Christ figure

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A Christ figure is a literary technique that authors use to draw allusions between their characters and the bibilical Jesus Christ. More loosely, the Christ Figure is a spiritual or prophetic character who parallels Jesus, or other spiritual or prophetic figures.

In general, a character should display more than one correspondence with the story of Jesus Christ as depicted in the Bible. For instance, the character might display one or more of the following traits: performance of miracles, manifestation of divine qualities, healing others, display loving kindness and forgiveness, fight for justice, die and rise again. Christ figures are often martyrs, sacrificing themselves for causes larger than themselves. In postmodern literature, the resurrection theme is often abandoned, leaving us with the image of a martyr sacrificing himself for a greater good. It is common to see Christ figures displayed in a manner suggestive of crucifixion as well; this technique is more noticeable in films than in literature.

[edit] Characters

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis.^[1]
John Coffey from The Green Mile.^[2]
Simon in William Golding's Lord of the Flies is spiritually sensitive. He likes to go off on his own (as Jesus did, going into the desert), he "wrestles with the devil" in the form of his conversation with the Lord of the Flies (the pig's head on a stick), he goes to the mountaintop to find out the revelation that the "beast" is only a dead pilot, and he is martyred for trying to bring the truth to the other boys. Finally, as Simon's dead body is taken by the sea, glowing creatures seem to form a halo around his head.^[3]
Phineas (Finny) in A Separate Peace.
Neo in The Matrix Trilogy. Although the film series makes many syncretistic visual and textual references to various religions,^[4] many Christ figure parallels exist. He is repeatedly called "the One" in a messianic sense, Neo saves various people (and all humanity at the trilogy’s conclusion), he suffers and dies, he rises from the dead, and at the end of the first film ascends into the sky.^[5]
James Cole in Twelve Monkeys.^[6]
Ransom in C. S. Lewis's Space Trilogy.
Jimmy Chitwood in Hoosiers.
Rand al'Thor in the Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan.
R.P. McMurphy in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Hod Rod/Rodimus Prime in Transformers.
Superman in Superman Returns. "Everyday, I hear people crying for a savior;" Superman's point to Lois Lane on "why the world needs Superman." Late in the film, Superman is stabbed in the side as Jesus was believed to be during the Crucifixion; after casting the Crystal Continent into space, the fatigued Superman strikes a pose almost identical to that of a man being crucified. Superman wakes from coma in what seems the third day by biblical timekeeping, mirroring Jesus' awakening on the third day after crucifixion. ^[7]
Sargeant Elias in Platoon. As he dies from being shot by enemy troops, he falls to his knees, looks towards the heavens with his arms outstretched, mimicking Jesus during the Crucifixion. He also become a martyr to the other soldiers.
Jordan Collier in The 4400 is widely considered to be a Christ-figure after his reappearance in Season 3: he rises from the dead after being shot by Kyle Baldwin, he has a generally wise and forgiving demeanor, knows things that other people cannot understand, and starts a movement that sweeps the world. Even his physical appearance is in keeping with traditional European interpretations of Jesus Christ, with long hair and a full beard.
Uncle Tom in Uncle Tom's Cabin.
Santiago of The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway.
Klaatu from The Day the Earth Stood Still comes down from the "heavens" in a flying saucer, takes the name "Carpenter" to walk incognito among the people, is persecuted, and killed. However, he resurrects back to life, gives a stern benediction to the people of the earth, and then ascends back to the heavens.^[8]^[6]
Simba from The Lion King leaves the pride, then later comes back to become the king and save the lions from destruction.^[9]
Donnie Darko goes back in time to sacrifice himself in order to save the universe from annihilation.^[10]
Spock in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan exposes himself to a lethal amount of radiation in order to save the crew of the Enterprise, and is later "resurrected".^[11]^[12]
Gandalf, in The Lord of the Rings, after understanding and proclaiming the danger of the one ring, helps form and lead the "disciples" of the Fellowship of the Ring. He also "exorcizes" Saruman from Théoden, as if he were a New Testament demon. Along the journey, Gandalf dies and later returns transformed. At his "resurrection appearance" in Peter Jackson's film The Two Towers, Gandalf visually bears a striking resemblance with popular images of the risen Christ.^[13]
Spider-Man (Peter Parker) in the second of the Spider-Man film series^[14] is symbolically crucified (against a runaway train), is buried (under rubble), and resurrects (returns with renewed powers).

[edit] External links

HollywoodJesus.com - Pop culture from a spiritual point of view.
The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture - An exploration, analysis, and interpretation (from a range of disciplinary perspectives) of the interrelations and interactions between religion and religious expression and popular culture.
The Journal of Religion and Film - An examination of the description, critique, and embodiment of religion in film.