What's So Interesting About C.S. Lewis? (Part 2)
Mosaic Lounge Summons: August 12, 2006 :: Narnian Scribe: R.E. de Leon
The Themes of Lewis' Works
ust as a visual artist works with palettes, a writer works with themes, and while we are often unaware of them, it is these themes, and the way they are crafted into the writer’s work, that give them their power. The following are some of the themes TPON members noted in Lewis’ writings.
- Sehnsucht
Among people familiar with Lewis’ life story, the term sehnsucht is a very familiar one, and a few of the TPON members who were at the summons used that term to describe a theme that is very dominant in Lewis' work.
Wikipedia defines sehnsucht as a German word meaning "longing", which C. S. Lewis used as a synonym for “joy.” It is has overtones of desire and nostalgia not found in any comparable English word.
To explain why the theme was so important to Lewis, he once said:
"our lifelong nostalgia, our longing to be reunited with something in the universe from which we now feel cut off, to be on the inside of some door which we have always seen from the outside, is not mere neurotic fancy, but the truest index of our real situation."
And nobody who reads Lewis can escape this sense of sehnsucht. Aside from those who used the term itself, all the other members described similar emotions, pointing out that Lewis’ work is characterized by a sense of joy, mystery, discovery, pursuit, adventure, beauty, and introspection.
-Realistic Themes
But of course, the fact that Lewis’ most popular work is a series of fantasy stories for children begs the question of whether the value Lewis imbedded in his works is “realistic.”
This led to members point out that Lewis was able to find “the difficult balance between childlikeness and maturity.” His works at no point tried to cover up the presence of pain or evil. In fact, his philosophical works, such as “A Grief Observed,” “The Problem of Pain,” and “Why I Am Not a Pacifist” do precisely the opposite, validating and trying to explain the existence of pain and evil.
Thus, the fantasy element in some of Lewis’ works were only a literary structure, and the TPON members found that many of the things Lewis wrote, even in his “fantastic works,” were applicable to their experience.
-There’s a Point To It All
At one point in the discussion, it was said that Lewis created in his readers “a strong sense of purpose.” Once a reader took in what Lewis had to say, he or she is able to apply it to his or her own experience and say “well, there’s a point to it all.”
The four Pevensies do not enter the wardrobe and find themselves in Narnia as an accident. They are meant to come to Narnia. In fact, there is a prophecy that two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve will defeat the White Witch.
Members sadly noted that it is uncommon for modern stories to have this “sense of purpose,” particularly in the case of local films. The members all agreed that writing like this could indeed be done, but again, any writer who attempts to do so must walk “the difficult balance between childlikeness and maturity.”
-The Story of Redemption
Another theme the members said they noted in Lewis’ work was that all of it, whether children’s stories, poetry, letters, or essays, had strong themes of redemption. One of the members described it as similar to JRR Tolkien’s concept of Eucatastrophe, a sudden turn of events in favor of the good and the antonym of catastrophe.
This is hardly surprising, of course, as Tolkien and Lewis were close friends, and as part of the informal literary society known as The Inklings, would criticize each others work so it could be better.
-The Sense of Imagination
Finally, the members also noted that Lewis’ works, particularly his works of “fantasy” and “myth” appealed strongly to the reader’s sense of imagination.
Lewis’ friend and fellow-inkling Owen Barfield agrees:
"[Lewis] placed a premium on the imagination, once saying, “reason is the natural organ of truth and imagination is the organ of meaning.” He believed you could not fully grasp the meaning of a word or idea unless it was associated with an accurate and captivating image. This is why Lewis’ writing, whether fiction or prose, was laced with analogy and imagery."
-Helping Us Make Sens of the World
And indeed, “truth” was something Lewis was trying to capture in his works, which leads us to another reason why the members liked Lewis: he did not stop with just “being heard” by his audience, or rather being read by his readers. He invited them to participate in not only the story itself, but the things in life to which the story applies. Lewis, the members noted, was a “constructive” writer.
Perhaps an anecdote from one of Lewis’ students captures the idea best. Drama critic Kenneth Tynan, while he was still a student at Oxford, received this critique to a paper he had given Lewis, saying that his words “should diagnose (not merely blame) and distinguish (not merely praise.)"
Lewis, the TPON members noted, never writes just for writing’s sake. He always makes an effort to diagnose and distinguish. This is perhaps the most obvious aspect of Lewis’ works: he is always asking questions and using the imagery of his stories to seek answers.
One way or another, CS Lewis’ writings help us make a little more sense of this confusing world. And perhaps that is enough reason, by itself, for liking Lewis.
In The Next Article: But CS Lewis was a British writer from the early part of the previous century. How do we introduce CS Lewis to a modern Filipino audience?
Suggested Reading:
Encyclopedia Barfieldiana
A hyperlinked, comprehensive Barfield reference work:
key terms, ideas, influences, & themes.
Lindvall, Terry. Joy and Sehnsucht: The Laughter and Longings of CS Lewis.
1997 Mars Hill Review 8 (Summer 1997): 25-38.
Sehnsucht
Wikipeidia's entry for "Sehnsucht"
Staub, Dick. The “authentic” C.S. Lewis
Staubwatch. May 28th, 2004