Kerry Magruder
Description:
George MacDonald’s embrace of the imagination as an instrument for apprehending reality heals a deep-seated cultural split between science and wonder. That split is characterized by two opposing kinds of realism: on one hand, a positivist realism which reduces reality to nothing but what is evident to sensory perception, and, on the other hand, an imaginative realism which apprehends the as-yet unseen, unknown, and unfinished in-depth realities which lie beyond and beneath the surface appearances of things. With special attention to MacDonald’s novel Thomas Wingfold, Curate and 19th-century geology, this interpretative essay explores how MacDonald’s holistic integration of reality, given the perceptive and creative role of the imagination, applies to the natural sciences as well as to religious faith, literature, and the fine arts. The imagination is then given legitimate scope to play as the source not only of wonder but also of creative discovery within the very fabric of natural science. Without imagination, the sciences perish.
George MacDonald’s embrace of the imagination as an instrument for apprehending reality heals a deep-seated cultural split between science and wonder. That split is characterized by two opposing kinds of realism: on one hand, a positivist realism which reduces reality to nothing but what is evident to sensory perception, and, on the other hand, an imaginative realism which apprehends the as-yet unseen, unknown, and unfinished in-depth realities which lie beyond and beneath the surface appearances of things. With special attention to MacDonald’s novel Thomas Wingfold, Curate and 19th-century geology, this interpretative essay explores how MacDonald’s holistic integration of reality, given the perceptive and creative role of the imagination, applies to the natural sciences as well as to religious faith, literature, and the fine arts. The imagination is then given legitimate scope to play as the source not only of wonder but also of creative discovery within the very fabric of natural science. Without imagination, the sciences perish.
Author:
Kerry V. Magruder serves as Curator of the History of Science Collections of the University of Oklahoma Libraries. He is a faculty member of the OU Department of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine and holds the John and Drusa Cable Chair of the History of Science Collections. In 2025 he served as Chair of the History, Philosophy, and Geoheritage Division of the Geological Society of America; as Editor, International Commission for the History of Geological Sciences of the International Union of Geological Sciences; and as Co-Vice-President, Thomas F. Torrance Theological Fellowship, an auxiliary organization of the American Academy of Religion. Magruder is a co-webmaster for the George MacDonald Society (kerrysloft.com/about/bio/).
Kerry V. Magruder serves as Curator of the History of Science Collections of the University of Oklahoma Libraries. He is a faculty member of the OU Department of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine and holds the John and Drusa Cable Chair of the History of Science Collections. In 2025 he served as Chair of the History, Philosophy, and Geoheritage Division of the Geological Society of America; as Editor, International Commission for the History of Geological Sciences of the International Union of Geological Sciences; and as Co-Vice-President, Thomas F. Torrance Theological Fellowship, an auxiliary organization of the American Academy of Religion. Magruder is a co-webmaster for the George MacDonald Society (kerrysloft.com/about/bio/).
George MacDonald and the Scientific Imagination
Advance Praise
"This magisterial survey not only places MacDonald in the context of the
developing science of the nineteenth century, but also shows him as a person
in and through whom the necessary conversation between Science, the Arts,
and Christianity was taking place. In a world in which the three great forces of
Science, Art, and Religion seem fearful of one another, even hostile, we need
to hear that conversation now even more than the Victorians needed it then.
This is not just an historical survey, it’s a vital contribution to a current debate.
Magruder draws fresh insights from MacDonald, insights about the role of the
Imagination in all three spheres, the kind of imagination that does not lead us
away from reality but rather takes us deeper into the heart of things. I strongly
commend this book to anyone who longs for integration and hope in a world of
disintegration and despair."
— Malcolm Guite, Life Fellow, Girton College, Cambridge; poet and author
of Lifting the Veil, Mariner, Galahad and the Grail.
"As a son of a scientist and as an artist, a work that connects science and imagination is a portal of creative refreshment for me. Kerry’s George
MacDonald and the Scientific Imagination proved to be a treasure-filled map. This is a monumental work of integration, a deep well of resources for scientists and artists, historians and teachers alike. Kerry beautifully lays out MacDonald’s vast and soaring realms of imaginative realism to open our eyes and hearts toward the vista of wonderment."
— Makoto Fujimura, artist and author of Art Is: A Journey into the Light.
