In interviews Pullman clearly lays out his atheist worldview - going as far as calling C. S. Lewis' Narnia series "one of the most ugly and poisonous things I have ever read." So it should come as no surprise that the HDM series comes across on several levels as an anti-Lewis fantasy story. In the course of the series, the main character, young, charming Lyra (who is joined by the character Will in the second book) travels through multiple universes to uncover hidden truths using special tools. The tools consist of a golden compass that allows Lyra to see the truth and a subtle knife that allows Will to open and close pathways between universes. Lyra and Will's lives and identities are threatened by 'The Church'.
As a consequence, viewers/readers find themselves rooting for the children who are out to destroy evil and oppressive organized religion. They search valiantly to be reunited with their daemons (pronounced demons) and travel to the world of the dead to free the ghosts trapped there. By the end of the series, God has been killed - a God who is depicted as an old, weak, evil, manipulative liar. Plenty of provocative material here...but take a deep breath and do your research, because there's also plenty of opportunity to discuss Biblical spiritual truths.
Toward that end, let's take a look at a few specific distortions in the series and how you might use them as a springboard to a discussion with your friends about God.
Daemons.
One of the first and most obvious distortions in The Golden Compass is the use of the word 'daemon' (pronounced 'demon'). In Lyra's alternate universe, each human has a daemon which takes animal form, and serves as the outward appearance of a person's soul. One of the dark themes of the story includes sinister, experimental efforts on the part of 'The Church' to cut children and their daemons apart (separating body and soul) and killing children as the experimental process is botched. Because this word is pronounced demons, it results in a basic distortion of a word that the Biblical worldview uses for evil spiritual forces of darkness, while the book and movie use it to describe the characters' human souls.
Ask your friends if they believe in a spiritual realm. Do they think people have a soul that is tempted in this life and lives on after they die? Do they believe in demons? Share what you believe using some examples of what Jesus had to say about this topic. (Luke 4:41, Matthew 8:28-29, Mark 6:7)
Do you think it's confusing or uncomfortable that The Golden Compass uses the word daemon to describe the outward manifestation of a human soul? Is the 'redefinition' of the word concerning? Why or why not?
What effect does it have on your understanding of the word when the characters converse intimately and consistently with daemons?
The Character of God.
