If you didn't catch our roundtable discussion on The Golden Compass - the new film based on the first book of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy - make sure you listen to the podcast! You can read Mark Hadley's review of the books here.
In addition, film critic Jeffrey Overstreet has some great questions to ask your children who read the book that will help them process what they read:
- If we cast off all "authority" and set up "free will" as the ultimate source of guidance, where will that get us?
- Has the world shown us that the human heart is a trustworthy "compass"?
- Does free will lead us always to the right choice?
- If the heroes accept the "truth" of the alethiometer (the compass itself), aren't they letting themselves be guided by just another source of truth—another "Authority"? But didn't the story tell us "Authority" is bad and we should only follow our own hearts?
- If there are "many truths," then aren't these heroes being as self-righteous and wicked as the oppressors by demanding that their version of the truth is better than others?
- What is so inspiring about the battle between the bears? Hasn't this story led us to a place where it's just "survival of the fittest" all over again? Should we really hope that the world falls into the hands of the strongest fighter, rather than into the hands of love?
