Clive Staples Lewis

[Burly Brute]

"An Ulster Scot may come to disbelieve in God, but not to wear his weekday clothes on the Sabbath." --Surprised by Joy

I just found this quote to be a humorous observation.

I am taking a class on C.S. Lewis at my school, and I thought it would be interesting to hear some of your alls opinions, likes, dislikes, et cetera.

(His faith, although a big contributor to his work, cannot go overlooked; however, don't let this become a religious debate. I am mostly interested in your alls literary critiques and the like)

Sweet--so what ya think?


P.S. Has anyone been to any of his homes, the pub where him and the Inklings met, etc?

[Sheep In Wolf's Clothing]

I just finished "The of Narnian:The Life and Imagination of CS Lewis" by Alan Jacobs. Of all the biographies I've read I thought that this was a well balanced look at Lewis.

I enjoy his fiction,though I found his Science Fiction rather a hard slog at first, but I did start to really enjoy it by the second book. I don't share his religious views, but I do enjoy his writing style. His letters written to Arthur Greeves are a rather enjoyable read as well!

Good Luck with your course and enjoy.

Sara

[davidlpope]

"An Ulster Scot may come to disbelieve in God, but not to wear his weekday clothes on the Sabbath." --Surprised by Joy

P.S. Has anyone been to any of his homes, the pub where him and the Inklings met, etc?

Nice quote...

I think that The Screwtape Letters is one of the most insightful books I've read.

While in college I took a summer trip to Britain and had the pleasure of visiting both Magdalen College and the Bird and Baby (the Eagle and Child) in Oxford.

[Mike_Oettle]

While the OP did that this should not become a religious debate, I must say I agree wholeheartedly with David Pope:
“I think that The Screwtape Letters is one of the most insightful books I’ve read.”
I find Lewis an intriguing personality and an author who wrote successfully at various levels. I have greatly enjoyed his Narnia books and his science fiction, but he is at his most profound when focused on spiritual matters.
Regards,
Mike

[thescot]

He was indeed a brilliant Christian apologist, and Screwtape was a dandy. Not to mention A Grief Observed which is a hard read. But most people do not even know that what we know of Middle Ages literature is largely from Lewis. He was a good friend of Tolkien, both Oxford dons.

I recommend some of his scholarly work if you're really interested in knowing about Jack Lewis. And did you know he even wrote science fiction? He was really quite a fellow and a man to study.

[McClef]

And of course Shadowlands is a very good movie about him with Anthony Hopkins playing Lewis.

[Gryphon57]

I found The Screwtape Letters to be an interesting read. The Chronicles of Narnia is excellent fantasy, if a bit juvenile compared to Tolkien. Still, it was very enjoyable and look forward to passing along my less pristine box set to my grandchildren. I will have to disagree about the science fiction. I found it less impressive. I tend to read more at the Sciencefiction end of the spectrum and not the scienceFiction, so that could be part of the problem. I like the math to work in my Scifi; i.e. Asimov, Clark, Heinlein, et.al. I also thought that his religeous views were a bit heavy handed in his scifi writings.

Just my opinion of course: YMMV, etc.

Harold

[Burly Brute]

And of course Shadowlands is a very good movie about him with Anthony Hopkins playing Lewis.

We are watching Shadowlands in my class this week! I love Anthony Hopkins, he is such an awesome actor.

I love all the insights, and would have to agree with many of the comments. Lewis to me seems to be such a deep person, but not the kind of deep person that boasts how deep they can be. To be honest, I took the class because I never cared much for Lewis. I guess the popularization of his Narnia novel kind of "ruined" him for me for much of my life. I don't care for talking animals, or witches, wardrobes, lions...haha. I am coming around; however, to the Narnia series because I am actually reading one of the books (the dawn treader) as opposed to letting Hollywood tell me the story. All in all I have loved Surprised by Joy and The Problem of Pain. I will keep you guys updated as we progress!

Zach

[J_Mimbs]

... I am actually reading one of the books (the dawn treader) as opposed to letting Hollywood tell me the story.

The stories aren't even the same, particularly with the Dawn Treader movie. The books were written for children but are still great stories.

I admit I haven't read as much of his nonfiction as I should, although Screwtape Letters is a favorite. Some friends and I are reading through Mere Christianity and really enjoying it thus far.

[Sheep In Wolf's Clothing]

We are watching Shadowlands in my class this week! I love Anthony Hopkins, he is such an awesome actor.

I love all the insights, and would have to agree with many of the comments. Lewis to me seems to be such a deep person, but not the kind of deep person that boasts how deep they can be. To be honest, I took the class because I never cared much for Lewis. I guess the popularization of his Narnia novel kind of "ruined" him for me for much of my life. I don't care for talking animals, or witches, wardrobes, lions...haha. I am coming around; however, to the Narnia series because I am actually reading one of the books (the dawn treader) as opposed to letting Hollywood tell me the story. All in all I have loved Surprised by Joy and The Problem of Pain. I will keep you guys updated as we progress!

Zach

If you are watching the film "Shodowlands", you might want to read "Lenten Lands" by Douglas Gresham. He was one of Joy Gresham's two sons.The book is mainly about his life with his mother and Lewis. "Shadowlands" was a good film, but not really that historically accurate.

Keep enjoying Lewis,
Sara