I’ll save you the trouble of having to scroll to the bottom to see my verdict for this one, you should definitely read it.
His Dark Materials is a book trilogy written by British author Philip Pullman. The books chronical the journey of main character Lyra and her friends as they combat the forces of evil to save the world. It is one of the most imaginative series I’ve read and also incorporates many themes that still apply to our world today. Namely, the idea of religion controlling the world.
I did not read these books as a young adult, though I can’t imagine why. I remember learning about them very briefly, but whatever I learned wasn’t enough to garner my full interest, I guess. Reading them as an adult was still very enjoyable, and if you are an adult I would still recommend that you read them.
Though the main character is a child, the book is written in third person so it doesn’t feel as odd as reading a 12-year-old’s perspective from the first person might. Pullman writes his characters, especially the two children at the forefront, remarkably well. There was never a point where I doubted Lyra was a child, and though she was extremely smart and quick-witted, she didn’t fall into the “child written like an adult” trope nor the “Mary Sue” trope. She was just a very smart, talented young girl. This was my second most appreciated aspect of Pullman’s writing.
I thought the other characters in the book were very well-written as well, particularly Lyra’s parents. Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter are presented as on opposite sides at the beginning of the novel, but we quickly learn that they do not represent good and evil, respectively. Lord Asriel is fighting against The Authority (the highest power among religion in Lyra’s world), but for his own selfish reasons. He also must commit some atrocious acts in order to prepare himself for this fight. Mrs. Coulter is on the side of the Authority, but she cares deeply for her daughter in a way that Lord Asriel doesn’t. Both characters find themselves a bit of redemption at the end, and I really enjoyed that they weren’t presented as plain “good” or “evil”.
The aspect I most appreciated about Pullman’s novels was the imagination involved. The story follows Lyra as she discovers there are many different universes, all layered on top of one another. The idea of the multiverse isn’t new by any means, but the detail Pullman includes to describe each knew world Lyra and her friends visit is astounding. I think it would have been easy to acknowledge the multiverse, but have Lyra only end up visiting worlds that were similar enough to her own that he did not need to describe them much.
Instead, Pullman takes this as an opportunity to exercise his imagination. He writes about different worlds with creatures that have evolved entirely different to life on earth. This also relates to the overall story of the novels as it expresses how evolution has clearly occurred on each of these worlds. He doesn’t take pains to deny that there may have been an original creator, but he does show how each life evolved differently with a cohesiveness that is unique only to their world.
The theme of nature vs. creation is prevalent throughout each of the three novels. I think it is well-known by now, but these are very anti-religious books. The main idea throughout is that religion seeks only to control, not empower. The religious magistrates of Lyra’s world are concerned with saving children from developing the “original sin” (something that happens around the time of puberty), and manage to create a device that would stop this, if only it didn’t also kill the children.
They absolve themselves of the criminality of this operation under the guise that they are trying to create a less amoral society. Does that sound at all familiar? In Lyra’s world, the religious folk have a significant amount of power in government and society, which is why they’re allowed to operate in such a manner. Though they are in power, they do this operation in secret, showing that they know the general population would be opposed. They simply fancy that they know better than everyone else in the world. Gosh, that does just sound so familiar.
Pullman writes the novels to rally against the control of religion over the general population. In the books, one of the central ideas is that we shouldn’t live our lives as though we’re waiting to get to heaven. In fact, in the books there is no heaven. The souls are kept in a cruel purgatory where they’re tortured by harpies for the rest of eternity. Lyra and her friends help them escape back to earth, where their atoms then dissipate so that their energy can go back into “being”. This was one of my favorite morals of the books. Matter cannot be created nor destroyed, and when we die our energy will go back into the world in some way or another. It was interesting to see Pullman’s take on this, and I enjoyed how he presented the characters as genuinely happy to be at one with the universe.
Another aspect of the story I liked is that god, or “The Authority” in Pullman’s books, is not a fictitious being. While heaven was certainly made up, there is a real being in charge of the universe. He’s not the ultimate creator, per se, but he is real. Angels are also real, though they come from another universe, and I liked that Pullman included them in the story. The Authority wishes to intervene in all of the worlds, creating a more “moral” society altogether. It is not about whether or not god exists, it’s about what the people (namely those fighting for The Authority) choose to do in his name.
I think this really grounded the books as it created a strong parallel between this fictional world and our own world. While people frequently argue whether or not god exists, the more important question is, “Why should your god dictate what I say or do?” or “How does your god give you the authority to inflict your morals on me?” The answer to both of those is that believing in god does not give anyone the right to inflict their will upon another person, and that’s a lesson people have yet to learn. I think this is one of the strongest lessons in Pullman’s novels, and that’s also a very large part of why his books are so egregious to the Christian message in particular.
This may be true for more religions, but I know it to be particularly true about Christianity. Many Christians believe it is their duty to spread the word of god and to make sure people follow it truly. This is why Christian missionaries are so popular. As a side note, if you think mission trips are great programs, take this into consideration: they often travel to poor countries offering clothing, shoes, and food with the condition that those who accept attend a church service or allow the Bible to be read to them. Essentially, “Here are these things you desperately need, but you can only have them if you listen to my message about god.” Does that not sound predatory as fuck?
The idea of spreading god’s will is a huge theme throughout His Dark Materials, and goes directly against many Christian teachings. Also, they probably don’t like all the other stuff about heaven not being real and their version of god (The Authority) not actually being the creator of the universe.
I’ve spent a lot of time talking about the themes in the book, but that’s because they really are the main point of the series. These books were written for a purpose, it just also happens that Phillip Pullman has a wonderful imagination and great storytelling capabilities.
As I said earlier, his exploration of different worlds adds so much to the books. He goes as far to create alternate societies, and explains how those societies work. These explanations are also pretty integral to the story, so it never feels like an info-dump or explanation for the sake of explaining something. One great example within Lyra’s own world is the race of bears. The armored bears are very intelligent creatures with their own ranking society. They are also exceptional metal workers, using their (apparently very deft) claws to create all types of armor and weapons. I mean, they’re blacksmith, warrior bears. And this is only one example of the imagination and originality presented throughout these books.
I believe Pullman does draw a few parallels between the church in Lyra’s world and the power of the church in her companion, Will’s, world. Will is from our own world, so drawing this comparison makes it fairly obvious that all the negative things Pullman is saying about religion in Lyra’s world also applies to our own world. I think this comparison is a great way to have young readers thinking about the influence of religion in their own lives and in the world around them. Even if you are a religious person, I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be critical of the impact religion has had and is currently having on society.
My verdict is to read it. I think these books are incredibly imaginative, they have extremely well-rounded characters, and the way they address religion is unparalleled by any other YA book or series I’ve read. Even as an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed the story and themes, and I would recommend these books to people of all ages.
The Lit Wiz