Patterns in teenage fiction of the last decade which features portrayals of new Christian groups

Abstract

Generic patterns are discernible in a selection of portrayals of New Christian Groups in teenage fiction published between 1992 and 2001. New Christian Groups are presented as ‘other’, in lifestyle and worship. Oppressive fathers and romantic attraction across the religious divide combine to push and pull the protagonists towards, or away from, New Christian Groups. There are strong designs on the reader's response in the presentation of charismatic leaders as abusers of power, who misappropriate Bible verses, see Satan lurking everywhere, and betray children's innocence, violating their minds and bodies. Protagonists become disenchanted with these dangerous leaders, and revert to more conventional beliefs and lifestyles. While it is understandable that authors would wish to protect readers from those who abuse in the name of religion, there is a risk of perceiving all New Christian Groups as being as corrupt as a small minority. The condemnation of false prophets in these novels is so overt that the reader might wonder whether there are other ways of portraying New Christian Groups. As yet, sympathetic or open‐ended representations of New Christian Groups are hard to find in teenage fiction.