The Golden Compass

Words: 669
Pages: 3
Open Document
In his preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde writes “There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.” Books themselves are not inherently immoral. They are non-living objects into which the author and the reader puts meaning. While a reader or group of readers may consider a book moral or immoral, one should not base their choice to read a book on that factor. Authors create characters in their books with a certain level of morality, however, that morality does not always reflect the author’s view. What truly defines a “good” book is how the book is written, not the moral messages that it conveys. This quote means that one source cannot judge whether a book is moral or immoral because …show more content…
This book features a protagonist named Lyra, a child whose goal is to go to the North and save both her best friend and her father. Throughout the book, she lies, steals, and eavesdrops to her heart’s content. While she is an inquisitive child, she often appears far older than her eleven years. Judging the entire book off of Lyra’s moral character or the character of those around her is impossible due to the complexity of the book. This book is full of social commentary and criticisms of everything from government to religion to how adults treat children. Pullman writes about these subjects in metaphors that he expertly crafts and skillful characterization of humans to witches to polar bears, making the entire trilogy a “well-written” …show more content…
While the relationship between Bella and Edward is far from moral, it does not aim to convert readers of the books to following that particular model of relationship. Bella and Edward often treat each other violently throughout the series and neither are completely loyal in their relationship. Critics of Stephenie Meyer call the Twilight series “badly written” books. She did not spend much time on character development, the plot has holes in it, and the book is full of grammatical errors. This proves that even if a book does not aim to give moral commentary, it does not necessarily constitute a “well-written”
Show More

Related Documents: The Golden Compass

Essay Classical Civilizations

Classical Civilizations Throughout History, ancient civilizations have shared to the cultural and unreal life of humanity. These times were also called the golden ages, which included a stable government and strong economy. One thing they contributed was the Silk Road got its name, from the good silk which people wanted in the Europe and Asia. The Silk Road wasn’t safe; it was dangerous because of thieves, stealing from merchants trying to sell their products. The trade was helping ancient China…

Words 413 - Pages 2

Spanish Exploration

because of their initial economic motives. Spain was essentially the main benefactor, at the time, for exploration to the New World. The initial economic thread began the entanglement of religion, military, and technology to form what is the fabric of “Golden Age” Spain’s history. With the goal of increasing their wealth, the Spanish government was able to spread Christianity to natives of the Americas. When the Americas were discovered by Europeans in 1942 a new opportunity to win the war between the…

Words 324 - Pages 2

Panopticon In North Korea

The needle of a compass always oscillates before it points the north. My impression on the North Korea is just like a compass. It is police state where it uses fear and propaganda to control the people into a specific way, yet people begin to doubt and resist to the government. And they know the limitations and leverage points of their society better than any outside political missionary bent on a softer version of regime change. This golden rule extends as well to North Koreans living in South…

Words 748 - Pages 3

Essay about Ancient Empires

know it. Two of the largest empires in India from 321 B.C.E to 550 A.D were the Guptas and the Mauryans. The Mauryans had an emperor name Chandragupta, and he was a harsh leader. But his grandson Asoka led the empire into prosperity. During this Golden Age, they gave us many basic forms of life that have evolved into more modern things, such as hospitals, roads, schools and a set of basic laws across India. The Guptan Empire was much more prosperous than the Mauryans. The Guptas organized a strong…

Words 608 - Pages 3

Essay on Truth and Disregard

Who is entitled to make that decision? In America, we kill people to show that killing is wrong, yet we go to war and kill thousands in the name of security. America is thought to be the world super power and for lack of a better word, the moral compass for less developed countries, however America lacks moral on so many levels. Goodman stated “All living beings make claims to life. That is the first basis of demands for deference to deserts”. If this is true, what gives another human being a stronger…

Words 777 - Pages 4

Symbolism Of 'Watchtowers In Wicca'

The Watchtowers: [1]The Watchtowers represent the totality of all existence and the furthest extent of being. They correspond to the four Directions and the four Elements. From ancient times the Universe was believed to stretch outwardly toward the four Directions and to be composed inwardly of the four Elements. When we invoke the Watchtowers we symbolize our connection to all things which exist. [1] In Wicca, As you call the element raise your arms in the blessing position. The elements are…

Words 1099 - Pages 5

Beowulf 3 Page Response Essay

mother comes for revenge, after taking only one person like would the saying go “an eye for an eye”. Beowulf charges into her home as she welcomes him with arms open. Faced with strong moral choices as Grendel’s mother has the upper hand for a moral compass. As the king he’s faced with the ultimate test of his courage when he’s pushed to face the dragon. As represented the dragon is death itself, a threat of both moral and physical strength. Though Beowulf is innocent and has no moral pulse to…

Words 568 - Pages 3

Comparison Of I Love Lucy And The Andy Griffith Show

War was at its peak during the premiere of I Love Lucy, but the television series did not reflect negatively or political views within its episodes of the warfare that was occurring miles away. About ten years after I Love Lucy aired, and during the golden era of television came The Andy Griffith Show television series. During the 1960’s, post ware seemed to be more of a simpler time for the common working class; therefore, The Andy Griffith Show seemed to be a more relaxed television series. You are…

Words 893 - Pages 4

The Dehumanization Of Eve In John Milton's Paradise Lost

motivated by a wholly understandable curiosity about the world and desire to rise above her supposedly predestined subservience, a concept that would take hold as the Enlightenment began to revolutionize Western Europe in the coming years. In The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman’s Lyra would draw on these same themes of knowledge and unholy curiosity as she examined the alethiometer, an apple from the tree of knowledge by any other name. But unlike Milton, Pullman’s heroine would not doom the world with…

Words 658 - Pages 3

Essay about Capitalization Rules

Capitalization Rules Rule 1 Capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence. Examples: He said, "Treat her as you would your own daughter." "Look out!" she screamed. "You almost ran into my child." Rule 2 Capitalize a proper noun. Example: Golden Gate Bridge Rule 3 Capitalize a person's title when it precedes the name. Do not capitalize when the title is acting as a description following the name. Examples: Chairperson Petrov Ms. Petrov, the chairperson of the company, will address us…

Words 614 - Pages 3