An Online Interview with Rick Riordan
The Lightning Thief deals with magic and Greek gods. Are you worried about censorship?
In Western Civilization, we’ve always had an uneasy mix between Classical mythology and Judeo-Christian values. As a culture, we tend to believe in one God, but we also grow up steeped in these wonderful old stories about the Olympians. As long as we recognize them as stories that are part of our heritage and long-since stopped being any kind of serious religion, I don’t see the harm in learning mythology. If fact, I think you have to know Greek myths to understand where our modern culture came from. It’s part of being an educated member of society.
The Lightning Thief explores Greek mythology in a modern setting, but it does so as a humorous work of fantasy. I’m certainly not interested in changing or contradicting anyone’s religious beliefs. Early in the book, the character Chiron makes a distinction between God, capital-G, the creator of the universe, and the Greek gods (lower-case g). Chiron says he doesn’t want to delve into the issue of God, but he has no qualms about discussing the Olympians because they are a “much smaller matter.” The gods of Olympus are archetypes. They are deeply embedded in and inseparable from Western thought. The book pays tribute to the legacy of Olympus as one of the roots of our culture.
The magic and fantasy in the novel are also drawn directly from Greek mythology. It’s a modern retelling of the Classical hero’s quest. My goal for the novel is to get kids interested in learning more about Greek mythology. If censors want to challenge Percy Jackson on the grounds that it portrays the Greek gods as real, they’ll have to censor a good portion of the English curriculum in every state. Greek mythology is studied extensively from grades 1-8, not to mention the Iliad and the Odyssey in the upper grades. English literature draws heavily on Greek mythology. It always has — from Chaucer all the way to modern novels. Percy Jackson is part of that tradition. I hope it makes kids want to read — that’s the most important thing!
As with any book, I would encourage parents to read Percy Jackson and decide for themselves whether it’s right for their children. That takes time, I know, but it’s the only way to make an informed decision.
