Mystic abandonment to ritual?
Could you tell me what the phrase "mystic abondonment to ritual" means?
The excerpt is from "Goodbye, Mr Chips" by James Hilton.
He found that his pride in Brookfield reflected back, giving him cause for pride in himself and his position. It was a service that gave him freedom to be supremely and completely himself. He had won, by seniority and ripeness, an uncharted no-man's-land of privilege; he had acquired the right to those gentle eccentricities that so often attack schoolmasters and parsons. He wore his gown till it was almost too tattered to hold together; and when he stood on the wooden bench by Big Hall steps to take call-over, it was with an air of mystic abandonment to ritual.
Top answer
Hi Silak The phrase, used literally, might refer to a religious ceremony involving, for example, chanting, drumbeat and the recital of spiritual verse. As such a ceremony progresses, the participants might find themselves in a trance state The phrase is being used as a metaphor for how the subject of the paragraph, the teacher, feels when he stands in the school hall and calls out the names of the students, to check that they are present or absent. It has become so much a part of his life that he feels he is part of a religious ceremony Regards, Dave
- Hi Silak The phrase, used literally, might refer to a religious ceremony involving, for example, chanting, drumbeat and the recital of spiritual verse.
- As such a ceremony progresses, the participants might find themselves in a trance state The phrase is being used as a metaphor for how the subject of the paragraph, the teacher, feels when he stands in the school hall and calls out the names of the students, to check that they are present or absent.
- It has become so much a part of his life that he feels he is part of a religious ceremony Regards, Dave
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Hi Silak
The phrase, used literally, might refer to a religious ceremony involving, for example, chanting, drumbeat and the recital of spiritual verse. As such a ceremony progresses, the participants might find themselves in a trance state
The phrase is being used as a metaphor for how the subject of the paragraph, the teacher, feels when he stands in the school hall and calls out
0"mystic abandonment to ritual"
abandonment, in this sense, means giving up control (often used in a passionate or sexual context). Because it is a ritual (which follows certain rules and strictures) he does not need to control it in order to get it done. But (as pointed out) the nature of the abandonment is quasi-religious.
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