Defence against the Dark Arts Part XX: The Prisoner TV series

The cult UK TV series The Prisoner (1967) is one of the best TV shows that I have ever seen. 

It tells the story of a British secret agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village that on the surface is a holiday resort but is really a prison. He is given the designation of Number Six. His captors want to know why he suddenly resigned from his job; he refuses to give them the information that they want. He many times attempts to escape, but is always recaptured and brought back to the Village.

Number Six is played by Patrick McGoohan, the main creator of the series. McGoohan is very convincing indeed as a man who tries to maintain his integrity and independence when under pressure and surrounded by gaslighting enemies. 

There are 17 episodes, each lasting around 50 minutes; I have them all on DVD; I wish that there had been many more. 

There is a lot of information available online, so here I just want to mention a few aspects of the series that I particularly like.

More about The Prisoner
I find The Prisoner alarming, sinister, eerie, mysterious, bizarre, surreal, colourful and fascinating. It is allegorical; it contains many metaphors and much symbolism. Individualism versus collectivism is a major theme.  The Village is said to be the pattern for the future, a perfect blueprint for world order.

I like the opening sequence with the exciting music and the views of London; I like the decorative Village and the beautiful scenery.

Some aspects, the clothes especially, do seem rather dated, but this is a minor criticism.

Number Six and the Village:

The initial confrontation with Number Two:

A few points about people who join cults

Steven Hassan's best-selling book Combating Cult Mind Control, which is described as a 'Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults', is a good starting point for people who want to learn something about cults. First published in 1988, it is still very relevant.

This book contains a lot of useful - not to mention depressing, disturbing, sinister and chilling - information and covers many cult-related topics.

Steven, aka Steve, Hassan is American; he is a former high-level member of the Unification Church or 'Moonies'. Much of what he says about this cult and his life inside it has a much wider application.

This article covers a few points of particular interest that Steve Hassan makes in connection with joining cults.

He says for example that the Moonies justify the use of deception to recruit new members. So do many if not most cult-like organisations. Misleading people, luring them somewhere under false pretences and downright brazen lying are common practices; some examples can be found in this article.

A key point about people who join cults
Steven Hassan makes a very good point here:

“It is important to remember that for the most part, people don't join cults. Culls recruit people.“

This is very true in the majority of cases. Most people who join cults do so only because they were approached and manipulated by unscrupulous members with recruitment targets to meet: they would not have sought out and joined the cult of their own inclination and free will.

Some cults however are very exclusive, at least in the early stages of their existence. They prefer quality to quantity and try to attract rather than target people. They make it difficult to join and they let the would-be members make all the running and prove themselves worthy. Of course, this could be a clever recruitment technique!

Something about Nicholas Stuart Gray's Grimbold's Other World

I recently read Nicholas Stuart Gray's Grimbold's Other World (1963) for the first time. 

This little fantasy book is written in the style of fairy tales; each chapter is followed by a poem. 

I wish that I had encountered this book when I was very young and could read it just for the settings, the stories, the characters and the humour as I did with Nicholas Stuart Gray's Over the Hills to Fabylon: the references to not belonging and the dangers of being involved with magic and other worlds are the main interest now.

Grimbold and Muffler
Grimbold is a black cat who introduces a boy called Muffler, who was found in a hen's nest by some villagers and is 'different', to the night world and its inhabitants.

Muffler has a whole series of adventures in his world and the night world. He is involved with a variety of characters including a sorcerer, talking animals, birds and trees and mythological beings such as dwarves. 

Children will enjoy the stories for their own sake, but adults who are interested in unseen influences may notice some sad and alarming messages.

The quotations speak for themselves – and for the author and others who don't feel at home in this world.

The villagers say this about Muffler:

“We must be gentle, and not let him suffer for being different.”

The narrator makes this depressing – but true - comment:

“This, of course, was not possible. Everyone must suffer who is different.”

Grimbold's Other World contains many warnings about what happens to people who get involved with magic and the night world.