The secular angel in contemporary children's literature: David ...

ased on Blake’s idea of the contraries, where opposing ideas and concepts are an essential
part in forming a complete self. In Pullman’s trilogy, the edges between these two notions are
not as hazy or undefined. Although the question is posed as well as commented on to a great
extent, the positions held by the characters involved, especially Mary Malone, clearly allude
to an ideology in which faith, in everything except the self and people, has been removed
almost entirely and from its very roots. It should be noted, of course, that even in Skellig, the
faith that was implemented by the characters was not directed at God, or any particular
religious figure, but at the notion that there can be something that is beyond our understanding
and something that defies the boundaries of reality; therefore, in Skellig it was faith in the
unknown or the unexpected that formed a definitive pair with science and the laws of nature.
In HDM I argue that the faith which is already in place within the worlds, led by a corrupt
authoritarian, is a flawed creation. Over the centuries, this has resulted and succeeded in
oppressing the ones who stand on the other side of this corrupted belief, and who are being
judged daily based on a set of rules and regulations put in place by a select few whose sole
purpose is to control and oppress while serving their needs and quenching their thirst for
power at the expense of others. This faith, described by both Mary Malone and Lord Asriel,
but also brought to light by the actions of Mrs Coulter and the Magisterium, is a driving force
which must be stopped in order for humanity to regain freedom, and the knowledge that will
enable it to use it well. The following quotation is representative and indicative of the view of
religion and its representatives that the author wishes to portray:
‘And finally,’ said Father MacPhail, ‘the child. Still just a child, I think. This
Eve, who is going to be tempted and who, if precedent is any guide, will fall,
and whose fall will involve us all in ruin. Gentlemen, of all the ways of dealing
with the problem she sets us, I am going to propose the most radical, and I
have confidence in your agreement.’
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