More Than This

Artemis Fowl has the encyclopedic, bland and blatantly British narrator of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, the "just kidding he's not dead" moments of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, the blatant disregard for mythology of My Little Pony, the "boy without parents" license of Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire, the amoral cast of Snatch, the awkward hints at teenage romance of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and the crude mixing of technology and fantasy found only in The Santa Clause II.

Finally, A Response

Despite all that, I read all 300 pages and probably would read the second book if it was placed in front of me. Why? Because it's entertaining. It's the same reason I'll watch a show like "Everybody Loves Raymond." I'm not going to learn anything from it, I'll laugh out loud once, and I'll forget it the moment it's over and never watch it again.

I guess that's the difference between a good book and a great book. A good book is worth reading once; a great book is worth reading once a year for the rest of your life.

The girl who recommended Artemis Fowl to me also happened to get the speaking prompt "If we lived in the world of Fahrenheit 451 and you could save one book what would it be?" and she absolutely couldn't pick one book. She had to have the entire Artemis Fowl series, the entire Percy Jackson series, and the entire Eragon series. But I wonder if she's ever read any of them more than once.

I know that most eighth graders haven't read any book more than once, but would she ever want to pick up Artemis Fowl again for any reason other than nostalgia?

I guess this is, in a way, my answer to Pat's comments from the post "Shot In The Dark." I really do think there are distractions, or at least "lesser goods." I really do think that Artemis Fowl is almost completely devoid of an accurate or enlightening portrayal of humanity. While (I hope) most people reading this post haven't read Artemis Fowl, it seems to me to be just one aspect of the mask of popular culture, and sometimes I think there's nought beyond (that Moby Dick reference is for Mike).

Whatever entertainment someone gets out of Artemis Fowl, High School Musical, or the music of The Pussycat Dolls, could be better obtained from Huckleberry Finn, Fiddler on the Roof, or Dave Matthews, and with it would come brilliant insight into our human nature.

Obviously, no form of cultural outlet will find us staring into the face of God, but some books are just better than others. Better in that they address subjects that concern our humanity (I addressed this in "Same Old Thing" earlier this week).

But what about the rest of our lives, when we aren't reading, watching or listening? Well, I think Pat is right there. It's all about what you're called to. I'm beginning to think we all have four vocations: a personal, a political, a professional, and a spiritual.

Marriage is a beautiful thing to which not all of us will be privileged, but we all have a relational calling. Being a leader among men is a burden to which not everyone is called, but we all have a role to play in the life of our polis (city). Everyone has a role to play professionally, but not everyone will see the work of their hands become a tangible change in the world. Everyone is called to find the final and ultimate source of Truth and find their place in His universe, but not everyone is born to be a theologian.

However, no one is called to polygamy, no one is called to be a tyrant, no one is called to make pornographic films, and no one is called to be a subverter of truth, but you all know that.

And who am I to judge? A human being. It's everyone job to not only discern right from wrong, but more wrong from less wrong. I absolutely believe in degrees (all puns...), but only because I believe in an absolute truth, toward which we can all draw closer, and from which we cannot absolutely turn away.



Oh, and just so you know, no one is called to watch CSI, but that's another post.