C.S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis, known as C.S. (Jack) Lewis, (November 29, 1898 – 22 November 1963) was an Irish writer, scholar and lay theologian. He became known as one of the most important Christian apologists of the 20th Century.

Lewis had a distinguished academic record, and was a respected scholar and critic in the fields of Medieval and Renaissance literature. He was also a prolific writer. His work became more widely known later in his life when he broadcast religious talks on radio. Many of his writings were published in posthumous collections, which introduced his work to succeeding generations. According to Bruce L. Edwards “Indeed, more Lewis volumes—collection of essays, chiefly—have appeared after his death than during his lifetime.” (1)

Today, C.S. Lewis’s best known and most influential works are probably Mere Christianity, a collection of his radio broadcasts, and The Chronicles of Narnia, a seven-book fantasy series describing the adventures of children from our world in Narnia, a mythical kingdom. The Narnia Books have been consistent best sellers and are the subject of current interest due to Disney filmed versions of the works.

Lewis’s personal life is noteworthy because he spent a significant portion of his life as an atheist, and even following his conversion to Christianity, his religious writing reflects many of the non-Christian influences in his life, and he wrote frankly about his personal experiences with doubt, lack of faith, and anger directed against God. (2)

Childhood and Early Life

C S Lewis was born in Belfast, Ireland (now Northern Ireland), into an educated family with a religious background. He had one sibling, Warren, with whom he remained friends for life. His childhood was happy; he was a bookish boy with a vivid imagination. The death of his dog “Jacksie” caused him to take the name “Jacksie” himself, later shortened to “Jacks” and finally to “Jack”. By all accounts, the death of his mother from cancer when he was ten was a life-altering experience. His grieving father sent his sons away to boarding school, where Lewis was subject to acute misery.

University Life

Lewis entered University College, Oxford, on a scholarship in 1917 (1916?). He left to volunteer in the war, but returned and remained at Oxford (first as student, then as teacher) for over 30 years. He graduated with three Firsts and following graduation he was given a teaching post at Magdalen College, Oxford University 1925.

Select Bibliography

 Spirits in Bondage, a volume of poetry and his first full length published work, published in 1919  Dymer, an epic narrative poem, in classic Greco-Roman style, published in 1926. Lewis’s poetry was written in classical style and not well received. This convinced him that poetry should not be a major focus.  The Allegory of Love, 1936. This original scholarship helped to establish Lewis’s reputation as a scholar of note.  The Screwtape Letters, 1942  Mere Christianity, 1952  The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, 1950. Probably his most famous work; the first novel in The Chronicles of Narnia series of children’s fantasy novels.  Surprised by Joy, 1955  A Grief Observed. London: Faber and Faber, 1961.

Footnotes

1. Bruce L. Edwards. C. S. Lewis: A Modest Literary Biography and Bibliography. Sourced at: http://www.lewissociety.org/lewisbio.php

2. C. S. Lewis. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1955

Online Resources

http://www.montreat.edu/dking/lewis/Lewisannotatedbibliography.htm - A fine selected annotated bibliography prepared by a college English class. Copyright Montreat College and the individual authors.

Into the Wardrobe - http://cslewis.drzeus.net/