C.S. Lewis on Misunderstanding Fantasy Essay
“Good stories often introduce the marvelous or supernatural and nothing about Story has been so often misunderstood as this.”
On Stories—C.S. Lewis
The early decades of the last century saw the loss of credibility of fantasy literature among the academic elite who ruled it a popular genre with little to no scholarly merit. Little that had had the misfortune of being dubbed fantasy had escaped the blacklist cast upon the field. Many critics had also labeled the fantasy genre as largely cliché, full of shallow characters, and as having no value beyond being purely escapist entertainment. These generic labels, applied wholesale to fantastic literature, had pushed it off the …show more content…
Similarly, Lewis’ colleague at Oxford, J.R.R. Tolkien also defended Fantasy, or as he called it, “fairy-stories.” Tolkien was known for his fantastic works that included The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and an assortment of companion books to the series. He was also well known for his criticism of Beowulf, “The Monsters and the Critics.” His Fantasy series have had broad implications on the fantasy genre as a whole since publication, influencing the current generation of writers with the firm grasp of history
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A Brief Biography of C.S. Lewis
827 Words | 3 PagesC.S. Lewis is one of the greatest authors in history. His books are still widely available and sold to many interested readers. In Lewis’ childhood, he experienced a tragedy that affected his belief in god; in his middle life, he mainly focused on college and his studies, but his father’s death played a role in Lewis later becoming a Christian. In Lewis’ later life, he married one of his own fans. Clive’s passion for writing began when he was a small child, and it continued to grow as he furthered…
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Essay on C.s. Lewis: The Abolition Of M
617 Words | 3 PagesC.S. The Abolition of Man While reading The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis, I encountered a few questions concerning his view on Ethical Innovation and the dilemma conditioners face. It was a difficult book with many ideas that didn’t come completely clear to me at times. I agree with Lewis theory that ethical innovation is impossible. Everything we base ourselves on according to rational thought, morals, ethics, what is right and wrong, has been passed down to us in every kind…
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Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis Essay
1093 Words | 5 PagesChristianity by C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis, is written as set of guidelines of Christian belief. Lewis does not say there is any particular way to believe but he does make a point that the topic of religion itself is serious. As you consider whether you want to believe or not, you have to recognize how much thought it requires, and how thought provoking a process this decision is. Lewis covers Christianity in four different books within his book. In book one, Lewis discusses the…
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Perelandra by C.S. Lewis Essay
1389 Words | 6 Pagesthe rulers of Perelandra. Interesting and Enjoyable C. S. Lewis' book, Perelandra, was an interesting and enjoyable book to read. The thing that I found most interesting was the parallel between the Perelandra and the garden of Eden. Lady, much like Eve, was tempted to gain knowledge of good and evil by Weston. Ransom, acting like a conscience explained to Lady why she should not disobey Maledill's will. I thought that C. S. Lewis was trying to communicate the story of the fall of man to his…
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Essay on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
2922 Words | 12 PagesIn C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lewis emphasizes the three points of philosophy, themes, and symbolism throughout his writing. Lewis was a strong Christian man, and wanted to make children see and understand all the stories of the Bible. Therefore, he put Christian elements through his books, but with fantasy characters as well. Especially in this story, Lewis conveys the differences between good and evil. Aslan is represented as Christ just as the White Witch represents the…
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The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis Essay
1198 Words | 5 PagesThe Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis The Abolition of Man is perhaps the best defense of natural law to be published in the twentieth century. The book is outstanding not because its ideas are original, but because it presents so clearly the common sense of the subject, brilliantly encapsulating the Western natural law tradition in all its Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian glory. Interestingly, Lewis' defense of objective morality…
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The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis
567 Words | 2 PagesIn The Great Divorce, C.S. Lewis provides an allegorical description of a dreamers journey from hell to heaven. The Narrator of the book takes a journey on a bus from the grey town, hell, to just outside of heaven. While he is making this trip from the grey town to heaven, he converses with some of his fellow travelers. These travelers are all different, yet all have the mindset of not being able to leave the darkness of the grey town and go to the joy that is heaven. Through his talent in story-telling…
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Essay on C.S. Lewis: Mere Christianity
1251 Words | 6 PagesC.S. Lewis: Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis covers many topics in his fourth book contained in Mere Christianity titled BEYOND PERSONALITY: OR FIRST STEPS IN THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY. He addresses such topics as theology, what it means to be the Son of God, the three personal God, the relationship of God and time, the cost of being a Christian, how God works to turn us into image of Christ, why Christian growth is both hard and easy, and also what he thinks about our old personalities before…
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Subtlety and Psychology in "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis
897 Words | 4 PagesThe book, The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, shows how Screwtape uses subtlety and psychology when he is tempting human beings into sin. He plays with the patient’s imagination, emotions, will, and intellect. Also, he shows great shrewdness when encouraging sin that does not appear to be sin. Screwtape shows effective psychology in encouraging the patient to displace intellect and will in prayer with imagination and emotion, and he shows subtlety in encouraging gluttony of delicacy, pride in humility…
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C.S. Lewis and The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment
1194 Words | 5 PagesC.S. Lewis argues against the humanitarian framework for punishment saying that, “The Humanitarian theory removes from punishment the concept of Deserts. But the concept of deserts is the only connecting link between punishment and justice” (C.S. Lewis). He is correct that the humanitarian framework does remove the concept of deserts, and that there is a connecting link between justice and punishment. However, he is wrong in suggesting that humans should only be seen through a retributive framework…
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