The new TV series, His Dark Materials, is based on the series of
novels by Philip Pullman, depicting a young girl's adventures in an
imaginary world with similarities and dissimilarities to our own.
The story tells of world domination by a religious body, the
Magisterium, with malevolent intentions, serving a really existing
God who is evil and who can be killed. The story, in all its
manifestations, as novels, movies, and television shows, has
received fierce criticism from religious organizations, especially
because its criticisms of religion are aimed primarily at children.
While the story is a thrilling adventure yarn, enjoyed by millions
of children and grownups alike, it raises many philosophical
issues. In the world of His Dark Materials (or one of its many
worlds) humans have an animal companion to which they are
emotionally linked and which is like an external 'soul'. This
provokes questions about the human personality and the way we think
of humans as having bodies, minds, and maybe also souls. Human
psychology can be analyzed by psychoanalysis and other theories,
some of which are explored in His Dark Materials and Philosophy.
Questions of social and political philosophy are also prompted by
the story of His Dark Materials. The malignant Magisterium has
similarities with the various churches and other religious
organizations which have wielded tremendous power both politically
and culturally, throughout human history. The relation of the
Magisterium to the mysterious "dust" which pervades the universe
helps us to understand the relationship of science, religion, and
metaphysics. Ever since Friedrich Nietzsche proclaimed that "God is
dead," the question of what Nietzsche meant and what are the
consequences of the death of God has agitated many thinkers, and so
the story in which God is actually killed enables a closer look at
the death of God. A popular theme in philosophy and in modern
fantasy stories, is that of possible worlds, including how possible
worlds relate to parallel worlds. His Dark Materials has many
alternative worlds (one of which happens to be our own) and is
filled with rich materials for discussion of these questions. His
Dark Materials is a good example of a good story, and therefore
provides materials for the branch of philosophy called aesthetics,
especially the aesthetics of storytelling. We can learn what makes
a good story from thinking about specific stories such as His Dark
Materials. One chapter looks at the existentialist implications of
the story, another at the feminist implications, and another at the
Marxist interpretation. Other chapters focus on specific aspects of
metaphysics and epistemology, as well as controversial topics in
ethics and philosophy of religion.
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