Images and Reflections of the Spiritual Self in Christopher Isherwood’s Narratives
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/post.v4i3.303Keywords:
Christopher Isherwood, treatment of mirror in literature, autobiography, Vedanta studies, literature and religionAbstract
Throughout his life, Christopher Isherwood explored his sense of himself through a range of different genres of writing: autobiography, letters and journals, and fiction. The polysemic image of the mirror plays a major role in the structuring of his novels and other writings. Through the figure of the mirror, the writer signals many nearly imperceptible yet significant changes over time. This article explores this image in a range of Isherwood’s writings, and argues that, through its deployment, the artist very often questions himself about the dichotomy between appearance and reality. The presence of the mirror in the early writings assumes modalities which are distinct from those belonging to the conversion period to Vedanta, the Hindu-oriented philosophy and religion.
References
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Berg, James, and Claude J. Summers, eds. 2007. Isherwood on Writing: The Lectures in California. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Calvesi, Maurizio. 1987. “Lo Specchio, Simbolo del Simbolo.” In Lo specchio e il doppio: dallo stagno di Narciso allo schermo televisivo, edited by Giulio Macchi and Maria Vitale, 33–37.
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Eco, Umberto. 1987. “Intorno e aldilà dello specchio.” In Lo specchio e il dop- pio: dallo stagno di Narciso allo schermo televisivo, edited by Giulio Macchi and Maria Vitale, 20–24.
Catalogo della mostra tenuta a Torino, Mole Antonelliana, 24 giugno—11 ottobre, 1987. Milano: Fabbri.
Faraone, Mario. 2000. “‘The Path that Leads to Safety’: Autobiographical Narrative as Spiritual Renewal in the Narrative of Christopher Isherwood.” In The Isherwood Century: essays on the Life and Work of Christopher Isherwood, edited by James Berg and Christopher Freeman, 247–258. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
———. 2005. “‘The Emperor and the Clown’: Immagini di attori, registi e sce- neggiatori in Prater Violet.” In Il romanzo dell’attore, edited by Agostino Lombardo, 163–181. Roma: Bulzoni.
Goldberg, Benjamin. 1985 [1989]. Lo specchio e l’uomo. Translated by Nicoletta Polo. Venezia: Marsilio.
Isherwood, Christopher. 1935 [1987]. Mr. Norris Changes Trains. London: Methuen.
———. 1938a [1987]. Goodbye to Berlin. London: Methuen.
———. 1938b [1953]. Lions and Shadows. London: Methuen.
———. 1939 [1987]. “Letter of July to John Lehmann.” In Christopher Isherwood: A Personal Memoir, edited by John Lehmann, 52–53. London: Weidenfield and Nicholson.
———. 1944 [1987]. “What is Vedanta?” in The Wishing Tree: Christopher Isherwood on Mystical Religion, 41–55. San Francisco: Harper and Row for the Vedanta Press.
———. 1945 [1984]. Prater Violet. London: Methuen.
———. 1962 [1985]. Down There on a Visit. London: Methuen.
———. 1963 [2007]. “All the Conspirators, The Memorial.” In Isherwood on Writing: The Lectures in California, edited by James Berg and Claude J. Summers, 149–160. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
———. 1964 [1991]. A Single Man. London: Mandarin. Johnstone, Richard. 1982. The Will to Believe: Novelists of the Nineteen-thirties. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Lehmann, John. 1987. Christopher Isherwood: A Personal Memoir. London: Weidenfield and Nicholson.
Prabhavananda, Swami, and Christopher Isherwood, trans. 1947 [1972]. The Song of God: Bhagavad-Gita, with an Introduction by Aldous Huxley. New York: Mentor and Nal Penguin Inc.
Thompson, J.C.H. 1984. “From Conspiracy to Confession.” Time Literary Supplement (7 December), 1408.
Weidhorn, Manfred. 1988. “Mirror.” In Dictionary of Literary Themes and Motifs. Vol. 2: L-Z, edited by Jean-Charles Seigneureut, 851–859. New York and London: Greenwood Press.
Wickes, George. 1965. “An Interview with Christopher Isherwood.” Shenandoah 16(3): 23–52.
Berg, James, and Claude J. Summers, eds. 2007. Isherwood on Writing: The Lectures in California. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Calvesi, Maurizio. 1987. “Lo Specchio, Simbolo del Simbolo.” In Lo specchio e il doppio: dallo stagno di Narciso allo schermo televisivo, edited by Giulio Macchi and Maria Vitale, 33–37.
Catalogo della mostra tenuta a Torino, Mole Antonelliana, 24 giugno—11 ottobre, 1987. Milano: Fabbri.
Eco, Umberto. 1987. “Intorno e aldilà dello specchio.” In Lo specchio e il dop- pio: dallo stagno di Narciso allo schermo televisivo, edited by Giulio Macchi and Maria Vitale, 20–24.
Catalogo della mostra tenuta a Torino, Mole Antonelliana, 24 giugno—11 ottobre, 1987. Milano: Fabbri.
Faraone, Mario. 2000. “‘The Path that Leads to Safety’: Autobiographical Narrative as Spiritual Renewal in the Narrative of Christopher Isherwood.” In The Isherwood Century: essays on the Life and Work of Christopher Isherwood, edited by James Berg and Christopher Freeman, 247–258. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
———. 2005. “‘The Emperor and the Clown’: Immagini di attori, registi e sce- neggiatori in Prater Violet.” In Il romanzo dell’attore, edited by Agostino Lombardo, 163–181. Roma: Bulzoni.
Goldberg, Benjamin. 1985 [1989]. Lo specchio e l’uomo. Translated by Nicoletta Polo. Venezia: Marsilio.
Isherwood, Christopher. 1935 [1987]. Mr. Norris Changes Trains. London: Methuen.
———. 1938a [1987]. Goodbye to Berlin. London: Methuen.
———. 1938b [1953]. Lions and Shadows. London: Methuen.
———. 1939 [1987]. “Letter of July to John Lehmann.” In Christopher Isherwood: A Personal Memoir, edited by John Lehmann, 52–53. London: Weidenfield and Nicholson.
———. 1944 [1987]. “What is Vedanta?” in The Wishing Tree: Christopher Isherwood on Mystical Religion, 41–55. San Francisco: Harper and Row for the Vedanta Press.
———. 1945 [1984]. Prater Violet. London: Methuen.
———. 1962 [1985]. Down There on a Visit. London: Methuen.
———. 1963 [2007]. “All the Conspirators, The Memorial.” In Isherwood on Writing: The Lectures in California, edited by James Berg and Claude J. Summers, 149–160. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
———. 1964 [1991]. A Single Man. London: Mandarin. Johnstone, Richard. 1982. The Will to Believe: Novelists of the Nineteen-thirties. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Lehmann, John. 1987. Christopher Isherwood: A Personal Memoir. London: Weidenfield and Nicholson.
Prabhavananda, Swami, and Christopher Isherwood, trans. 1947 [1972]. The Song of God: Bhagavad-Gita, with an Introduction by Aldous Huxley. New York: Mentor and Nal Penguin Inc.
Thompson, J.C.H. 1984. “From Conspiracy to Confession.” Time Literary Supplement (7 December), 1408.
Weidhorn, Manfred. 1988. “Mirror.” In Dictionary of Literary Themes and Motifs. Vol. 2: L-Z, edited by Jean-Charles Seigneureut, 851–859. New York and London: Greenwood Press.
Wickes, George. 1965. “An Interview with Christopher Isherwood.” Shenandoah 16(3): 23–52.
Published
2010-12-10
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Faraone, M. (2010). Images and Reflections of the Spiritual Self in Christopher Isherwood’s Narratives. Postscripts: The Journal of Sacred Texts, Cultural Histories, and Contemporary Contexts, 4(3), 303-322. https://doi.org/10.1558/post.v4i3.303
