Christal
Cooper
Freeman
Ng:
An
Atheist’s View and Writing
Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
When Freeman Ng read George Bernard
Shaw’s play Saint Joan (published in 1924) he became fascinated with Joan
of Arc, and that fascination still continues to this day, resulting in his most
recent book, Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc,
published this past June 30, 2014. http://www.JoanNovel.com
“She
had the light, despite the darkness that surrounded her and the cruelties
perpetrated upon her. Her buoyancy and boldness and intelligence, all of which
come through so clearly in her preserved words. In a way, this book was my
attempt to “save” her – to make sense of what happened to her – but in the end,
I think I failed, which was probably a good thing, because it led to a better
book, one which better reflects this world we live in where there often are no
answers to questions like the problem of Joan.”
Ng is different from Joan Of Arc in
many ways, he is not French, but Asian, and was not raised catholic but reared
in a conservative bible church, converting to Episcopalian as an adult, only to
come to the conclusion that there is no God as of today’s date.
“I
have no religious beliefs at the moment, which is odd, because 90% of my
writing over the past ten years has been on religious subjects!”
Ng’s own life and finding the answers
to the questions surrounding Joan are similar – in the end there are still only
questions, and no answers, but the journey of trying to search for those
answers does provide some form of peace and closure.
The journey has included years of
writing, years of believing in a God that he now believes never even
existed. The idea for the novel of Joan
became ingrained in him when one of his earliest novels (still unpublished) was
rejected for the fifth time.
“It
was retelling of the Quest for the Holy Grail that was not only written
entirely in the second person like Joan,
but also written from multiple points of view, so that each chapter had a
different protagonist. Every published
author who ever critiqued it loved the writing, and so did most of the editors
who read it, but no editor would publish it.”
Ng realized that part of the reason the
book was being rejected by editors and publishers was due to the second person
writing of the book, and decided to write another second person book, but this
time, the book would be more reader friendly.
“When
I thought about what the subject of that second book might be, Joan came
instantly to mind. I thought a book
about her might do better because it would be a more personal story, and
because I’d be telling it from Margaret’s point of view, which meant there
would be long stretches where Margaret described Joan in the third person, and
so that book would sound a little more normal.”
Before Ng began writing the book, he
researched the life of Joan and her times by reading three books: Joan of Arc:
By Herself and Her Witnesses, which is a collection of first
person accounts about Joan assembled by the well known French historical Regine
Pernoud; the biography Joan by Donald Spoto; and
Wikepedia. During his research of these
three texts Ng learned small surprises, the biggest concerning the death
sentence of Joan of Arc.
“The
biggest surprise to me was how hard it was for Pierre Cauchon, the chief judge
at her trial, to secure a death sentence. I had always assumed it was a
kangaroo court (it was a court of the Holy Inquisition, after all) and that the
trial was just a show trial, but in reality, the whole process was governed by
legal protocols that Cauchon could not simply ignore, so that in the end, he
was only able to achieve the desired result through trickery.”
Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc is an
historical novel – containing bits of fiction along with historical accuracies. However, Ng did make some changes in his book
that are not historically accurate, in order to make the book a better
read: he presented the Voices Joan of
Arc heard as real characters, and he also made bigger changes.
“The
biggest change I made was to keep the same cast of mortal characters around
Joan through the entire book, rather than have them come and go as they did in
history. For example, Jean de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy, the two officers
she befriends in Vaucouleurs, only escorted her as far as Chinon in real life
and then returned to Vaucouleurs, and she went on to befriend and fight
alongside other officers in other places, but I have them stay with her through
the entire military campaign.
The second biggest
change I made was to rearrange the order of some events so that each chapter
could have a clear theme. Most of the
events I placed in Chinon, for example, actually occurred at other stages of
Joan’s journey, but I wanted the Chinon chapter (“The Palace of Dreams”) to be
about Joan being tested, and so all the tests people put her through at any
point ended up there.”
When the company reaches
the inn where they plan to stay, a royal delegation waists for them.
“Are you the men from Vaucouleurs?”
“We
are,” says Poulengy. “We have come by
permission of Robert de Baudricourt with great news and help for the Dauphin.”
“He
sent us to meet you,” says their leader.
“Is this – is she –"
Joan
steps forward.
“I
am the Maid.”
His
men exchange hopeful glances.
“You
and your company are most welcome here!
If you will come with us, the Dauphin has granted you lodgings in the
palace.”
Excerpt from Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Page
81-82
Copyright
granted by Freeman Ng
The rest of the book is factual and historically
accurate, all the memorable lines and speeches in the book; and all of the
major events in the book, except for two.
“I only left out a
couple of major events from Joan’s history. The biggest omission was the fact
that she actually suffered a number of military defeats, including a failed
attempt to liberate Paris, before finally being captured, while in the book, I
had her get captured almost immediately after the Dauphin was crowned because I
didn’t feel I had time to tell the story of all the defeats.”
There is a twist to Ng’s novel, the main
character is not Joan of Arc, but Saint Margaret, the one assigned by Michael,
God’s Arch Angel, to watch over Joan.
“The story is really
about her coming to terms with her own martyrdom. I think it worked out well
this way, but to be honest, I doubt I could have written directly from Joan’s
point of view if I had tried. It simply would have been too daunting. Margaret
was as close as I could get!”
The one character that seems to be missing from
this historical novel is the Trinity God Himself. We hear from the angels, from the saints of
Margaret, and Catherine, and we are made aware of the conversations both
Margaret and Catherine have with the Trinity God, but the Trinity God Himself
is absent, which was a deliberate move on Ng’s part.
“One of
the dangers of a story like this is that if you get too close to the divine
point of view, then you lose all the tension and suspense. You lose the
Mystery. Michael was about as close to the Godhead as I was willing to get, and
even then, we see him entirely from Margaret’s limited point of view.
Joan also never reported speaking directly to God. It was
always Michael, Catherine, or Margaret. I did alter the history a bit by making
Margaret her main contact, while the real Joan reported that Michael’s was the
first voice to speak to her and he seemed to continue as her main guide even
after Catherine and Margaret entered the picture, but I wanted to establish a
friendship between the two girls, so Margaret ended up getting a bigger part in
my version.”
Ng created the atheism within Jean d
Metz, but not the flirtation between Jean de Metz and Joan: Jean seems to have a sincere affection for
Joan, despite their spiritual differences.
“History does in fact
record that he flirted with her when he first met her, calling her “my love”
just as I have him do in the book, and though there’s no record of her flirting
back, it’s very clear that she wasn’t fazed by this attempt to rattle her at all.
In history, they didn’t
really become friends, as the real de Metz only went as far as Chinon with her,
but since they were going to be together all the way to Rheims in my version of
things, I thought it might be nice to have Joan give back as good as she got,
and to have them become close friends.
In a way, this was part
of my effort to “save” Joan. I couldn’t save her from the Fire, but through
Margaret, I was at least able to give her a friend to be with at the end.”
At dusk, when all the
preparations are in place, Joan takes a final walk through the streets of
Chinon with Jean de Metz.
“Tell me,” he says. “What was the Dauphin so fearful of, and what
did you tell him to dispel it?”
“Why do you ask, my
love?”
“All anyone can speak of
is how you recognized him in the hall, but you said that was not the thing that
persuaded him.”
“That’s true.”
“So, I am curious. What persuaded him?”
“She stops, a thoughtful
look on her face.
“I do not think I can
tell you. Maybe I received the words
from my Voices, after all, because I fell certain now that I was also commanded
to never reveal them.”
“The mysterious ways of
God!” laughs de Metz, and turns to
continue their walk, but Joan reaches out a hand to stop him.
“I am truly sorry! I see now that this is more important to you
than you are saying. I am more sorry
than I can say. I would tell you if I
could. I would tell you if I could tell no
one else!”
He looks at her in
wonder.
“Perhaps you are simply a mind reader!” he says.
“Perhaps you are simply a mind reader!” he says.
He gestures toward a stone
bench, and they sit.
Excerpt from Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Page 105
Copyright granted by
Freeman Ng.
Another of Ng’s creations is the pagan
female figure rising from the pile of rocks that Margaret sees throughout the
book.
“Although this was a story about a Christian saint, I wanted
to treat it in a way that would be universally appealing.”
You sit with Catherine
in one of the pagan temples of Antioch.
Before you, a female figure rises from a pile of rocks, as if stone were
being transformed into a living soul.
Even after you became a Christian, you often came here to gaze upon this
sculpture, which you came to think of as a symbol of salvation.
Excerpt from Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Page 91
Copyright granted by
Freeman Ng
Ng’s sense of humor can be seen in the scene
where Joan has a private conversation with King Charles that no one could hear
or be a witness too because it has been decreed by God that no one should learn
of what Joan tells King Charles.
“This was a bit of a
historical joke on my part. There’s a lot of speculation about what she could
have said to him to change his mind not only about her, but about fighting back
against the English, but there are no historical clues that give any strong
indication about what it was, and so in that scene, I thought I’d purposely
disappoint any historians that might get their hopes up as the moment
approached!
However, at an earlier
point in the book’s development, there was an epilogue in which I went ahead
and had Charles describe what she told him, but I cut the whole thing just
before the book went to press. I might turn it into a sequel some day, and then
you (and the historians) can read what I thought she might have said!”
He’s dressed in ordinary
clothing, neither a noble nor a soldier, but apparently just another servant or
clerk of the palace.
“Be welcome to the court
of the Dauphin, Joan of Domremy!” cries
a squire. “You may approach his royal
majesty.”
Joan takes three steps
into the hall, pauses, and then turns and walks right up to your dreamer! She knees before the man and says, “God keep
you, gentle king!”
Shocked murmurs echo
throughout the chamber.
“I am not the king!”
protests the man. At the other end of
the hall, the Dauphin rises from this throne and clears his throat loudly.
Joan laughs!
“Did you think I would
not recognize my sovereign? You are
Charles, heir to the throne of France, whom I have come to help and guide!”
The crowd bursts into
exclamations of delight and wonder. The
man in the royal finery steps away from the throne and gestures for the Dauphin
to take his place, but Charles shakes his head shortly. He looks ruefully at Joan.
“Well done!” he
says. “Nevertheless, I did not lie. I am not your king yet, not is it likely I
will ever be. And that might not prove
so ill, might it not? For it may be that
I would not be a very good king, after all.”
No one reacts with any
surprise or shock. They all simply hang
their heads.
“They have grown accustomed to this!” mutters Catherine.
“They have grown accustomed to this!” mutters Catherine.
“For that which God
wills to not be accomplished would be ill, indeed,” Joan tells the man. “Come, noble prince, let us speak privately
and then we will see.”
Charles points her to a
curtained side chamber. You make to
follow them, but Catherine restrains you.
“It has been decreed by
God that no one in Heaven or on Earth should learn what she is about to tell
him.”
So you watch with the
rest of the court while Charles and Joan withdraw behind the veil of thin
gauze. You can still make out his face,
though you can’t hear anything that’s said.
Joan does most of the
talking. At first, Charles stands before
her with his hands clasped behind his back and a patient smile on his face, but
the smile is soon replaced by a frown, and then a look of genuine attention. Joan speaks to him calmly, with her gaze
fixed steadily upon his face, looking just like Catherine does when he imparts
information and instruction.
Excerpt from Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Pages 102-103
Copyright granted by
Freeman Ng.
One of the great mysteries of Joan,
besides that great big question of if she really heard the Voices or was
mentally ill, was if she was sexually assaulted or not. There is a scene that Ng alludes to this but
there is enough room for both doubt and for affirmation of the rape, which was
what Ng intended.
“This is another
historical mystery, and the deepest chamber of darkness at the heart of Joan’s
story. She may have been, but we don’t know for sure. And so that’s how I
presented it in the book.”
“My God!” exclaims
Machon, and bolts down the hall. You
limp along behind him. He dashes down a
flight of stairs and disappears from your sight, but when you reach the bottom
yourself, you see the metal door that leads into the prison area just a few
feet away. (You must have run round and
round the castle in your frantic search and come back near to where you
started!) You catch up with him in
Joan’s cell, where two of the guards stand at attention before him.
“If you try anything
like that again,” he is telling them, “I promise you, as an officer of this
facility, I will seek your dismissal from the army. As a clerk of the court, I will have you
arrested and put into prison yourselves.
And as a priest, I can assure you that your souls will burn in
Hell. Now go!”
They saunter out and he
kneels before Joan, who lies curled on the floor in one corner of the
cell. Her face is bruised and tear
stained, and her dress torn in places.
Excerpt from Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Page 231
Copyright granted by
Freeman Ng
Once the novel was complete, Ng sent Joan: The Novel of Joan of Arc to editors
only to receive the same response – that of rejection, and all due to the
second person narrative.
“The
editors love the writing itself, and the authors who read it loved it unanimously
and unreservedly. Tim Wynne Jones wrote
me a wonderful blurb for the back cover, and so I finally decided to self
publish.”
Even though Ng now describes himself as
atheist, he finds Joan’s testimony of hearing Voices to be a possibility, but,
as with most historians, is torn on the issue.
The one conclusion he has come to about Joan of
Arc is the same conclusion the scholars of the University of Poitiers came to
after they interviewed Joan at the request of the Dauphin to determine if she
was really sent from God:
“After examining the girl
Joan of Domrémy who is called the Maid, we find no evil in her, but only
goodness, humility, honesty, and simplicity. Her claims we cannot judge with
certainty. It may well be that she brings divine help to your Highness. It is
also possible she could help deliver France by entirely natural means.”
Photo
Description and Copyright Information
1
Freeman
Ng
Copyright
granted by Freeman Ng
2
George
Bernard Shaw
1936
Public
Domain
3
Jacket
cover of the play Saint Joan
Saint Joan: A Chronicle
Play in 6 Scenes and an Epilogue. London: Constable &
Co., Ltd.
1924
Fair
Use Under The United States Copyright Law
4
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
5
Joan
of Arc
Oil
on parchment
From
1450 to 1500
Public
Domain
6
Freeman
Ng
Copyright
granted by Freeman Ng
7
Freeman
Ng
Copyright
granted by Freeman Ng
8
Quest
for the Holy Grail
The
Attainment: The Vision of the Holy Grail to Sir Galahad, Sir Bors, and Sir
Perceval
(also known as The Achievement of the Grail or The Achievement of Sir
Galahad, accompanied by Sir Bors, and Sir Perceval). , Number 6 of the Holy Grail tapestries woven by Morris &
Co. 1891-94 for Stanmore Hall. This version woven by Morris & Co. for
Lawrence Hodson of Compton Hall 1895-96. Wool and silk on cotton warp.
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.
1895-1896
Attributed
to Sir Edward Burne-Jones overall design and
figures; William Morris, overall design and
execution; John Henry Dearle, flowers and decorative
details.
Public
Domain
9
Joan
of Arc on horseback from a 1505 manuscript
Artist
unknown
Public Domain
Public Domain
10
Statue
of Joan of Arc on horseback, triumphantly raising her sword to the heavens and
crepuscular at San Francisco's Palace of the Legion of Honor
Attributed
to Brocken Inaglory
CCASA
3.0
11
Painting
of Saint Margaret the Novacella Abbey, Neustift, South Tyrol, Italy
Photograph
of painting taken on July 20, 2008
Public
Domain
12
Jacket
cover of Joan of Arc: By Herself and Her
Witnesses
13
Jacket
cover of Joan by Donold Spoto
14
Manuscript
portrait of Pierre Cauchon during the
trial of Joan of Arc
Public
Domain
15
Joan of Arc is interrogated by The Cardinal of
Winchester in her prison.
Oil
on Canvas
1824
Attributed
to Paul Delaroche
Public
Domain
16
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
17
Jean
do Metz
Historical
image
Public
Domain
18
Vertrand
de Poulengy
CCASA
3.0 Unported
19
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
20
Military
Joan of Arc
Public
Domain
21
Miniature
from Vigiles du roi Charles VII. The citizens of Troyes hand over city keys to
the Dauphin and Jeanne (Joan).
15th
Century
Public
Domain
22
Mural
of Joan captured by the Burgundians at Compiègne
Mural
located in Pantheon, Paris.
Public
Domain
23
Saint
Margaret (St. Marina) the Great-Martyr. An illustration in her hagiography
printed in Greece depicting her beating a demon with a hammer. Date on the
picture: 1858.
Public
Domain
24
Joan
of Arc receiving a vision from the Archangel Michael
1876
Attributed
to Eugene Thirion
Public
Domain
25
Saint
Catherine
Oil
on canvas
1640
Attributed
to Artemisia Gentileschi
Public
Domain
26
350
A.D. Vatican Museum, Rome, Italy. Displaying the far end of the work with the
earliest known depiction of the Trinity creating Eve (or resurrecting Lazarus).
Public
Domain
27
Oil
on panel of Saint Margaret
Second
half of 16th Century
Attributed
to Peter Candid
Public Domain
Public Domain
28
Saint
Margaret and Saint Catherine approaching Joan of Arc
Public
Domain
29
Jean
do Metz
Historical
image
Public
Domain
30
Map
Public
Domain from wikipedia
31
The
Military Joan of Arc
Public
Domain
32
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan Of Arc
33
Saint
Margaret and the dragon.
Saint
Margaret,
ca. 1475. French (Toulouse). Alabaster with traces of gilding in the hair.
Stored
at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
GNU
Free Documentation License
34
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
35
Painting
of King Charles
1445
to 1450
Attributed
to Jean Fouquet
Public
Domain
36
Miniature
from Vigiles du roi Charles VII. Joan and the king
Public
Domain
37
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
38
Joan
of Arc
1863
Attributed
to Dante Gabriel Rosetti
Public
Domain
39
Jacket
cover of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
40
Copies
of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc
Copyright granted by Freeman Ng
Copyright granted by Freeman Ng
41
Joan
of Arc at the stake
Oil
on canvas
Attributed
to Hermann Anton Stilke
Paining
located at the Hermitage Museum
Public
Domain
