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Wonderful questions abound. Complete answers are less numerous. A student in Bahrain was asked on an examination to describe the “spiritual development” of Silas Marner by George Eliot. Even though the exam has been graded and is in the past, this student desires to know a more complete answer to that question. It is admirable when a student seek knowledge for knowledge’s sake alone rather than to earn a high grade. Good students are as rare as good answers to wonderful questions.
Certain ideas find expression in the fiction of George Eliot in the sense that she uses her fiction as a means of thinking about philosophical and moral issues.
I was raised and educated in the predominantly Christian society of the USA. My point is simply this: from the age of 5, when we first got a television, I was exposed to stories and religious sermons which were aimed at demonstrating spiritual development in one way or another. I would see a religious based show called "The Guiding Light" which, at the introduction of each episode, would show a lost man coming to a crossroads and seeming confused. Then suddenly, a great beacon of light would shine down from heaven and point out to him which road he should take. What would follow is a story where some moral dilemma is illustrated, and then the actor makes the "spiritually correct" choice, and lives "happily ever after." Or sometimes, the actor or actress would make the wrong choice, and then we would see the unhappiness or misfortune which results from that wrong choice.
I can only guess what life and upbringing might be like in a different culture based on different customs, values and religion. Of course, for all I know, you are able to see similar television shows on cable or satellite TV, in which case my theory is incorrect. I think that we are immersed in a culture which daily shows us certain lessons, through entertainment and education, to inculcate in us a certain moral value system.
We must ask ourselves whether literary analysis is something which may be learned, and whether our upbringing or society is able to influence or condition us to see and analyze things in one fashion rather than in some other, different fashion.
In college, I joined a seminar study group which read a book by Alexander Kojeve entitled "An Introduction to the reading of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit." Kojeve was a French scholar with Marxist leanings. In that book, Kojeve makes a passing remark about Plato, saying "Plato, who believed that virtue can be taught." This was a side remark, and not at all what the book was really about. But I am reminded of Kojeve's remark because it is pertinent to our discussion of whether literary analysis is teachable. Certainly, someone like George Eliot has a "teaching agenda" in her novels, to display for us a certain cause and effect, in her stories and characters.
Are we taught or conditioned by our culture and education and heritage to see and interpret things in a certain fashion?
If we are to answer the question regarding the "spiritual development" of Silas Marner, we must first spend some time what the term "spiritual development" might mean, both from our own personal cultural perspective, and also from George Eliot's historical and cultural perspective.
I recently purchased a paperback copy of Kazantzakis’ “The Last Temptation of Christ”. I have not read it yet, but the premise of the book, as I understand it, is quite brilliant. We know from the four Gospels of the New Testament that shortly before Christ dies on the cross, he says “It is finished.” Nikos Kazantzakis brilliant notion is that, prior to those words, Jesus is tempted by the devil with a fantasy dream that he has actually escaped crucifixion, walked away from his mission, married, enjoyed children, family and a worldly life. Of course, there is nothing in the Bible to support any notion that Jesus was tempted in this fashion. But the idea is a brilliant one.
Many Greeks and also Roman Catholics were scandalized by Kazantzakis’ book, which they deemed blasphemy. The Roman Catholic Church placed the book on a list of banned books.
The life of the author, Nikos Kazantzakis, is a life of “spiritual development.” There are ways in which his book, “The Last Temptation of Christ” is not blasphemous at all, but rather pious, in that it seems to acknowledge the historical existence of Christ, and also his divinity and his role in “saving mankind.” As I read through the novel, I shall later comment further. Nikos Kazantzakis led a tormented and confused life, as it seems to me, what little I know. As a young man, he spent some weeks or months in seclusion on Mt. Athos, which has been only male monasteries for hundreds of years. Kazantzakis toyed, in his life, with atheism and Communism. Finally, in this spiritual development of his, he reached a point in his life, towards the end I imagine, where he could write such a book about Christ.
Spiritual journeys always seem to involve alienation and rejection and apostasy, and then return, acceptance, re-integration. There are no promised lands without deserts and wildernesses.
An average mind can find happiness and contentment in most anything. It accepts whatever belief and way of life first comes its way and never doubts or questions. But a great mind is never satisfied with anything. The great mind questions everything and doubts everything. The great mind torments itself and alienates itself from the world of average minds. The great mind creates whole new worlds and then abandons them in disdain. Ultimately those new worlds become absorbed by the average mind as part of the commonplace.
Another “spiritual development” to look at is that of Hans Kung who wrote “On Being Christian.” Hans Kung was a shining star of a young theologian at Vatican II in the 1960s. But then, Kung’s thinking evolved to some point which the Roman Catholic Church found too radical, so he was banned from teaching in Catholic universities. I believe Hans Kung is still alive, as I write this. He is an old man now, and grieves that the Roman Catholic Church will not bend even a little towards acknowledging his writings in some fashion.
A third person to look at, with regard to “spiritual development” is the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. He developed his Existentialism by writing “Being and Nothingness” during World War II. After the war, when Existentialism was very popular, and Sartre could have circled the globe making speaking tours, Sartre rejected Existentialism and moved towards Communism. Towards the end of his life, Sartre became disillusioned with the political fruits of Communism and rejected it as well.
It even occurs to me that one might write about the “spiritual development” of the human race as a whole.
Historically, mankind did not always hold the same views with regard to environmental issues and human rights. We may discuss how such views have evolved over the millennia, apart from geographic, cultural and religious boundaries.
Christian society sees God as willing to incarnate as a lowly, humble meek servant like Jesus, who offers himself up like a lamb to the terrible sacrifice of a death on the Cross to atone for the sins of all mankind.
Christianity my be summarized in the phrase "turn the other cheek" (if someone slaps you on the left cheek, offer to him your right cheek as well, to be slapped.)
Islam may be summed up by a recent television interview with a young man in Pakistan who states, "You slap me ONCE and I will slap you TWICE." That young man was being interviewed regarding the world situation of terrorist retaliation.
I should point out to you that I personally was never brought to any church even once during my childhood and adolescence. I had to develop my own religious beliefs in college, when I was over the age of 19. I spent twenty years trying to be a Greek Orthodox Christian, and even spent one year in a monastery at age 25. Ultimately, in my 40's, my beliefs became more Hindu and Buddhist than anything else.
I am reminded of that wonderful book "Reading Lolita in Tehran" by Professor Nafisi. I have only glanced at excerpts from the book. I just recently began a serious reading of Nabokov's "Lolita."
Islamic societies see novels like "Lolita" and "The Great Gatsby" as illustrations of the decadence of "the great Satan" of western society. Communist societies like Russia and China also have a vested interest or agenda in seeing such books as a symptom of the decadence or moral decay of western capitalistic society.
I recently spoke with a Russian, working in the USA, who read Lolita in Russian. Nabokov translated his own works from English into Russian. The Russian gentleman made the comment that the novel "Lolita" is "decadent" and western in its nature, and in no way a good example of a truly Russian novel.
I shall give you an example from an on line chat I had this year with a graduate student in mainland China who is working towards a masters degree in English language. This student is a male, in his late 20's, and is married. Because of the great time difference between USA and China, it was for him very late, 2:00am in the morning, and time to sleep. He told me that his wife was angry and shouting from the next room for him to turn off the computer and come to bed. As a joke I said to him, "Oh, you should tease her and say, O darling, I guess you want to make love now. I shall come right in." Now, this is the sort of humor that is typical with married couples in USA, and is illustrated on television in situation comedies with great regularity. Well, the Chinese student was horrified by the joke. He said "Oh! In China, no one thinks in this fashion (about sex). We only think about how we may be good citizens and help our community!" I was quite startled by his reaction. I explained to him that, from my perspective as an American, he is parroting the propaganda of his totalitarian regime. Why, of course, people have sexual thoughts and desires, which is perfectly natural and healthy and not at all wicked. But as humans, we also have very wicked and destructive sexual thoughts and desires, as well as non-sexual destructive thoughts and desires about stealing, and intoxication, and murder, and the entire host of human weaknesses and temptations which become the topic of literary masterpieces. Every male has thoughts about sex, whether they are an American capitalist, or a Christian, or a Communist atheist, or an Arab Muslim. We are all potentially capable of actions of the greatest evil, as well as noble and selfless actions of generosity and compassion. From my American perspective, the Chinese student was simply fooling himself and lying to himself by saying that he never has sexual thoughts but is a saintly pure Communist who only thinks about the good of society and helping his fellow man.
People who live in societies which are not free, such as Communist societies, or the Nazi Germany of Hitler, or perhaps even some Islamic extremist society such as Afghanistan under the Taliban, ... such people are constantly bombarded with propaganda and brainwashing until they can only repeat the acceptable "party line" of thoughts like a parrot.
Of course, America has its own brand of propaganda, which perhaps has changed markedly from decade to decade. Prior to 1950, the courts banned certain books for sexual indecency, such as Ulysses by James Joyce. The propaganda of that time was that a woman was terrible if she did not wait until marriage to lose her virginity. During Prohibition, in the 1920's which forbid the sale or use of alcohol, the propaganda was that alcohol was bad, and that no one should have it. The Prohibition laws made possible a lucrative criminal black market and Speak-easies (illegal nightclubs where alcohol was sold). Hence Prohibition was repealed in the 1930's and sale of alcohol was again permitted.
The rhetoric and propaganda of the 1960's was one of sexual revolution and liberation. Laws of censorship were repealed to allow sexually explicit novels to be openly published and sold.
In the USA, heroine and marijuana are criminalized. In England, heroine users simply register with the government and are provided with needles and heroine. In certain Scandinavian countries, marijuana is perfectly legal.
I once questioned a grocery store owner in the USA, who had immigrated from an Islamic country, Yemen. I asked him about the availability of alcohol in his country. He explained that one could purchase alcohol illegally on the black market, but he added that there was NO WAY in the world, even on the black market, that someone could purchase pork meat.
Now, with the Internet, and e-mail, and message boards, the entire world has become one big free conversation. Here, right now, you and I, an old man in USA, and a young student on the opposite side of the world, are communicating freely about anything we choose, and we have access to much reading material, in translation, which was never available to anyone in previous centuries. The result of this process of globalization, if it continues for the next hundred years, will be the gradual eroding of cultural and religious and national boundaries.
The controversial novel of Salman Rushdie, "Satanic Verses" is banned in India and in various Islamic countries. I once found on the internet a complete version of the novel (even though it is under copyright), obviously placed there to allow people in countries where it is banned to read the book. There is a scene in that book where a Muslim renounces Islam and gorges himself on pork. The scene is quite comical. He is stuffing his mouth with every form of pork and sausage, and sausages are leaking out from the sides of his mouth. This scene of pork gluttony is perhaps a symbol of someone who has become secular and atheist.
Here is the passage about pork gluttony:
The recovery was as mysterious as the illness, and as rapid. It, too, was called (by hospital, journalists, friends) an act of the Supreme. A national holiday was declared; fireworks were set off up and down the land. But when Gibreel regained his strength, it became clear that he had changed, and to a startling degree, because he had lost his faith.
On the day he was discharged from hospital he went under police escort through the immense crowd that had gathered to celebrate its own deliverance as well as his, climbed into his Mercedes and told the driver to give all the pursuing vehicles the slip, which took seven hours and fifty-one minutes, and by the end of the manoeuvre he had worked out what had to be done. He got out of the limousine at the Taj hotel and without looking left or right went directly into the great dining-room with its buffet table groaning under the weight of forbidden foods, and he loaded his plate with all of it, the pork sausages from Wiltshire and the cured York hams and the rashers of bacon from godknowswhere; with the gammon steaks of his unbelief and the pig's trotters of secularism; and then, standing there in the middle of the hall, while photographers popped up from nowhere, he began to eat as fast as possible, stuffing the dead pigs into his face so rapidly that bacon rashers hung out of the sides of his mouth.
During his illness he had spent every minute of consciousness calling upon God, every second of every minute. Ya Allah whose servant lies bleeding do not abandon me now after watching oven me so long. Ya Allah show me some sign, some small mark of your favour, that I may find in myself the strength to cure my ills. O God most beneficent most merciful, be with me in this my time of need, my most grievous need. Then it occurred to him that he was being punished, and for a time that made it possible to suffer the pain, but after a time he got angry. Enough, God, his unspoken words demanded, why must I die when I have not killed, are you vengeance or are you love? The anger with God carried him through another day, but then it faded, and in its place there came a terrible emptiness, an isolation, as he realized he was talking to _thin air_, that there was nobody there at all, and then he felt more foolish than ever in his life, and he began to plead into the emptiness, ya Allah, just be there, damn it, just be. But he felt nothing, nothing nothing, and then one day he found that he no longer needed there to be anything to feel. On that day of metamorphosis the illness changed and his recovery began. And to prove to himself the non-existence of God, he now stood in the dining-hall of the city's most famous hotel, with pigs falling out of his face.
But, getting back to our question of "spiritual development," we see that in the 19th century, writers like George Eliot are writing books to morally instruct or lead people in the direction of faith, while in the 20th century, people are writing postmodernist type books to lead people away from traditional faith and beliefs.
Spirituality is a two way street, and both sides of the street are lined with words of rhetoric to propel us on our journey. And at one extreme, this street leads to some brand of fundamentalism, whether Christian or Islamic or Hindu or Buddhist, which can be quite divisive, dividing the world into two camps, the camp of satan and the camp of god, creating much hatred under the banner of brotherhood and love; while at the opposite extreme of this street is an atheistic humanism which offers great individual freedom of choice in an atmosphere of serene equanimity.
When I was age 18, I read the Alexandrian Quartet by Lawrence Durrell, four novels: Justine, Balthazar, Mountolive and Clea. I would not call them pornographic, but there was a certain amount of sexual content. But the setting of the novels was Alexandria, Egypt. The four main characters, Justine, Balthazar, Mountolive, and Clea, were Europeans and were not Muslim. But there were a number of scenes in the novel which made reference to the Qu'ran and Islamic life. One scene describes some Egyptian businessmen who hire a blind Muzzine to recite portions of the Qu'ran. The businessmen are brought to tears by the beauty of certain verses. Reading these novels made me quite curious about the Qu'ran and Islam. So, I purchased a paperback copy of "The Meaning of the Glorious Koran" in English, translated by Muhammed Marmaduke Pickthall. That summer, before college, I forced myself to read every page, and look up any word which I did not understand. I did not find the Qu'ran as interesting as Durrell's novels, nor even as interesting as the Bible, but found it somewhat tedious and repetitious. I never felt an urge to convert to Islam. I just thought I would share with you this interesting story from my college years.
The world is transformed with words, one person at a time.
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