The Yellow Book: Documenting the 19th Century Evolution of Christianity and Paganism
Kristofer Hykel
Ryerson University
2417
The Yellow Book: Documenting the 19th Century Evolution of Christianity and Paganism
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The Yellow Book, the convention challenging creative lovechild of John Lane and Aubrey Beardsley, was periodically released every 4 months between April 1894 and April 1897 and at the time was known for its striking yellow color, outlandish illustrations and satirical essays. Today, its thirteen volumes are recognized as one of the defining cultural artifacts of the decade due to its role in the documentation of changing cultural perspectives through the work of its contributing artists, poets and writers.
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Aubrey Beardsley (1872-1898)
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Among the conventions challenged during the 19th century was the concept of religion in relation to the self. More specifically, the role of Christianity in the life of the individual was questioned in the purpose it truly served and what it represented internally. As an extension, the concept of Paganism would also be questioned during this century.
The Yellow Book when examined through this lens begins to demonstrate a deep significance in representing these changing values. While religion still played a prominent role in peoples lives, defining morals and interpretation of events, its role in the self was ultimately beginning to be questioned, followed by the nature of the concept of Paganism. As a primary source, The Yellow Book provides insight into changing social and artistic convention during the late 19th century, including these changing views on Christianity and paganism in art and literature. By taking this critical approach to the quarterly, Buchan’s short story and Nettleship’s image, as well as to primary and secondary sources commenting on theism during the 19th century, we can see how The Yellow Book represents the changing introspective exploration of Christianity and how these changing perspectives on religion and paganism shaped these pieces.
By the end of the century, that these concepts would continue to be questioned is evident through John Buchan’s fictional short story “A Captain of Salvation”, featured in volume 8 of The Yellow Book, and John Trivett Nettleship’s charcoal illustration “The Head of Minos”, featured in the debut volume of the quarterly. Buchan’s story explores the role of Christianity in the life of an individual seeking redemption through the Salvation Army while Nettleship’s visual art piece of an ancient mythological king is representative of the perception on the nature of Paganism. These pieces featured in The Yellow Book stand out due to their role in preserving the changing perspective on religion and paganism, being viewed as more of a metaphorical representation of deeper human experience, and also exploring the concepts of morality and sin.
A Brief Background on the Evolution of Christianity and Paganism During the 19th Century.
While for centuries polytheistic belief systems like those of the Greeks and Romans were labeled as blasphemes and pagan by Christianity, in the 19th century this perspective began to change. With many beginning to bring the theology behind Christianity into question due to their disillusionment, the concept of paganism and these old belief systems were brought to light as well. Already being prominently featured in art and literature, Greek and Roman Mythology was known as accepted. It was their ancient religion that was scrutinized. However with Christianity being brought into question, the ides that drove these two different faiths could be considered more similar than different. Perhaps these ancient pagan religions were not as backwards and dark as they had been made out to be. These changing social perceptions on the topic were made published in James Anson Ferrer’s 1891 book, Paganism and Christianity. When looked at from this new perspective, the theological differences lay more on the surface than the actual substance of thought. (Ferrer, 2) During this period, the root of belief and the nature of what was believed to be pagan were brought into question. Published 3 years later in The Yellow Book, John Trivett Nettleship’s charcoal drawing, “The Head of Minos”, while appearing as another piece on a long catalogue of art based on ancient Greek or Roman mythology, can be analyzed instead as a visual representation of the exploration of the nature of paganism during the 1890s.
The 19th century was a trying time for religion, specifically Christianity. This period saw the number of churchgoers decline and the progress of the Church of England begin to stagnate, while the population of an industrialized Britain continued to grow. This, alongside Darwin’s The Origin of Species being published in 1859 led to disillusionment of Christianity as a societal organization and a factor within ones self and eventually forced the Church and how the concept of religion was perceived to evolve for this more modern time.
Christianity’s role in the self was continually questioned as a driving force behind human nature and morality, with many beginning to feel disillusioned with Christianity as a truly literal guiding force. This is made evident in Mark Knight and Emma Mason’s Nineteenth- Century Religion and Literature: An Introduction, in which Mathew Arnold’s essays “Hebraism and Hellenism” (1869) and “Literature and Dogma” (1873) are analyzed. In “Hebraism and Hellenism” Arnold recounts the disillusionment of his men while at sea without having “The stability of an unquestioning Christianity for support.” (Knight, Mason, 1) Later, in “Literature and Dogma”, Arnold defines, or redefines, religion as not being a guiding light, but a product of morals and ethics heightened through emotion. (Knight, Mason, 2) Religion, through literature in the 19th century, begins to become something more internal and more of a representation of the deeper human experience, as opposed to an external driving factor. This concept of religion being an internal concept as well as, perhaps even more than, an external driving force was one of the main factors in the questioning of the concept at the time, and is evident in the way in which it shaped John Buchan’s “A Captain of Salvation.”
As well as people being disillusioned with Christianity with its role in the self, the 19th Century saw the Church of England become increasingly disconnected with the population. The Routledge Companion to Britain in the Nineteenth Century, 1815-1914, attributes this to the fact that little had been done to meet the needs of an expanding industrial population, with a religious census in 1851 claiming that only half of the population attended church, with only half of that number being Anglican. (Cook, 163) By the mid 19th century the Christian community adapted to these changes. Christian socialist groups, such as the Christian Socialist Union and later the Christian Social League began to take form. Their objective was based on the social principle’s found in the New Testament, working to create industrial co-operatives and educate the lower classes. (Cook, 177) It is during this time period that another social group founded on the principles of Christianity came into existence: The Salvation Army. The changing social impact of the church, as well as the changing introspective view of Christianity, both heavily influence Buchan’s short story and the significance of the two during that time period remain documented in The Yellow Book.
Paganism in The Yellow Book
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With the ideals of the church being questioned, the perspective on the opposite, Paganism, would be explored and ultimately expressed through art and literature in the same way as Christianity. John Trivett Nettleship’s “ The Head of Minos” can be analyzed as a change in the perspective of what was once considered pagan, being free from the romanticized images of Ancient Greek and Roman art, and being depicted in a more modern sense. Paganism was no longer being viewed as a backwards, absolutely blasphemous concept, especially once applied to ancient Greek religion and school of thought. (Ferrer, 4)
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J. T. Nettleship
Augustus John
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The image is a charcoal drawing of the head of an antique statue of King Minos of Crete from ancient Greek myth. The head dominates the page, though is not imposing to the viewer. In fact, the features of the image are very rounded and almost soft, appearing very non-aggressive. With the title, “The Head of Minos” one would assume a large imposing, domineering like figure, perhaps sneering at the audience. The pre-19th century Christian-centric perspective would have viewed such a figure as a symbol of paganism: a concept, which should be shunned and stigmatized. But Nettleship’s image from the 1894 publication more so reflected the changing commentary on the subject. This “pagan symbol” is quite mundane, and by no means insidious or backwards- in regards to the norm. This theme of normalizing the exaggeration of paganism continues in the color of the image. In a period before the 1890s, the image would have been harshly dark and malicious. Nettleship’s image, although drawn from charcoal, which would emphasize the darker features, is softer, and never features an absolute darkness. Instead, the shading is a transition of darker and lighter greys, being particularly lighter on the face. The artistic elements used by Nettleship do not imply a darkness or evilness to what would be considered a pagan image. Instead it is just another piece of artwork. Whether Nettleship meant to or not, his image represents the changing attitudes towards paganism. It was no longer a backwards-stigmatized concept. It was just another aspect of the past, art and literature.
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A Brief Background on John Buchan; Author, Governor General of Canada.
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John Buchan
Morgan Holmes
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How history remembers the author behind The Thirty-nine Steps, Greenmantle, and The Yellow Book’s “A Captain of Salvation” is mired in controversy. While some viewed him as a model governor general, having served Canada between 1935 to his death in 1940, and deserving to be in conversation among the best short story writers (Galbraith, 21), others regarded him as an ant-Semite and a snob, caring more for his own personal gain over the needs of others, even those whom he governed. (West, 45)
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Born the son of a minister, Christianity would have played a large role in his childhood and his life as a whole. However in the very changing and challenging period for the church, and given Buchan’s reputation, his changing perspectives may be evident in his Yellow Book feature as a commentary on the developments in religion and Christianity during the 19th century. Buchan’s Christian background would have influenced his writing in some way, and in a commentary on religion’s societal and person impact, Buchan may provide some of the most effective insights into the changing perspective of the concept.
Christianity in The Yellow Book
“A Captain of Salvation” explores both of these challenged perceptions of the Church during the 19th century, and to the extent in which they have developed by the 1890s. As a social institution, through the Salvation Army, we see the church as a symbol of light in a dreary industrialized England. From an introspective standpoint, the story is told from a man seeking redemption after losing his standing, who questions what he is doing with his life and what significance Christianity truly holds in his life and himself.
Buchan’s story first describes the quality of life for the individual in industrial England during this time, with work from the Church one of the only positive daily occurrences for factory workers. Seeming to be discontented and unsatisfied, the protagonist is much like those who had become disillusioned with the state of the church. The Captain began life as a man of some means, but lost his way and left that life behind before finding redemption for himself in the Salvation Army. This is a product of the rise of social institutions inspired by the Church, helping those who lost their way and giving Christianity a prominent role in society.
Another prominent aspect of Buchan’s story shaped by these changing perspectives on Christianity is the role it plays in the Captains life internally. Instead of feeling he is following gods will, religion to him means something more personal and introspective, much like it had been explored earlier in the century. The Captain instead, internally believes “The grace of God was only a elegant name for his own pride of will” (Buchan, 145) This new concept continues on to the end of the story, though not explicitly, when being faced with temptation the Captain does not look for some sign from god, but finds strength in himself through the meaning he has placed in Christianity. Buchan would have grown up with a broad understanding of the church an Christianity, and his story “The Captain of Salvation” filled with influence by the church, is directly shaped by the evolution of Christianity’s internal and societal role during the 19th century, culminating in the 1890s.
Conclusion
This normalization of a concept that at one point would have been considered an absurdity is an encompassing theme in the volumes of The Yellow Book, and perhaps even the 19th century. The concepts of Christianity and Paganism were heavily explored during this time, and through The Yellow Book, we can their evolution not only represented, but the way in which it shaped literature and culture by the end of the period.
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