George MacDonald

Elizabeth Robinson (Texas A&M University)

Ed. by J. Derrick McClure, University of Aberdeen
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.3: Scottish Writing and Culture, 400-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Ash-Irisarri (University of Edinburgh), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Arianna Introna (The Open University), Nicole Kennedy (University of Newcastle), Gina Lyle (University of York), J. Derrick McClure (University of Aberdeen), Andrew Radford (University of Glasgow), Sean Seeger (University of Essex)

Dates

Born 10 Dec 1824
Died 18 Sep 1905
Activity 1844-1905

Places

Born in Scotland
Active in Scotland

Activities

Primary

Novelist
Poet
Religious writer

Resources

George MacDonald was a Scot, a mystic who rejected the harsh Calvinism in which he was raised, a preacher without a pulpit, and a poet whose skills lay not so much with verse as with fairy stories. He published more than fifty books during his lifetime, many of them best-sellers that received critical acclaim. His publications included novels, collections of short stories, sermons, poetry, essays, translations of German and Italian verse, fairy tales, and book-length fantasies. One of the most popular literary figures in Victorian England, he was renowned in his day as a novelist, lecturer, and Christian sage. Today, however, MacDonald is best known as a writer of fantasy, and is often considered one of the fathers of modern fantasy, particularly influencing the Christian fantasy tradition embodied by writers such as J. R. R...

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3133 words

Citation: Robinson, Elizabeth. "George MacDonald". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 February 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2846, accessed 11 December 2025.]

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