Lilith (Hardcover)

Lilith is built upon a very old myth about the first wife of Adam-an angelic being-who was said to have been very rebellious and eventually was replaced by the more subservient human Eve (Lewis also references this myth in "That Hideous Strength"). I am not altogether certain where or how the story originated except that the Hebrew word which is translated "night specter" is lilyt, which must have somehow given rise to the story about the female demon who seeks to over power men. At points in the MacDonald narrative Adam reverts to King James old English in addressing Lilith, a touch I found a little disturbing. While the character of Lilith embodies the flesh in all of us-not just women-the use of the KJV linguistic style between Adam and Lilith seemed to adhere to the perceived rightness and superiority of the male-oriented theology of the middle ages (when the original myth was likely to have gained momentum as a means of shaming women into more subservient roles).

MacDonald uses this ancient myth to create a fantastic tale about the battle between spirit and flesh but in the telling he divulges vast philosophical/theological thoughts that take considerable energy to wade through. In the absence of realism, the philosophical core makes up for other narrative flaws. But, it's a very difficult story to read and absorb quickly. I made it about  of the way through several months ago but was only able to pick it up again to finish recently.

The world MacDonald creates in this book is incredibly opaque and over-painted with layer after layer of meaning. One could drill down into each sentence in some places and find a wealth of unending content to explore. It's almost a stream of consciousness style that leaves the reader feeling like they've just fallen, somehow, between the written words and their meaning. Often times I felt like I was barely touching on that deep significance before being carried away on a completely different current. He changes gears very quickly and uses an abundance of metaphorical images that get very mixed together like literary soup. I don't doubt that MacDonald had an incredible mind, but his manner of presenting the material is difficult to follow at best.

It is easy to see MacDonald's influence in Lewis' writings, although I would say that Lewis wields words (and ideas) a little more kindly.

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A couple further capiats: MacDonald's belief in universal salvation is clearly demonstrated, and his argument that the only way Good can truly be greater than Evil is if all Evil will one day succumb to Good by becoming Good has a certain, if incomplete persuasion. It was also surprising to see MacDonald making use of ancient Gnostic/Jewish heresies such as Lilith, the first wife of Adam.

I highly recommend the book however for it's depth of imagery, for the ideas that can extend into one's mind and bring forth something new, as we give up the old ones. MacDonald's layers and repetitions hearken to something Biblical, or Joycian. In death there is life.

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