IN CLOSING,

I would like to share some thoughts on the ending of our class, but first I would like to explore some possibilities presented by my fellow students. Within their papers, both Zach and Sam explore how the most re-occurring term of this class (I don't think I need to say what that that is...), is what makes The Magus such an enthralling novel. The situations the protagonist finds himself in are disguised as mysterious events, yet we we have found ourselves in the exact same circumstances at one point or another. Metaphorically speaking, this book transforms into a mirror, and enables the reader to look at themselves for the first time.


I agree with Zach's thesis; John Fowles successfully captures the attention of the reader because of the stereotypical relationships in which he places his protagonist. Throughout the novel, Nicholas engages in the roles of both puppet and puppeteer. In the beginning, Nicholas plays Alison, in the middle, Conchis plays Nicholas, in the end Nicholas is shown what he has done.

I found that the ending of The Magus served as a prompt to the reader to reflect upon the lessons that Nicholas learned (or didn't), and from that point to reflect upon what their own relationships have (or have not) taught them. Many people expressed discontent at the end of this novel, but eventually I have come to appreciate its open ended nature. If it had a defined ending, I most likely would have thought about what a nice book it was, and then placed it on the shelf without further thought. However, the possibilities presented by lack of explanation keep me thinking about what could and could not have been.

I have never studied mythology before, but in some ways I already have. All mythological stories are predictable, because they have already happened, are happening, and are going to happen all at the same time. Mythology is omnipresent. It fills every available space of the human conscious. It arrives suddenly, possesses, and then is gone again.  They may appear as foreign objects, but these stories are the foundation of who we are. It is where we are, where we have been, and where we are going.

Thank you Dr. Sexson, for bringing me into the enlightening world of myth.

400 YEARS

This evening, Doctor Sexson and seven talented MSU students acted out an incredibly entertaining celebration of the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible and William Shakespeare's The Tempest.

For some reason I was expecting a lecture based-format, and was pleasantly surprised by the talented musical that unfolded before me. The performance was structured as a musically enhanced conversation between the eight people on stage, which functioned as a commentary on contemporary issues presented by these two foundational texts. One of the major topics that recurred throughout the evening was the declining literacy of today's society, which included several comical demonstrations. Another intriguing subject mentioned was the issue of the Bible being viewed as an idol, without those who hold it in high esteem having any true comprehension of its contents. Although the issues mentioned this evening were of a highly serious nature, the performers were able to discuss them in a manner that kept the audience very engaged. The section of the performance I found most entertaining was a debate between Dr. Sexson and the actor adjacent to him. In this debate they bounced responses of Biblical text off of one another, with Dr. Sexson representing the eloquence of the KJV, and the actor representing the slang of modern times.

I am embarrassed to say that I have not yet read The Tempest, so I did not appreciate the puns focused on it in as much as those playing on the KJV. However, I was very much impressed by the evening's performance, and thought that it was a very enjoyable way to spend an hour break from writing papers.

METAPHYSICAL CONFINEMENT

            John Fowles’s The Magus is a captivating novel focused on the development (or lack thereof) of a young Englishman by the name of Nicholas Urfe. Throughout the text, he struggles with his perceptions of reality and his own identity. In an attempt to escape the dull monotony of his English life, he accepts a teaching position on the remote Greek island of Phraxos.  Although exotic journeys frequently expand an individual’s sense of freedom, in the case of this novel it is one such journey that ultimately extends the mental confinement of the protagonist.

            Physically, islands are of a confining nature, and Phraxos is no different. In addition to this attribute, it is also mentally confining. The narrator describes it as a place where one’s thoughts become “magnified by solitude” (Fowles 51). It is this quality that proves to be counter-productive to Nicholas’s original goal of escaping the confinements of England and his relationship with Alison. Immediately after what was described as an emotionally harrowing experience, Nicholas “began to hum, and it was not a brave attempt to hide my grief, but a revolting unclouded desire to celebrate my release” (48). This confession of Nicholas’s inner thoughts provides the reader with new insight in which to view the novel’s protagonist. Although it had been alluded to earlier in the novel, at this point the reader is given a glimpse into the emotionally stunted state that the protagonist is in. Due to multiple factors (namely lack of development at an earlier age) Nicholas is incapable of developing any sort of tangible emotional attachment to another individual, and this is largely the reason for his long history of womanizing. Due to his inability to develop a healthy relationship, Nicholas views relationships as a type of confinement. The position on Phraxos is an opportunity to escape that confinement.

            While initially it is the solitude of the island itself that confines the protagonist, it is ultimately the island’s inhabitants that hold him captive. Once incorporated into the rituals of Bourani, Mr. Urfe cannot think of anything else. Conchis’s deceptions are so effective that they have the ability to transcend the limits of physical confinement and enter the realm of mental confinement. The effects are so profound that Nicholas feels that it was “as if the world had suddenly, during those last three days, been re-invented, and for me alone” (157). After his first few visits to Bourani, Nicholas equates its allure to a “force, like a magnet, drawing me out of the classroom windows” (242). The narrator’s testaments illustrate the effectiveness that Conchis has accomplished in his deception. Ultimately, it is made apparent that the most convincing deception of all is made possible through the allure of female sexuality.

As the reader progresses through the text, it becomes obvious that the crowning achievement of Conchis’s deceptions on the island is the power that “Julie” holds over Nicholas. Throughout the novel, the character of “Lilly/Julie” undergoes several changes in both appearance and mentality, including which side she is on between Conchis and Nicholas. However, Nicholas is so captivated by Julie that he believes her every time she assumes a new role within the larger deception.
            The very first time the narrator sees the island, he describes its beauty as being “simply and effortlessly beautiful” (50), “so all-present, so intense, so wild, that the relationship is immediately love-hatred, one of passion” (49). In a sense, the island can be metaphorically compared to the characteristics that the narrator thinks that he desires in a woman. Just like the island, Julie’s beauty is simple and classic. However, the turmoil through which she places Nicholas causes his relationship with her to be of love-hatred. In contrast, the beauty of Alison seems to be more common, quite like the dull life Nicholas left behind in England. In the sense of mental capacity, Julie is much more developed than Alison. The narrator describes Alison as being rather simple in nature and fascinated with the banalities of carnal love. Due to his self-reflected view of being an intellectual, Nicholas seems to think that he requires someone that will match his ability to appreciate what he views as a more metaphysical love.

Over the course of the novel Julie develops into what Nicholas believes will be the love of his life, but her final and greatest deception crushes that dream into the ground. The effect of the final conceit is so profound that it caused the unemotional narrator’s eyes to “fill with tears of frustrated rage and humiliation” (489).  It is through this final lesson that Conchis attempts to show Nicholas the extent of the damage he has done to those involved in his past relationships. Through the character of “Julie”, he has essentially created what Nicholas views as the perfect woman, beautiful both physically and mentally. He is so obsessed with the narcissistic pursuit of perfection that he cannot see the value of what he already has.

Alison provided Nicholas with essentially unconditional love, to which he did not respond. She had the potential to satisfy his every need, yet he chose the possibilities of the unknown instead. He originally went to Greece as an attempt to escape what he viewed as his confinement, but it only furthered its contraction. The process of becoming part of “the elect” was allegedly supposed to help Nicholas expand his mind and accept his own faults, yet at the end of the novel his lack of development is made apparent to the reader. In the final scene, he treats Alison very poorly, and does not show any signs of emotional progress. In the beginning, Nicholas was confined by the dullness of London and his relationships. In the middle, he was confined by the allure of Bourani. Ultimately, it is Nicholas’s utter selfishness that confines him to the limits of his own expectations and limits his ability to share any true love.

RIP: KYLE MILLER

BUGS BUNNY & BAR HOPPING

METAMORPHOSIS

There appears to be a general consensus that Nicholas's lack of a transformation is one of the great disappointments of The Magus. However, as Zach points out in his blog it is possible that Allison plays a much larger role within the plot than is apparent at the first reading. This notion has compelled me to explore the theme of transformation within this novel.

Dr. Sexson said in lecture yesterday that one of the ways you can tell that someone is suffering from a mental condition is their denial of said condition. This description is very befitting for Mr. Nicholas Urfe. If one were to subscribe to this notion, than the end of the novel perfectly illustrates Nicholas's lack of a transformation. In the final scene he still cannot understand what his faults are, and attempts to place the blame for them on the puppeteers of the god game as well as Allison.

I recently read a passage from the Bible that prompted me to think back to an earlier point in the novel:

"These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb".  Revelation 7.14

This verse from the book of Revelation reminded me of the trial scene. The thirteenth figure to appear at the table was dressed in a "long white smock". After the removal of their costumes, all of the "doctors" present at the judgement table are dressed professionally, and it would appear that they have been through the transformation of Bourani themselves, and come out of it as part of a different segment, the elect. They are no longer bounded to the limitations of their ignorance, but have achieved a higher sense of consciousness through their own tribulations. Unfortunately, as Megan noted in her blog the reader never gets solid evidence for any transformation in Nicholas.

While she did not go through the same ordeal as Nicholas, it would appear that Allison has made the biggest transformation of any character in the novel. Prior to Nicholas's departure, she was limited by her need for a relationship, a factor that stunted her mental and emotional growth. After his return, Allison is presented as an individual who no longer needs their relationship to survive.

This theory may be wild unfounded speculation, but it is the result of exploration that is made possioble by the open ending of this novel.

DIVING INTO THE DEPTHS...

of the Magus.

"a grim realization of new depths of treachery"

I have read few books that have confounded my sense of reality as much as this novel. At several points during my reading, I thought that I had finally grasped the underlying message behind the text. Time and time again however, this grasp on the plot's events was shattered and I was forced to re-evaluate the situation. Upon completion of The Magus, I was so overwhelmed by the story that I decided it would take some time to arrive at any sort of conclusion about its veiled implications.

It is the kind of literature that captivates your imagination, and does not release you until you are done reading. The plot is like a never-ending spider web, except that some of the strands are false, and if you walk upon them they will break. Like Mr. Urfe, I sometimes felt that Lilly could finally be trusted, yet time and time again her testimonies were proven false.

I found "Julie"'s unveiling to be the most simultaneously provoking and engaging passage of the novel. At that point I finally felt as though had an idea of the direction of the plot's ending, but her abrupt departure from the bedroom quickly ended that assumption. This is one of the few events in the novel that made me feel true sympathy for Nicholas. He had totally given his trust and love to Julie, only to be brutally brought back into the reality of deception.

"My eyes began to fill with tears of frustrated rage and humiliation. I realized at last what Julie's final look at me had been like. It was that of a surgeon who has just performed a difficult operation successfully; peeling off the rubber gloves, surveying the suture. Trial, flames... they were all mad, they must be, and she the most vicious, shameless, degenerate...."

It is with this passage that Fowles completely captivated my attention and evoked sympathy for Nicholas. It is hard to imagine trusting someone so completely, only to have it stripped away in a matter of moments. Once I gave it some thought however, I began to see through the primary occurrences of the scene and understand some of the motives behind the experiment. In a way, it appears as though this passage could be viewed as an ironic commentary on the way Nicholas treated Alison. He fell in love with Julie, became obsessed with her, was finally united with her, only to have it all taken away. Perhaps  Conchis used this as a way to show Nicholas the gravity of his selfishness and the way he has hurt his past lovers.

Hopefully tomorrow's discussion will be apocalyptic and shed some light on the ending of this complex novel.

DECLINE OF THE PRINTED WORD

This post is written as a response to Jerrod's latest blog entry, regarding the increasingly book-less world we live in. As a literature major, I take it for granted that most people read on a regular basis, but this is by no mean the case.

After a quick google search I found a truly startling statistic form the Washington Post. According to a survey they had conducted, one in four American adults admitted to not having read a single book over the course of the past year. At first I found this statistic to be unbelievable, so I decided to conduct my own survey on the matter. There are four people in my house, myself being the only humanities student, one business student, and two engineering students. Two of them said that they read for pleasure during Christmas and summer breaks, but the third said that he does not read at all. I was flabbergasted, the very statistic I found on the internet was accurately represented in my own house! What are the chances of one in four roommates not being a reader? Simple, one in three...

BEAL & DEAL: ICONIC SCRIPTURE

 Earlier tonight I attended the lecture "Iconic Scriptures in Buddhism and Christianity", presented by William Deal and Timothy Beal (yes, those are their real names). The title on the ticket, "Symbols and Scriptures of Jesus and Buddha", made it appear as though the evening would be centered on the focal figures of the two respective religions, but I found it to be much more focused on how the sacred texts of the two religions function.

William deal opened the presentation with an overview of what exactly the two men studied, and whether or not the study of comparative religion is in fact a viable field. Deal referenced Max Muller, said to be the founding father of the discipline, and discussed his philosophy that the true fundamentals of any given religion can be found by examining the text upon which it is based. Towards the end of the introduction, Deal gave the audience an idea of the definition of scripture is through the eyes of someone who studies religion at the professional level: he stated that it is a sacred text that has some sort of interaction (be it religious or cultural) with a community of persons.

Timothy Beal then proceeded to present facts and some of his ideas surrounding the Bible, with a particular focus on the King James Version (the 400th birthday of which is this year). He discussed the idea of scripture (the Bible) being an aesthetic, cultural, and highly visual medium versus the more traditional idea of it being a disembodied collection of words that is to be studied as such. This idea was elaborated upon in an examination of how the bible has morphed into an ideological icon. The term "bible" no longer necessarily refers to the Christian sacred text implicitly, but can also be used to refer to other authoritative works. Some examples Beal included to illustrate his point are the Shooter's Bible, the Bartender's Bible, the Hot Rodder's Bible, etc. The final interpretation I gathered of the modern cultural use of the word "bible" can be described by the following characteristics:

- It is the ultimate authority on the subject matter it covers
- It speaks for itself, and does not contain any contradictions
- It is practical in nature
- It is accessible for the common man to read
- It is comprehensive
- It is exclusive (admits no rivals)
- "the book of books"

After Beal concluded his discussion of Christian scripture, Deal began his lecture on the Lotus Sutra scriptures of Buddhism. I found this portion of the lecture to be particularly intriguing because I know very little about the Buddhist religion. According to Beal, a sutra is the discourse of the Buddha (his actual words), that are written down by a disciple. Most of the sutras begin with the phrase"thus I have heard", and most of them are recorded by the disciple Ananda. There are four major teachings of the sutras that Deal presented:

1) One Vehicle
             - The diversity of the doctrines are gathered into one Buddhist teaching vehicle
2) Universal Buddhahood
             - The promise that all sentient beings will someday achieve buddhahood (enlightenment)
3) Hoben
             - This will be achieved with an expedient device and skillful means
4) Mappo
             - There will be salvation in the period of the end of the Dharma (teaching, law), when the people          
                of the earth have grown the farthest from the Buddha and have the most difficulty
               understanding his teachings

Within the Buddhist religion, there are 5 practices when it comes to the scriptures:

1) upholding
2) reading
3) recitation (chanting)
4) preaching
5) copying

Deal's portion of the lecture seemed to be less focused on how the scriptures of Buddhism function as a cultural icon, and more of an examination of how they function as a tool for the religiously devout.

While I certainly enjoyed listening to what Beal & Deal had to say about their respective academic pursuits, I felt that there was something lacking from the presentation. Beal succeeded in getting his ideas across about the ways in which the bible functions as a cultural icon, but Deal was cut short and was not able to finish his lecture on how the Sutras function culturally. I think I would have gotten a lot more out of the evening if their had been more time allowed for the two men to build upon what the other said, and form some sort of discussion based upon the comparison of how the two texts function similarly and differently in their respective cultures.

After listening to what the two men had to say, I thought of a potential discussion topic for class. I think it would be interesting to explore the idea of how (or if) ideological texts within mythology function in today's "post literate" world.

DAY OF THE DEAD

Four Beasts

Oftentimes rituals are associated with some sort of solemn ceremony pertaining to religion or some other highly organized meeting, but the more common rituals are the ones that we conduct as a part of our everyday lives. The best definition that I found for this type of ritual came from the dictionary app on my computer: "a series of actions or type of behavior regularly and invariably followed by someone". I have many of these types of rituals in my life, such as taking my dog for a run every morning before class. Another activity that I do ritualistically whenever I drive anywhere is listen to country music, and as a result of this activity I know the lyrics to many songs by heart. Today in class Dr. Sexson mentioned the image of the four beasts and the white horse from the bible, and instantly it made me realize where the lyrics of one of my favorite songs comes from.

"And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts...
And I looked and behold, a pale horse
And his name that sat on him was Death
And Hell followed with him"

- Johnny Cash

This quote from Revelation was used by one of my favorite musical artists in one of the last songs he wrote before he died. Another place that this subject appears in the bible is in the book of Daniel, which I recently read for my Bible as Literature class. In one of Daniel's dreams, he sees four beasts arise from the sea. The first beast is a lion with eagle's wings, the second a bear with three tusks protruding from its mouth, the third a leopard with the wings of a bird on its back and four heads. The fourth beast is described as the most gruesome of the four, "terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong", with ten horns.

According to the interpretation of the dream, the four beasts symbolize the four kings that are to arise out of the earth, and the 10 horns of the fourth beast represent the smaller kingdoms within it. In his dream Daniel also saw an additional horn emerge out of the fourth beast and three of the original horns were plucked out by the roots to make room for it. This in turn symbolizes the emergence of a new kingdom that is to take out three of the existing kingdoms, and rise to power. After a time the emerging power will be crushed due to to its king's ill spoken words against the most high, and "the holy ones of Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever". The ability of the holy ones to suddenly arrive and possess others reminded me of the powerful deity Dionysus, and his track record of stripping people of their power through possessing them.

On the same note, I found connections to the theme of possessing in The Magus. After spending time at Bourani, Nicholas Urfe is so captivated that it is all he can think about when he is not there. The mysteries surrounding his visits are so intriguing that they totally possess him and do not allow him to focus on anything else. 

This is how rituals are for some people, they possess them so totally that they cannot function without performing them on a regular basis. Some people take this to the extreme, like the example that Megan shared about her ex-roommate's specific cup spacing requirement of 1.5 inches. From a medical standpoint, this condition is referred to as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. If one were to view the subject in a more mythological light however, it may be interpreted that these people are possessed by some external factor, like a deity. Who knows, maybe those people are destined to perform a task that will only be possible with the aid of godly power. While our everyday rituals may seem trivial, many of them are "heroic" ( according to Dr. Sexson), and possibly contribute to the fulfillment of some larger task not yet known to us... 

Day dreamin'

In Thursday's class, professor Sexson gave us the requirement of having a dream over the weekend. Due to my undying loyalty to LIT 285 (as well as some significant sleep deprivation) I obliged to this requirement on Friday afternoon. It was roughly 1 or 2 o'clock in the afternoon, and I decided to take a quick 20 minute power nap in between classes. At the end of said nap is when my dream occurred, albeit short in duration. In the dream I was walking my dog through the neighborhoods of Bozeman, and from behind a hedge a lion leaped out and attacked my dog and I. I awoke right as the mouth of the lion was about to close upon my face. To think that a lion would be prowling right here in town! After regaining consciousness for a few minutes I realized the obvious link between my dream and our discussion of how the incredibly mythological Oz can be found right here in Bozeman. While I don't foresee experiencing an actual lion attack while walking my dog, I do think that this dream is symbolic of how prevalent mythology can be, we simply need to open our eyes in order to see it.

For various reasons it may appear as though we need to dig deep in order to search for mythology in the world around us, but in reality it can be found in our everyday lives. Sometimes it will even jump right on top of you, so keep your eyes peeled.

Rape of the Mental Nature

"it is the sudden, obsessive invasion that plucks away the flower of thought"

- The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony, page 52


After last Thursday's discussion, I began to contemplate the different types of rape other than that of the physical nature. Rape is an incredibly strong word in today's society, and most frequently invokes imagery of one being forced into undesired sexual activity. Upon reading Roberto Calasso's definition of the word, I started to think about other forms of rape. Calasso's definition seems to imply that the nature of the invasion is more mental than physical, and that is the road that I began to trod upon in my thoughts.

Once I began to think about the topic, I realized there were several occasions I could recall from the recent past of mental rape. There are many ways in which one can be mentally raped, and it is not necessarily that uncommon. One example that instantly came to mind was film. While watching the incredibly popular film, Avatar, I was so enraptured by all that was going on in the movie that all other thoughts left my mind. By the end of the film I felt as though I was a part of the world of Pandora. So, according to Calasso's definition I was mentally raped by the film. After the film ended  I almost felt let down that I was not an Avatar on the planet Pandora. At first I thought that I may have been unique in my experience, but upon walking out of the theater my girlfriend at the time said she had experienced the same thing. To think, that I mere Friday night flick could have such an effect on us! Over the course of a couple weeks after I saw the film, my online news source stated that people across the nation were experiencing the exact same phenomenon. The effects were so drastic that a few people had actually committed suicide because their own lives seemed so pale in comparison to Pandora.

"when the divine reaches down to touch the world, is rape"

- MCH, p. 52

While my experience in the movie theater may not have been divine, it is incredible to think about how much audio/visual stimulation can mentally rape the processes within our brains.

Tree appreciation

"To tell a story meant to weave those two series of parallel events together, to make both worlds visible"
-The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony

Myths are oftentimes taken for granted, yet they can hold sway over the very foundations of modern culture. In a large way this seems to be linked to our culture's shifting use of spare time. In today's ever increasing technological age, young children are reading fewer and fewer stories depicting the myths of our ancestors, and their time is becoming dominated by the various formats of modern media. Every year, millions of children are born into a world that no longer emphasizes the significance of the very stories upon which modern traditions are based.

I personally can admit to my own ignorance in this respect, as I have never truly appreciated the repercussions of some myths. After our first mythology class yesterday, I was able to think upon my Bible as Literature class from that morning in a different light. In said class, we were assigned to read the first half of Genesis, in which the creation of man and woman is depicted. At first, Adam was alone in the Garden of Eden, and then God created woman from one of Adam's ribs in order to provide him with a partner. If one were to view this passage as a work of literature rather than holy scripture, it could be interpreted that the author used this depiction as a way to develop the subsidiary role of woman under man. So in theory, the author successfully created a myth upon which human kind has built their social structure for all of written history.

If one were to link what we learned in the first day of class to the previously included quote of Roberto Calasso, the purpose of myth is to make sense of our own time by realting it to the past.