The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald, Part 1

This is the first episode of our summer coverage of The Princess and the Goblin, by George MacDonald.  While MacDonald was not a member of the Inklings, this novel-length fairy tale was tremendously influential on both Lewis and Tolkien.

Our special guests/hosts this week are (besides Chris) Sophie Burkhardt and Fr. Bill Stanford!

Among other things, we'll discuss:

• George MacDonald's life and influence
• The vaguely political origin of MacDonald's goblins
• How to keep goblins away
• The nature of Irene's great-great Grandmother:
  • Is she like Aslan, or like a saint?
  • Her potential creepiness
  • The scandal of her particularity
  • Biblical parallels
  • Her age (and Bill's excellent theory)
  • Balancing fanciful details with allegory
• Literature and the fulfillment of hopes
• Poetry
• The vaguely political plans of MacDonald's goblins
•  Modern goblins in pop culture

Here are some Librivox readings of The Princess and the Goblin (I can't decide whose is better):

Lizzie Driver's Reading

Andy Minter's Reading

 

Thanks as usual to Logan Huggins for editing this episode!

Here is Sophie's podcast, Beneath the Willow Tree.

As always, if you want to contact us, write to Inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com.

 

Stay tuned next week for a deep-diving digression on the term "goblin," with lots of discussion of etymology and folklore!  It may be our nerdiest episode yet!  And in two weeks, we'll continue making our way through The Princess and the Goblin.