Christian Pacifism and Literary Witness: The Political Theology of Vera Brittain's Born 1925
Vera Brittain was a vital figure in the British peace movement, active in several of its major organizations, and especially with the Peace Pledge Union. Her gradual conversion to absolute pacifism is distinctive because it grew deeper throughout the Second World War, unlike many other pacifists who...
| Published in: | Religion & literature |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Dep.
2019
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| In: |
Religion & literature
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| IxTheo Classification: | CD Christianity and Culture CG Christianity and Politics KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history KBF British Isles |
| Further subjects: | B
National Socialism
B Socialists B Cultural History B Political Theology B Christian Ethics |
| Summary: | Vera Brittain was a vital figure in the British peace movement, active in several of its major organizations, and especially with the Peace Pledge Union. Her gradual conversion to absolute pacifism is distinctive because it grew deeper throughout the Second World War, unlike many other pacifists who altered their views under the threat of Nazism. Brittain is also distinctive because her pacifism became more explicitly Christian, and her late-in-life memoirs recast her previous experiences as a journey toward this faith. This essay shows that Brittain's little-appreciated final novel Born 1925 (1948) contributes significantly to our understanding of Christian pacifism during World War II and provides a model for considering literary witness as a form of peace activism. Born 1925 tells the story of a priest who is modeled on Brittain's friend Dick Sheppard, the founder of the Peace Pledge Union. The real life Sheppard died in 1937, but Brittain imagines a character like Sheppard living through the war and launching a Christian socialist and pacifist organization. Through this narrative, Brittain's novel becomes a work of speculative fiction that also functions as political theology. |
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| ISSN: | 2328-6911 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Religion & literature
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