Religion

Religion is so absent from the opening of George MacDonald's novel Lilith that its gradual introduction is surprising, but it grows central as the human/bird Mr. Raven reveals that he is, in fact, the first-created human being Adam and the chief antagonist, the Princess of Bulika, is Lilith, his estranged and rebellious first wife, Lilith, discussed in Jewish and pre-Jewish Middle Eastern legend. The protagonist, Mr. Vane, is a recent Oxford graduate specializing in natural history and interested in metaphysics. Meaning in Greek "beyond the physical," this examines how people understand time, space, and causality. Vane quickly finds himself caught in situations beyond the normal senses when he is translated into "the region of the seven dimensions." His guide claims in that world to be a sexton, a minor religious office responsible for the physical upkeep of parish properties and particularly for burying the dead. He shows...