When that picture popped into C.S. Lewis's mind it began as a little musing, but over time it became the seed from which a literary forest sprouted. Lewis, by all accounts, is one of the foremost literary minds of the twentieth century. To think that the mythical cycles play back and forth within our cultures both astounds and answers many questions. Within the last year, Hollywood resurged on the front of swords and sandals epics with movies like Exodus: Gods and Kings, and Son of God leading the charge.
Statistics even support the fact that the Bible is the most interesting book: it is the most shoplifted book, somewhat ironic considering that within its pages lie the words "Thou shalt not steal." (Exodus 20:15) Maybe those filmmakers and authors and illustrators who over the years adapted it to their own means realized this, maybe not just the same. Robert Crumb, a relatively well known underground comic artist put it after he illustrated a version of Genesis: "I think that the best public service that it has to offer is that it brings everything out. It illustrates everything equally. Even the strangest stories, stories that don’t make much sense. The Bible was not written for entertainment purposes so it’s a real hodgepodge and a compendium of all kinds of stuff." Crumb is not a Christian man, but he is right: The Bible was not a book for entertainment, and maybe that's why artists all over recycle it's themes and stories, to convey beliefs in a more manageable way.
Interesting. And, very ironic how the Bible is shoplifted so much. I've seen the same theory somewhere before, along with a chart on the 5 or 6 basic stories that have been repeated over and over again. Along with countless comparisons between Star Wars and Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter and anything else you could imagine. But I never thought of tracing it all to one simple source.
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