Home > Messiahs in fiction and fantasy
The idea of a messiah figure has long been an element in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. Perhaps the earliest use of a messiah figure in fantasy is the mythical figure of King Arthur.
The remainder of this article contains many plot spoilers for many different stories. Discretion is advised regarding unfamiliar stories.
1 Lord of the Rings
The One Ring being an instrument of power and evil, works also as a temptation. In the book it is described to be a heavy burden for the main character Frodo Baggins, reminding of the heavy Cross carried by Christ on the mount Calvary. Although Frodo fails on his quest to destroy the Ring, the Ring is destroyed by chance, and the world is saved by his quest.
Aragorn is another Messianic personality who is destined to be the new King of Gondor and Arnor, in which the throne has been empty for ages, and unite again the kingdoms.
2 Narnia
C. S. Lewis wrote the fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia as a parable for the New Testament, to introduce readers to the Christian idea of a messiah; the lion AslanAslan ( Turkish: lion is the allegorical Christ figure in The Chronicles of Narnia by C. Lewis; the lion appears in all seven books of the series. In the course of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe Aslan is put to death in the place of a traitor, subs dies for other people's sins but is reborn, and is part of a trinity.
3 Dune
The concept of the messiah is central to the DuneDune is a science fiction novel by Frank Herbert. It was awarded the Nebula award in 1965 and tied for the Hugo award in 1966. It was also a huge commercial success and has now sold more than 20 million copies. Dune was followed by five sequels. The Dune series of books by Frank HerbertFrank Patrick Herbert ( October 8, 1920 February 11, 1986) was an American science fiction author. As an author Herbert was both critically acclaimed and a worldwide commercial success. He is best known for the novel Dune the five other novels in the seri. The main character in Dune is Paul AtreidesPaul Atreides is a fictional character in the Dune universe created by Frank Herbert. He is the most prominent fictional character in Frank Herbert's Dune science fiction series. He took the Fremen name Paul Maud'dib. He is born the heir of House Atreides (titled Paul Muad'dib ), the messiah of the FremenThe Fremen are a group of people in the Dune series of science fiction novels by Frank Herbert. The Fremen are the inhabitants of Arrakis, also known as Dune, the desert planet that is the sole source of the spice melange in the known universe. The Fremen people. The series explores the power of the messiah on the individual as well as the idea of destiny as it pertains to the concept of the messiah.
4 Babylon 5
J. Michael StraczynskiJoseph Michael Straczynski commonly referred to as JMS for short, (born July 17, 1954) is an American writer/ producer of television series, novels and comic books. He is most famous as the creator, executive producer and head writer for the science ficti had a series of three messiah-figures in his television series Babylon 5Babylon 5 is an epic science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. Its music was composed by Christopher Franke. The pilot movie, The Gathering aired on February 22, 1993, and the regular series initia; the messiah is referred to as "The One". "The one who was" refers to Captain Jeffrey SinclairMichael O'Hare as Jeffrey Sinclair in Babylon 5 Jeffrey Sinclair is a fictional character in the television science fiction drama Babylon 5''. He is played by Michael O'Hare. Career As squad team leader, Sinclair fought at the Battle of the Line the last, a man with ties to the Minbari prophet Valen, "The One who is" refers to Captain John Sheridan, who gave his life and came back from the dead at Z'ha'dum to save his people, and "The One who will be" refers to the Minbari ambassador Delenn, who will lead her people into the future. It can be thought of as a Holy Trinity: One in Three parts. The prophesy of The One comes from the Minbari, who have a penchant for doing things in threes. Cryptically, Delenn later said that a place of leadership over all of her people was left open for "The One Who Will Come"; she said this after she had been told that she was "The One Who Will Be", so she was not referring to Sinclair, Sheridan, or herself. Possibly she was referring to David Sheridan, the first true Minbari/Human hybrid, unborn when the series ended.
