SOURCE: "The Spiritual Order of Michel Tournier," in Renascence, Vol. XXXVI, Nos. 1 and 2, Autumn-Winter, 1983–1984, pp. 77-87.

In the following essay, Cloonan traces Tournier's religious development through the characters in his first four published novels.

"The whole world is nothing but a stack of keys and a collection of locks."

                          [Des Clefs et des serrures]

Michel Tournier is a controversial Christian. His religious beliefs frequently appear multiple and contradictory. In an interview accorded to the Australian journal, Meanjin, Tournier insisted that "God had an undoubted place in my life because I am a Spinozist. That is, I believe that I participate in creation and in the divine spirit when I write and understand" [Meanjin, Vol. XXXVIII, May, 1978]. However, Tournier went on to express surprise that his characters do not share his convictions: "… this belief is not theirs. My novels are rather atheistic." Critical reaction to Tournier's works has often...