Clue 5

The Magnifying Lens

1. What is the theme of “About Effie”?

The theme of “About Effie” could be stated as “Adults have the capacity to make big impressions on young children; influencing them for the rest of their lives.”

2. Find a verse from the bible that relates to the theme of “About Effie” and include it in your written response.

Out of the mouth of babes and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger.
(Psalms 8:2 ESV)

Pondering “About Effie” and the truth it reveals…

1. Who is Effie waiting for?

Effie is waiting for ‘him’. ‘He’ is the mysterious character in the story. He is the one that Effie talks about, the one she is preparing herself for when he comes. ‘He’ seems to Neil to be different from the men that ‘all the others’ are waiting for, but he must be special all the same because Effie waits in such anticipation for him. It seems that Effie bases her whole life around this one guy. ‘He’ influences Effie so much that Effie leaves a big impact on Neil, showing the relationship between the child and the adult in this story.

2. This story contains a lot of Christ Imagery. Write down three separate sentences from the story that might symbolize Jesus and explain why Timothy Findley might have written these into his story.

· “It was then that she gave me that look I told you about-the look that said, “Are you the one I’m waiting for”-and then she sat down and started to cry.”

This quote may symbolize Christ in the anticipation of His coming that Effie demonstrates. It seems to me that anyone who bursts into tears at the idea that ‘he’ has arrived shows great submission to ‘him’, whoever it is. I believe that this is why the author included this description in the story; to show Effie’s submission to ‘him’. Christ demonstrates the characteristics of someone who we should submit ourselves to.

· “Of course he is. That’s why he’s coming. That’s why I’m waiting.”

Christ is someone worth waiting for; someone that we SHOULD be waiting for, all the time. Christ is also coming to take us away, in a sense, so perhaps the author chose these words to indicate that Effie was waiting for her death.

· “All those other men always come on horses-white horses. Not Effie’s. A big black cloud”

Our God is different to a typical perception of a King or hero. Christ came as a servant, rather than someone who was to be served. If the author was meaning ‘him’ to be Christ, then this is a good analogy of the way that Jesus is, and lived.

3. Can non-Christian authors reveal truth about God’s world?

I believe that non-Christian authors can reveal truth about God’s world through the differentiation between good and evil. I believe that without God’s guidance, we would have no concept of good or evil. We would also have no morals to live by, no ethical views on life and other people. With this in mind, any author who writes about a conflict tends to write about good and evil, and therefore, reveals truth about God’s world. Even the characteristics of the characters generally replicate those of living humans. It is these humans who were made by God, in His own image; therefore, we are given another revelation of truth about God’s creation.