Frances Hodgson Burnett and the Occult

By Carol Faulkner



Colin's positive thoughts are just one aspect of his transformation. In a conversation in the garden, Colin asks Dickon's mother, Susan Sowerby, a poor but wise (of course) mother of twelve, if she believes in magic.  Mrs. Sowerby answers, "I never knowed it by that name but what does th' name matter?... Th' same thing as set th' seeds swellin' an' the sun shinin' made thee a well lad an' it's th' Good Thing." She advises Colin to never stop believing in "th' Big Good Thing an' knowing' th' world's full of it--an call it what tha' likes." Colin tells her, "Suddenly I felt how different I was--how strong my arms and legs were, you know--and how I could dig and stand--and I jumped up and wanted to shout out to anything that would listen." Even the cranky gardener, who doesn't like churches or ministers, is moved by the natural, invented, and improvised worship of the children.

These are some interesting religious ideas. Yet Burnett's entry in American National Biography does not discuss religion, and Notable American Women and Wikipedia only briefly note her interest in Christian Science (at one point, she employed a Christian Science healer to some success) and Spiritualism. A few studies explore her beliefs, including Jen Cadwallader's essay "The Three Veils: Death, Mourning, and the Afterlife in The Secret Garden," in Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden; a Children's Classic at 100 (2011).* In her lifetime, Burnett discussed her views openly, expounding on her personal interpretion of assorted "New Religions." After the publication of one of her adult novels, The Dawn of a To-Morrow, a New York Times reporter tried to guess the book's message, asking her "Is it Theosophy?" "Perhaps it is Christian Science you wish to point out in this new story?" Like Mrs. Sowerby, Burnett responded "Why give it a name; why label it with any limited creed?" In their conversation, the reporter discovers Burnett's faith in "the safety of happiness, in the wisdom of turning a bright light upon shadows so that they fade into nothingness" (New York Times, May 20, 1906).

In the above-mentioned "Mrs. Burnett and the Occult," a different Times reporter described her religious philosophy as optimistic, focusing on the continued spiritual and intellectual advancement of the human race. For example, Burnett viewed the occult as a part of a "higher plane" of mental development: "The occult--the unknown (call it what you will) of to-day is the certain knowledge of to-morrow. We are on the eve of marvelous revelations. The air is surcharged with the thought of it.... The concentrated interest of millions of minds. What a vital force is there!" Like Colin in The Secret Garden, she declared her immortality: "I believe that all, everything, is possible, and I am sure that I shall live a million years, if for no other reason than that I am so interested in seeing all of these possible things come true" (New York Times, Oct. 12, 1913).

Frances Hodgson Burnett believed in the potential of the mind, especially her own. She stated, "I am not a Christian Scientist, I am not an advocate of New Thought, I am not a disciple of the Yogi teaching, I am not a Buddhist, I am not a Mohammedan, I am not a follower of Confucious. Yet I am all of these things" (New York Times, Oct. 12, 1913). She crafted a religion to suit her own needs, and she constructed the rest of her life that way as well. Burnett's writing made her wealthy. She divorced her first husband in 1898, and promptly married a younger man, an actor, surgeon, and author. Her second marriage was short and unhappy. None of this scandal seemed to have any impact on her career. Burnett became a U.S. citizen in 1905, and she lived on Long Island until her death in 1924.

Now that I know all this about Burnett, I'm even more glad I read The Secret Garden with my daughter (perhaps a strange reaction?). Yet even without this background, it continues to be an absorbing children's story. My daughter loved it.

* The most recent biography of Burnett is by Gretchen Holbrooke Gerzina. Gerzina describes Burnett's "belief system" as "part New Thought, part Christian Science, part positive thinking, and part fairy story" (290). 


Kabo said…
What a great post. When I was reading Heather Curtis's lovely work on faith cure, I kept having flashbacks to that little boy in the garden deciding to be well again. Thanks for putting that all together!
John L. Crow said…
Great post. Thanks for sharing!

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