The Secret Garden
It’s been about two years since I last flexed my writing muscle, so I’ve decided to rekindle my desire to become a better writer by starting with an analysis of a simple children’s novel. The Secret Garden seemed the perfect choice due to being remembered as a childhood favorite among many adults. I had neither read the book nor seen the film up to this point and upon getting my hands on a copy, I eagerly delved in.
In lieu of reproducing a Spark Notes summary, I’d like to examine one of the major themes found within The Secret Garden promptly. I believe any casual reader will be struck by the usage of the word “Magic” as a proper noun throughout the pages of the novel. When a gust of wind uncovers the garden door’s knob obscured by a curtain of ivy, Mary says that what happened was Magic. Again, when the robin lands on Ben Weatherstaff’s spade, he looks at it “as if there might be Magic in it”. When Mary sings Colin to sleep, Martha cries out that Mary must have bewitched him, and in reply she says that perhaps it was Magic.
The phenomenon both Mary and Colin identify as Magic is a transcendent, impersonal force that aids in the physical and mental healing of both characters. Magic is what gives life to the garden. It strengthens Colin’s body and softens Mary’s heart. And when Colin declares that he will make a scientific discovery as to the nature of this Magic, he instructs the group present in the garden to form a circle, joined by Dickon’s moorland creatures. The experiment is performed in a rhythmic chant:
“Then I will chant,” he said. And he began, looking like a strange boy spirit. “The sun is shining–the sun is shining. That is the Magic. The flowers are growing–the roots are stirring. That is the Magic. Being alive is the Magic–being strong is the Magic. The Magic is in me–the Magic is in me. It is in me–it is in me. It’s in every one of us. It’s in Ben Weatherstaff’s back. Magic! Magic! Come and help!”
The Magic invocation is performed every day in this mystic circle. The ritual is rehearsed until Colin is convinced the Magic has made him well. In thanksgiving for restoring Colin’s health, Ben Weatherstaff suggests the companions sing the Doxology:
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below,
Praise Him above ye Heavenly Host,
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Amen.
This passage is a significant departure from the way the book speaks about Magic. Magic is regarded as an omnipresent force used for both good and evil, but now, since the Doxology is a Christian verse, Magic is equivocated with the Christian God. The author is making a theological argument for the existence of a generic deity. This point is made explicit by Susan Sowerby, Dickon’s mother, when asked if she believes in Magic:
“I never knowed it by that name but what does th’ name matter? I warrant they call it a different name i’ France an’ a different one i’ Germany. Th’ same thing as set th’ seeds swellin’ an’ th’ sun shinin’ made thee a well lad an’ it’s th’ Good Thing. It isn’t like us poor fools as think it matters if us is called out of our names. Th’ Big Good Thing doesn’t stop to worrit, bless thee. It goes on makin’ worlds by th’ million–worlds like us. Never thee stop believin’ in th’ Big Good Thing an’ knowin’ th’ world’s full of it–an’ call it what tha’ likes. Tha’ wert singin’ to it when I come into th’ garden.”
God, Magic, the Big Good Thing; each of these names is given in reference to the same force which animates the universe. Any claim to specific divine revelation and exclisivity therein is dismissed. The explicitly Christian doctrine of the Trinity is paid only lip service. If the doctrine were truly believed, it would exclude the Indian fakirs who first introduced Mary to Magic.
Frances Hodgson Burnett embeds these subversive themes into The Secret Garden because of her personal interest in social religious movements of the age, including Theosophy, Christian Science, and New Thought. All of these movements proclaim one absolute divine being and emphasize the spiritual reality above the material. Of course, each practice has its share of differences–Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, called Theosophy “a corruption of Judaism”. However, the novel presents a synthesis of these various doctrines in an expression of Burnett’s own thought.
The health of Mary and Colin is of the utmost concern in this novel. Their miraculous healing is an allusion to the central doctrine of Christian Science, the immediately available healing power of Jesus Christ. As shown in the above three quotes, there is more than enough evidence to demonstrate this connection. The plot revolves around this healing power. However, the Christian tradition doesn’t have a monopoly on the magical power of the Secret Garden.
Theosophy resolves this problem as a universalist religion, claiming figures across various religious traditions: Plato, Christ, Buddha, and Laozi. Theosophy and The Secret Garden share the belief in a generic deity. Neither the Theosophist nor the book name this deity with finality, but each person who encounters this divine being experiences it uniquely.
Perhap the most interesting connection to Theosophy is in the origin of the idea of Magic:
“The great scientific discoveries I am going to make,” [Colin] went on, “will be about Magic. Magic is a great thing and scarcely any one knows anything about it except a few people in old books–and Mary a little, because she was born in India where there are fakirs.”
Mary’s first exposure to Magic was in India–the same region of the world Helena Blavatsky claimed to have discovered Theosophy. Blavatsky allegedly entered Tibet via the Kashmir, a region in northwestern India. Here, she became a pupil of two mahatmas, Morya and Koot Hoomi, near the Tibetan Buddhist monastery of Tashi Lhunpo. Upon her return to New York City in 1873, Blavatsky established the Theosophical Society based on the teachings and revelations of her Tibetan masters. Theosophy rapidly spread across America and Europe as an Oriental and occult reaction against Western materialism and secularism.
Burnett’s description of Magic in The Secret Garden is analogous to Theosophy in its origin from Eastern mystics and its propagation into the West. Ben Weatherstaff is representative of the decline of spirituality in the West. Ben is introduced as a gruff, apathetic gardener whose greatest concern is for himself and for the estate’s gardens. He gives curt answers when questioned by Mary and resumes his work after the answer is given. Ben’s demeanor begins to change when he witnesses Colin standing for the first time. His character arc is completed when he suggests the Doxology is sung in the ritual circle, an act that is symbolic of his reconnection to a previous spiritual state.
Not only do Christian Science and Theosophy play a role in the interpretation of this novel, but Burnett also references elements of the New Thought movement as well. Take, for example, this excerpt from Colin’s oration:
“You learn things by saying them over and over and thinking about them until they stay in your mind forever and I think it will be the same with Magic. If you keep calling it to come to you and help you it will get to be part of you and it will stay and do things.”
“I once heard an officer in India tell my mother that there were fakirs who said words over and over thousands of times,” said Mary.
Both Mary and Colin’s illnesses were an outcome of mental turmoil, a pact with the “wrong Magic” manifesting physically. By realigning their mental state, Mary and Colin could begin healing their physical ailments. Thus, the ritualistic elements found within The Secret Garden–gathering around the Magic circle, chanting, singing, and even tending the garden–work in unity to replace the negative thought patterns. Similarly, New Thought teaches practices like meditation, prayer, and creative visualization as a means of attaining mental and physical health.
What may first appear as an innocent children’s tale in fact contains many teachings found within the novel American religious movements of the late 1800s. Whereas a book written for adults containing Western esoteric elements may present itself with subtlety, there is no such effort here. Perhaps this revelation will allow us to pause and reconsider our own subconcious influences.