-Isaiah, xiv, 9
Then I saw there was a way to Hell, even from the gates of Heaven.
-Bunyan
These quotations are respectively at the beginnings of Chapters Six and Fourteen of Poul Anderson's After Doomsday.
References to Hell are appropriate after Doomsday. I take the quotations to mean that there is danger of disaster in these chapters. (It is about time that I started to reread the text but there have been other things to post about.)
Alan Moore also refers to Bunyan in Mansoul. See The Holy War.
4 comments:
Paul:
One of Kipling's poems is titled "The Holy War," and portrays Bunyan's poem as something like a prophecy — Kipling does call it prophecy — of World War I. The last four lines (the italicization is from the Definitive Edition) declare:
"Eight blinded generations
Ere Armageddon came,
He showed us how to meet it,
And Bunyan was his name!"
For my part, I'm especially fond of the last quatrain of the penultimate stanza:
"One watchword through our Armies,
One answer from our Lands:—
'No dealings with Diabolus
As long as Mansoul stands!'"
Kaor, Paul and DAVID!
I did read John Bunyan's THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS, but did not like it. I found it far too heavily ponderous and allegorical for my taste. I far prefer the works of Kipling, since David here quoted one of his poems.
Sean
Incidentally, I slipped up and referred to Bunyan's "The Holy War" as a poem. I meant to call it a "story" or "book," but mentioning Kipling's poem about Bunyan's work threw me off.
Kaor, DAVID!
I've made far too many slip ups of my own in the comboxes! (Smiles)
Sean
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