The Abolition of Man

The Abolition of Man 
by CS Lewis

It’s an oldie, but a goodie. Everything CS Lewis writes is a classic – to me, at least. And the intellectual prowess of the author makes me feel smarter as I read. It’s not easy reading, but having finished this slight volume, I am definitely better for it.

I believe the content of this book was originally presented in a few lectures at Oxford. So basically, if you read this book, it’s just like going to Oxford with Dr. Lewis as your professor. What a thrill to sit under the tutelage of such a great theologian, thinker, and man.

In this book, Lewis coins his famous phrase: Men without Chests. He discusses the decline of education in his day and age (1940s) but the relevance of these words today is striking. Almost prophetic. His premise is that, traditional morality (as laid out by our Creator) must be taught as the sole source of all value judgements – it is not one among a series of possible systems of value. He says that “there has never been, and never will be, a radically new judgement of value in the history of the world.”

He discusses the idea that if children are not taught absolute truths, then we cannot expect them to behave with virtue and honor. We will essentially raise men without chests, who are all intellect and no heart.

Yes, it’ll make you think. Yes, you might have to read some passages twice. But you will come away from it smarter, wiser, and let’s face it, you’ll be an Oxford student for an hour or two, and wouldn’t that look great on your resume?

What is your favorite CS Lewis book? Leave us a comment for a chance to win this week’s prize!

Jennifer Fromke is a novelist who writes from NC, where she pines for colder temperatures all year long. Northerners by upbringing, she and her husband of 26 years have raised three Southern-ish children, much to their amazement. Jennifer reviews books at Shetalksbooks.com and you can download a free story from her website when you sign up for her newsletter at jenniferfromke.com. She writes contemporary women’s fiction and email. Lots of email.

The Screwtape Letters

This month marks the 75^th anniversary of The Screwtape Letters being first published in England. For those of you unfamiliar with the book, written by C.S. Lewis, it is a Christian apologetic novel written as a series of letters from a Senior Demon Screwtape to his nephew Wormwood, a Junior Tempter. There are thirty-one missives that give advice on how to undermine faith and promote sin in “The Patient.” Some of the letters were published in the Anglican periodical, The Guardian between May and November 1941.

Born in Belfast, Ireland in 1891, Lewis lived there until 1917 when he attended Oxford University as a scholarship student. Shortly thereafter he was drafted and sent to France. Wounded on April 15, 1918, Lewis was sent to England to recuperate. Afterwards he was assigned to Andover. A month after the war’s end, he was discharged and returned to studying at Oxford. He would ultimately get his degree and end up teaching English at Magdelen College (part of Oxford) for twenty-nine years.

Influenced by his friend J.R.R. Tolkein, Lewis converted to Christianity in 1931. His apologetic work began five years later with the publication of The Allegory of Love. Eight more books were published during WWII, and then an additional twelve between 1947 and 1963 (the year of his death.) Considered one of the most influential Christian apologetists in modern day, with The Times listed Lewis number eleven in their list of “The 50 Greatest British Writers since 1945.” The success of The Screwtape Letters may be partially responsible for that.

Adapted to a stage production in 1961 called Dear Wormwood, the setting is changed to wartime London, and the ending is also changed. Anthony Lawton’s adaptation has been staged several times since 2000. The Fellowship for Performing Arts secured rights to adapt The Screwtape Letters and opened off Broadway in 2006. Seventy five years after its initial publication, a new production of The Screwtape Letters was staged this year in New York and London. I’d like to think Lewis would be pleased not so much for the recognition but that his apologetics are reaching the masses.

A freelance writer for over ten years, Linda Shenton Matchett writes historical fiction. Her novellas Love’s Harvest and Love Found in Sherwood Forest are available on Amazon. She is currently seeking a publisher for her series about WWII war correspondent Ruth Brown. Visit her at www.LindaShentonMatchett.com

Lessons Learned from the Inklings

By Shirley Raye Redmond

CS Lewis & Aslan

In recent years, the successful Lord of the Ring and Chronicles of Narnia movies have won J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis a legion of new fans. Tolkien and Lewis were members of the same writers group—known as the Inklings—for more than fifteen years. Lewis usually hosted the Thursday night critique sessions in his rooms at Magdalene College.

“Jack made things seem larger than life,” Walter Hooper, Lewis’ former secretary told me some years ago when we met in Oxford. “Everything had more meaning around him.”

I learned a lot about Lewis and his writers’ group during that hour’s chat. The Inkling weren’t really the stuffy Oxford dons one might have imagined them to be. I also got an inkling of what it takes to ensure the success of a writer’s group.

(1) The Inklings had specified goals. They knew what they wanted to write and why. They shared info about publishers and they networked. Each member was committed to professionalism.

(2) They had a commitment to craft. The Inklings had phenomenal publishing successes because they mercilessly polished their prose. Their bestsellers are still selling today. Lewis’s The Last Battle won the prestigious Carnegie Medal for best children’s book of the year when it was released in 1956. His commitment to craft has paid off for decades.

(3) Last but not least, they had synergy. This word is generally defined as “cooperation” or “the working together of two or more parts to stimulate new ideas that result in greater productivity for all the parts.” Synergy promotes the originating of new ideas and their fruition. The members supported one another all through the brainstorming, writing, revising and marketing aspects of one another’s work. For instance, when The Hobbit was published in 1937, Lewis wrote glowing reviews of Tolkien’s book for a wide variety of publications, including The Times Literary Supplement, and was instrumental in ensuring the success of his friend’s book.

The Inklings met twice a week—socially on Tuesdays at the local pub and on Thursdays for reading and critiquing at Lewis’s rooms at the college. They brought with them their best intentions. John Wain, one of the younger members, once described the Thursday night meetings with fond fervor, declaring, “The best of them (the critique sessions) were as good as anything I shall live to see.”

Do you belong to a supportive writing group? If so, what do value most about the group?

Don't forget to leave a comment to get your name in the drawing for Hemorrhaging of Souls by Nicola Furlong.