George MacDonald

something much deeper and bigger. Another aspect of Lewis’ interpretation of Heaven is demonstrated through The Great Divorce when the ghosts cannot endure the ‘realness’ of Heaven because they insist upon holding onto their selfish, sinful nature. Of course, as the Spirits keep urging, ghosts can eat the fruit, drink the water, and walk on the grass if they prefer light to darkness, do God’s will rather than their own, and conquer pride with humility. The narrator (C.S. Lewis), one of the ghosts who desires to enter the heavenly kingdom and not return to the city, enjoys a conversation with the Spirit addressed as Teacher, George Macdonald, one of Lewis’s mentors in the art of fantasy literature. The Teacher explains the strange psychology of the Ghosts as the mentality of Milton’s Satan who boasted, “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.” Macdonald compares these ghosts to a petulant child who “would sooner miss its play and supper than say it was sorry and be friends.” Some of the spirits described in The Great Divorce willingly submit to the will of their Creator and give up their sinful desires such as selfishness and grudges by being willing to accept grace for themselves as well as others. Ghosts that could not accept this could not endure Heaven because they could not see the larger picture of God’s ultimate story. Although the ghosts held ideas of what was most important, they were only temporary things compared to the realness of Heaven. Heaven boasts much…

C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien are considered to be two of the greatest authors of the last century. Ralph C. Wood in his article “Conflict and Convergence on Fundamental Matters in C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien” analyzes the stylistic and philosophical differences between these two authors. His article focuses on the correlation between an author’s philosophy and writings. Although Wood makes valid arguments he is clearly biased towards Tolkien, therefore affecting his credibility. Wood…

A hero is someone who meets a need, has an impact on others or rescues someone whose life is in jeopardy. A hero is selfless and kind and good. In many works of fiction or fantasy there is a hero to save the day, there is someone that helps others achieve their goal or be in peace. But there is not always a need for a hero. Lilith: A romance by George Macdonald, does not require a hero. This is proven by the fact that every character was their own enemy and savior, the presence of a hero would…

Over history, numerous figures have been claimed to be the real Architect of Canadian Confederation. This article will explore the rationale behind the selection of Sir John A Macdonald, the first Prime Minister, as this role. Macdonald’s national appeal, political skill and ability to bring together various conflicting interests elevate him above all other contenders to become the true architect of Canadian Confederation. The argument will consist of three major parts: first, John A Macdonald’s…

Despite a cultural divide, the popular representation of French-Canadian Sir Georges-Etienne Cartier in Quebec was oddly less than his English counterpart Sir John A. Macdonald. Noted by historian Cecelia Morgan, Macdonald’s statue in Montreal was erected 4 years after his death, while the memorialization of Cartier in the city which he resided in took 39 years. Cartier’s inexplicable belittlement caused by the delay in the creation of his statue can only be caused by Anglocentrism. Eventually…

The railway network expands from Vancouver in the west to Montreal in the east and has railways across the border to Minneapolis, Chicago, New York City and other cities. Speaking of Canadian Pacific Railway, its history and meaning are important. The reason of build such a railway is to unify a new country and its completion was an important tool to eliminate aggression from the United State and maintain national security. It also bears the dream of governing the country and political ideas of…

MacDonald had big dreams for all of Canada. His dream consisted of a transcontinental British nation in North America. The issue with this dream is that it’s excessively costly. Over $100,000,000 would have to be invested into the railway, keeping in mind that Canada consisted of only 3.5 million people and wages were as low as $1 per day. (pg.8, National Dream) The formation of the Canadian Pacific Railway was an extraordinary idea of how to stitch the scattered provinces and empty territories…

Several times in history, there have been leaders whose actions were criticized by their citizens, but sometimes those actions can end up benefiting the country. On July 1st, 1867, Sir John Alexander Macdonald was elected into the Canadian Government as the first Prime Minister and three years later he purchased Rupert’s Land, which includes settlement of many First Nations including the Metis at Red River. When Macdonald tried to expand westward, the Metis and their leader, Louis Riel, tried to…

Charles Rennie Mackintosh was a talented and successful architect and designer in the 19th and 20th century who worked in Glasgow and is best known for several remaining creations within the city. Recognized as the father of “Glasgow Style” which created and inspired a new approach to architecture. Born in 1868 on June 7th, Charles Mackintosh studied art and design where he was interested in drawing programmes at the Glasgow School of Art as well as trained as an architecture under John…

The immigration policy causes and consequences In Canada during the year of 1879, Our first prime minister Sir John A Macdonald introduced the National Policy. The national policy came in three separate parts. Imposing the Protective tariffs, Building the transcontinental railway and the strict Immigration policy. The Purpose of the Policy was to shape Canada into a strong true country that did not have to rely on the U.S. Although all three steps of the National policy had an impact on canada…