagery and symbolism.
Let me give you an example from Chapter 2 in Phantastes: Anodos (the book’s central character) said, “And, stranger still, where this carpet, which I had myself designed to imitate a field of grass and daisies, bordered the course of the little stream, the grass-blades and daisies seemed to wave in a tiny breeze that followed the water’s flow; while under the rivulet they bent and swayed with every motion of the changeful current, as if they were about to dissolve with it, and, forsaking their fixed form, become fluent as the waters.” MacDonald’s attention to detail truly made the fixed forms fluent in my mind. The fact that MacDonald also sets it up that Anodose designed the carpet himself to resemble the field of flowers told us that Anodos had been seeking the life he was finding in this faerie tale.
“An almost perfect relationship with his father was the earthly root of all his wisdom. From his own father, he said, he first learned that Fatherhood must be at the core of the universe.” C. S. Lewis speaking of George MacDonald
I believe MacDonald was trying to convey a deeper message about the interconnectedness of nature and our perceptions of reality in that passage. The imagery of the grass and daisies appearing to move with the flow of the stream could symbolize how our beliefs and perceptions can influence our experiences and interactions with the world around us.
Our beliefs and perceptions are heavily influenced by our experiences and interactions with the world around us. These experiences shape our understanding of the world, impacting we interpret events, people, and situations. Our interactions with others also play a significant role in shaping our beliefs perceptions, as we learn from their perspectives and incorporate them into our own worldview. Ultimately, our beliefs and perceptions are constantly evolving as we continue to engage with the world around us.
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[…] Phantastes by George MacDonald this week and have already blogged about it a couple of times in “Exploring the Interconnectedness of Nature and Perception: A Deeper Look at Symbolism in Literatu… and “A Story Without A Beginning That Will Never Have An End: Lessons From Phantastes.” Now I […]
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