My priest encouraged us to read all of the philosophers, Nietzsche wouldn't be excluded. He’d sit down and explain it to you. Let’s just say Father Hart and Bishop Sullivan had no fear of any earthly writings and stories of men. It just really grinds me wrong when Catholics start to find themselves amongst the ‘book burning’, ‘snake handling’, ‘witchcraft’ paranoid types. One thing I treasure about the Catholic faith is the open-mindedness of free-inquiry, yet maintence of moral objectivity.
BTW, I recommend the trailer. The movie simply looks abysmal. I think it’ll flop.
The Church abandoned the Index of Prohibited Books because it was seen to be counterproductive.
The problem is not well informed readers who read Nietzsche, or Pullman, to discover what their arguments are first hand. the problem is innocents who are drawn in and abused.
His Dark Materials is deliberately written in a subtle and incremental way, so kids will be drawn in first and only exposed to the vile message after they are hooked.
Note that the next installment of this analysis of the books will treat the sexualization of children. That is a major part of Pullman’s purpose. Basically, the lesson children get from the books is that God is an interfering busybody who must be rejected and killed, so they can have good sex with each other. Yet I’m sure Hollywood will give it a PG rating. And it will pretend to be Narnia by opening in the Christmas holidays.
The Dune universe, like the Star Wars universe is different from ours in that human beings actually do have superhuman powers. Something that simply refuses to happen in real world. We can’t entrust power to philosopher kings because no one is above human frailty and temptation.
Looking back on Dune I’d say Paul’s intitial motivation in fulfilling the prophecy is to fundamentally to obtain the power to avenge himself on his father’s murderers. Then he gradually realizes that he’s stuck on his course and can do nothing to stop his Fremen legions from overrunning the galaxy.
Adults --- or, better to say, "adults with adult minds" ---have the capacity to hold themselves above emotional blandishments, to analyze clever but erroneous arguments, and to resist verisimilitudes which actually distort history or reality. Kids lack this capacity. They can develop it later, and if we teach them rightly, they will become subtle and accurate adult thinkers; but as kids, they are vulnerable to the slow drip of any venom.
I think it would be blameworthy for me to permit my son to read the HDM trilogy. If he strongly wanted to, I'd say it would be OK for him to read the first book, but only if we discuss it.
That's a judgment I am obliged to make for him. I know his maturity, and his immaturity.
Been there, done that. Got better things to think about than wasting any more time or brain power on man's garbage.