Lara Croft as a spiritual seeker : religious and spiritual motifs in the Tomb Raider transmedia universe
Religio revue pro religionistiku June 15, 2025 DOI: 10.5817/rel2025-40161 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA survey of the Tomb Raider game series reveals that religious and spiritual motifs are prominent, with older games drawing heavily on Western Esotericism and the newer Survivor Trilogy reflecting Alternative Spirituality. The analysis, based on hermeneutics and discursive methods, suggests that the protagonist Lara Croft can be interpreted as a spiritual seeker rather than merely an archaeologist.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Art Sociology |
| Key finding | Argues that the Tomb Raider series shows a marked influence of Western Esotericism and Alternative Spirituality, and that Lara Croft can be interpreted as a spiritual seeker rather than an archaeologist. |
Abstract
In this article, I offer a concise survey of the religious/spiritual motifs identifiable in Tomb Raider. Based on hermeneutics and discursive analysis applied mainly (but not exclusively) to the main game series, I identify a marked influence of both Western Esotericism (in the case of the older games) and Alternative Spirituality (especially in the case of the Survivor Trilogy). Furthermore, there is enough ground to interpret Lara Croft as a spiritual seeker rather than an archaeologist.