My Choice - Melissa Marazzi

As I think about graduating, I can’t help but look back on all my years and analyze my time spent here. I figured that I would naturally think I could have done more and could have experienced more, but this is such an easy trap to fall into – you could really say that about anything. We can always do more, it’s really a matter of if more is necessary – sometimes its not. I think what matters more is establishing a presence, being part of the environment and community that exists here. Being part of the environment, as Beldan Lane would describe, means that you are able to listen and communicate with the landscape around you, or the community around you. Then you can really experience the area and become part of it; establish a chora relationship. I think that this is a better standard to follow, rather than thinking about all the “more” you could do.

My Choice - Melissa Marazzi

I have recently finished reading through the book of Romans in the Bible. In Romans 5, Paul talks about hope. He writes “and hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” I thought about what having hope does, to a Christian especially. It allows the person to have freedom, freedom from fear mostly. In Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, it seems that the people who are against Aslan are gripped by fear because they have no hope. They must create their own hope, in essence, while those who follow Aslan rely on the hope he provides which is sure. This is symbolic of the hope that Jesus provides. According to the Christian faith, Jesus provides His children with hope and those who follow him are able to live freely without fear.

My Choice - Melissa Marazzi

In class, we were talking about how in the movie, one of the characters says that “we read to know that we are not alone.” I can really relate to this maxim. I think one of the best things about reading a novel is when you are able to be drawn into it because of something that you related to. If we were unable to relate to the story we are reading, there would really be no sense in reading the novel in the first place. I believe that it must be quite the difficult task to write a science fiction piece. Science fiction for the most part is un-relatable – only so many people have been in space. Lewis is a master at this, however. He incorporates the best aspects that humans can connect to into his stories – such as the various human emotions that Ransom encounters when traveling to Malacandra. Being able to relate the story at hand makes the reader more focused and able to notice the details of the story; symbolism seems easier to pick on as well.

Till We Have Faces - Melissa Marazzi

As I began reading Till We Have Faces, the opening starts out with Oraul speaking rather indignantly. He talks about how he has been wronged by the gods and that he is daring the dangerous path of arguing against them. This immediately made me think of the story of Job from the Bible. Great tragedy befalls Job and he winds up losing everything he has. Indignant – and rightfully so from our perspective – he falls to the ground and demand God grant him an answer. Job loves the Lord but does not understand why He has decided that these serious of events must occur. On the other hand, Oraul seems to angry because of a wrong he believes was done to him; there does not seem to be much adoration for the gods in his case (however, I am still in the midst of reading the story, so I may not have the full picture quite yet). The two seem to be facing what humans are constantly being frustrated over, our lack of understanding for what God has in sort for us. The truth is, though, because of our limited perspective, I think, we will never be able to really understand with full clarity when a thing is occurring. Hindsight is 20-20 and foresight is essentially blind; but faith is blind, so we must walk blindly and trust in God.

Narnia-Lauren Brooks

Narnia-Lauren Brooks
Many things in Narnia confuse me but the one that I struggle with the most is when Lucy is discussing Azlan with Mr. and Mrs. Beaver. “Of course he’s not safe, but he’s good” What does that mean?? Having some sense of safety in my religion/spirituality is something that is important to me and this quote from Lewis’s’ book really confuses me. The only thing I can seem to relate it too is that he means he is not safe because he is a lion and he is something good and great but at the same time he still has sharp claws and sharp teeth. He can be good, but he can also punish you for the wrong things you do. For example when the slave girl was whipped he scratched the girl for her to realize what she had done and to realize how selfish she was being. I think it also makes him appear more human, especially to Lucy since she was present when he was killed and when he came back to life.

Favorite Character-Lauren Brooks

Favorite Character-Lauren Brooks
My favorite character from the Narnia books is Edmund. I know a lot of people don’t really like Edmund, but I think he is the child that has the most depth and realism to his character. When you look at Peter, Susan, and Lucy the only one that has a lot of depth and has a main part in the plot of the different stories is Lucy. Peter and Susan are very one dimensional and lack a lot of growth and development of Lewis’s part. When looking at Edmund you see real development due to his part in betraying his family and then in his forgiveness from Azlan. In many different books after that incident its effects are mentioned in different books, for example when the group doesn’t believe that Lucy was seeing Azlan Edmund felt especially bad about not believing her because of before when he new she was telling the truth, but refrained from letting the others know. I also like Edmund because he doesn’t have a real defining place in the lineage, Peter is the eldest, Susan is the eldest girl, and Lucy is the baby, and Edmund is just there. I think that might be part of the reason why the betrayal was so attractive to him in the first place

Vincent Farino Narnia

I found another relation to Christ and Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia book, as described by Mr. Beaver. In Narnia, there is a quote about Aslan that reveals a religious undertone. Aslan, who is symbolic as Christ, in Narnia is described by Mr. Beaver as, “Safe? Of course he isn’t safe! But he’s good." This relates to Christ in the Bible as he is described as, “A consuming fire” and “The prince of peace” (NIV). Both of these descriptions reveal the character of Christ as “not safe, but good.” I believe that those two descriptions are very powerful, and that Lewis most likely intended to describe Aslan in that way.

Vincent Farino Choice

I have been discussing a book with one of my friends called The Naked Gospel. This book makes claims that there are thoughts or ideas that Christians have come to believe only because that is what they have heard many times, and that it is not actually in the Bible. I thought that was interesting that there are certain things that I personally have believed in my faith without actually basing it on the Bible. I would hear things from different friends, family, and Pastors and just assume that what they have said was in the Bible, but in some cases it was not. There was also another interesting point that this man makes and that is that the New Covenant that Jesus makes does not actually happen until his death. This means that all of the Gospels word's and teachings are not included in that New Covenant because Christ has not died yet. I will have to do more research on this subject, but I thought that it was an interesting thought.

Mere Christianity- Elissa Wilcox

"Reality, in fact, is usually something you could not have guessed. That is one of the reasons I believe Christianity. It is a religion you could not have guessed. If it offered us just the kind of universe we had always expected, I should feel as though we were making it up. But, in fact, it is not the sort of thing anyone would have made up. It has just that queer twist about it that real things have." (Mere Christianity, pp. 41-42). I love this because I feel like Jesus talked about this, and that he wasn't the king that the disciples but he was a king. The fact that no one would have guessed that Christianity would have taken off the way it did and that it seems to be something that man could not have made up makes it more believable.

Outside Reading, Crazy Love - Melissa Marazzi

I was reading the through the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan. Chan takes a very proactive approach to the Christian faith, proclaiming that we must be bold. He made a really interesting point in the book that struck me fiercely as I read it. He asked the reader to ponder going to Heaven and experiencing everything you hoped it could be. All your friends were there, people you loved, there was no pain or sadness, you were completely filled and satisfied to the full extent and thoroughly happy. But Jesus wasn’t there. Would you still want to go there? I think this is a powerful question that really strikes the heart of a Christian and gets them to think about what is more important to them: getting to Heaven or being with Jesus? The obvious and easy answer would be to say that of course a true believer would not want to be there if Jesus wasn’t. But this can also be seen in real life, day-to-day. It is hard to live day in and day out, being constantly tried and tested by the Spirit, but Jesus is hear with us. The one that would most likely chose the Heaven without Jesus would be the one who cannot take the trials of life for the sake of his Savior. But in the end, being connected with Jesus, I think is clearly the better of the two, regardless where it takes you.

Outside Reading, A Timbered Choir - Melissa Marazzi

I have been reading on and off a book of poetry by Wendell Berry called a Timbered Choir. Berry is a lover of nature and that certainly comes out in his poetry – aside from the fact that he is also a farmer. His poems reflect much on nature around him and his reactions to them. A was reading one of his poems from 1981 in the book simply labeled IX. In this poem he sings his praises to a forest that he finds such beauty in. The interesting thing is though is that he mentions it is beautiful because man has neglected it, man has disregarded in and left it be. Berry describes how man’s progress seems only to stifle, not only ourselves, but the world around us. In our desire for development, we seem to be poisoning things on the way, Berry writes. I think this is unique perspective and I have to agree with Berry when he says that we must see the forest as “fellow presences,” our neighbor in this Earth, not “raw sources.” We must learn to appreciate the nature around us and not simply use it to further our development when it is not so necessary. Berry also refers to the forest as “blessed.” I think it is important for us to be able to appreciate the blessedness of the nature around us and not pervert God’s gifts for the sake development, and using it to make paper for a book about why He does not exist. It is “here with us” as Bery writes and we should enjoy it as such.

Outside Reading - Melissa Marazzi

A. W. Tozer was a writer from the 50s and very a humble man. He never owned a car but preferred to use public transportation – this is simply a side note I found interesting about his life. He was a great author of many books, one of my favorites being the Pursuit of God. In his book, he talks about the necessity to be in continuous pursuit of God, as the title suggests. He writes, “faith is not a once-done act, but a continuous gaze at the heart of the Triune God.” I love the way he describes faith here because it implies a continual work that must be done. Faith is an unusual thing in that when it is present we are unaware of it, but when it is not we are fully conscious of our need for it. Tozer writes about this in his book and compares faith to the eye: constantly occupied with object of focus and never able to see itself. I love this description of faith because it reminds of of the humility that is needed to posses it; it is purely on the grace of God to grant a man more faith. It is also purely dependent on our own willingness to steer away from logic and towards God’s direction.

Outside Reading - Melissa Marazzi

I was reading through the book of Hebrews, specifically Hebrews 4, and came upon a common theme in the chapter. The author emphasized the necessity for rest and I wondered what about rest is so essential. Other than the obvious benefits of rest – giving your body a break, to regain energy, for sleep, etc – I wondered what was so imperative. I realized then how Godly a thing it would be to do. God rested on the seventh day when He created the world. If God rests, then it makes sense for Hid children to. Also, it is a humbling thing to do, to rest. There is always work to be done. But the real challenge sometimes is to take a much needed break when you there are things to accomplish, when there is always something on your To-Do list that you have yet to finish. These things are important, yes, but so is giving the mind a break. I believe Go calls us to rest so that we do not spend ourselves seeking after work all the time. We can be so easily tempted to do more out of greed and the desire to have as much as we can get; it is harder to take a break.

Outside Reading, The Four Loves - Melissa Marazzi

In Lewis’ the Four Loves, he describes each of the different kinds of types of “loves” that man experiences. He speaks on affection, friendship, eros, and charity. In each of these he describes their unique and curious natures. It is especially interesting when he describes eros because of its seemingly un-human characteristics – it drives man to be what he usually is immersed in: selfishness. The thing that I thought was rather interesting was how each of these loves required the presence or fellowship of another. We are uniquely social creatures and God places in us a need to express ourselves to others, through these many different types of loves. It would be quite disastrous to ourselves to be completely isolated from one another. He says in the book, “We are born helpless. As soon as we are fully conscious we discover loneliness. We need others physically, emotionally, intellectually; we need them if we are to know anything, even ourselves.” His last point is really interesting, that we must be union with others to really know ourselves. This is certainly true in the sense that we gather much of our perception of ourselves from others; we are able to convince ourselves of things so easily, with out someone there to keep us grounded, we may all be raging with conceit.

Narnia - Melissa Marazzi

In Horse and His Boy, we see that Shasta is a very humble boy living a very meek life as a slave essentially. Towards the middle of the story, we find out that Shasta had never even seen his own face in a mirror. The boy has been worked since he was able to start and most likely had no sense of identity. If he had never even seen his own face, it would be difficult to establish a strong sense of self; he has been told what to do his whole life and can only entertain his dream of going North to Narnia himself because his father thinks it foolish. Later when he discovers that he is actually a prince, the tables turn dramatically and suddenly he has everything he could ever need. This is a prime example of the notion of “the first shall be last and the last shall be first” from the Bible. No doubt Lewis must have been influenced by this Biblical theme; the humble gain everything in the end and the proud soon fall. This is a common theme in literature and Lewis describes this result for the righteous as a true reality for those like Shasta, are obedient to doing good.

Vincent Farino Choice

I have been reading in the Holy Bible about the Devil. I have been curious just how the Devil felt about himself to think that he could be more powerful than God. I have found several verses that made my understanding of this subject more clear. Before I state the verses I believe that Lucifer (the Devil) had a longing for power that drove him to think he could be over God. Francis Bacon states, "the desire of power in excess caused the angels to fall..." I believe that these verses in the BIble support the fact that Lucifer had this longing for power. Isaiah 14:13 states about Lucifer, “You said in your heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost of the sacred mountain” (NIV). There is a spiritual world that we as humans cannot see, and I believe that in this world in the beginning of time Lucifer believed that he could be more powerful than the one who gave him his power in the first place. Lucifer was the highest Angel in Heaven and his authority and power led him to long for more. For this longing he and 1/3 of the Angels were cast into Hell for all eternity. These longings that we have sometimes lead us to make poor decisions. We try to fill these longings with things of this world, but only the Creator of these longings can satisfy them.

Vincent Farino Choice

I have been studying a book called "I do not have Enough Faith to be an Atheist" and it has been very interesting. I am a Christian and after reading most of this book I have discovered that it really does take more faith to be an Atheist than a Christian. Basically to be an Atheist one has to believe that the earth and Humans came from nothing. As a Christian we have the Holy Bible which has never been proven wrong and has over 40 authors from three different continents that all are eyewitnesses of Jesus Christ. Not only did most of these men never meet or talk to one another, but all of the books of the Bible point to Christ. What more evidence does one need to know that we are created by an intelligent designer and that we did not come from nothing? I truly believe that it does take more faith to be an atheist and after reviewing many works by Lewis on longing I have found that we all have this longing, even the Atheist.

Vincent Farino Choice

While we were sitting around the fire at Kips place we discussed the idea suggested in Sever Mercy (again I know) of seeing the trinity through a literary metaphor. I found this very useful in describing the Trinity and how it is three in one. There are many parts of the Bible that I believe are so complex one cannot even comprehend what it means and I believe the Trinity is one that can be that way. This way of looking at the Trinity as in a piece of literature that is created by one man (or woman) with your own character in the piece, as well as all the characters being created by you with a piece of you in them. This was a great way of putting the trinity. I believe that there are parts of the Bible that we are not made to understand, but this metaphor of the Trinity helps.

Vincent Farino Choice

I really enjoy the quote by Lewis that states, “if we are made for heaven, the desire for our proper place will be already in us, but not yet attached to the true object, and will even appear as the rival of that object” (1980, p. 29). This means that there is longing that is already in us. Whether it is for heaven or not is unclear, but when we are reading these books or any book for that matter I believe that desire that is already a part of us is intensified. This definitely relates to the longing which I have focused on throughout the year. After my studies I have found that this longing is apart of us all. I believe we can all relate to this in our own lives because when we are away from our homes for a long period of time who doesn't want to go home? I believe that God created us to be with Him if we chose Him, and we all long to go home to Heaven to be with Him.

Vincent Farino Outside reading

I really enjoyed learning about the "otherness" this year and how it exemplifies God. Eliade describes this otherness as "Man becomes aware of the sacred because it manifests itself, shows itself, as something wholly different from the profane…. In each case we are confronted by the same mysterious act-the manifestation of a wholly different order, a reality that does not belong to our world, in objects that are an integral part of our natural ‘profane’ world" (p. 11). When I studied this quote i focused on the word "profane" and found that it is defined as "not relating to that which is sacred or Biblical." The otherness is described as 'wholly different from the profane' which means that it does relate to that which is sacred and Biblical.

Vincent Farino Outside reading

I really like this quote by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. He states, "if I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world" since "creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists" (p. 120). I used this quote in my main thesis for the year about longing, and I believe that this quote really summed up my work. We humans try to fill these voids that are in our lives and we use anything such as drugs, sex, alcohol, entertainment, but I believe that none of those things can fulfill our longings. The reason being is because I believe we were created by God in Heaven and our one longing whether we know it or not is to be with him. To be with our creator the one who placed this longing in us from the beginning.

Vincent Farino Till we have faces

Although I did not get to this book in this semester I do plan on reading it during my hike of the Appalachian Trail. I did some research on it and this book is said to be a "retelling of the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche." This myth is said to be what has "haunted" Lewis all his life. I find it very interesting how Lewis takes stories or myths and recreates them to fit his books. This motivates me because I feel that stories that I have heard before I could recreate in my own way. I love Lewis' work and to know how he creates these stories is very motivating in my own work.

Vincent Farino Space Trilogy

I believe the significance of this trilogy that Lewis has created was to reveal the de-humanising trends in contemporary science fiction. In his second book of this trilogy Perelandra Lewis incorporates another connecting theme to that of the Bible. The story of Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden was reproduced on another planet in this book and I find it very intriguing how Lewis slips these connections in his books. I think it is very well done and helps those that do not know about the Bible see another way or perspective of the themes that are found within it.

Vincent Farino Outside reading

I believe that humans can relate and find their identification to these stories that we read about because of what Walter Fisher calls Narrative Paradigm. Fisher states, "(1) Humans are essentially storytellers. (2) The paradigmatic mode of human decision-making and communication is “good reasons” which vary inform among situations, genres, and media of communication. (3) The production and practice of good reasons are ruled by matters of history, biography, culture and character. (4) Rationality is determined by the nature of persons as narrative beings-their inherent awareness of narrative probability, what constitutes a coherent story, add their constant habit of testing narrative fidelity, whether or not the stories they experience ring true with the stories they know to be true in their lives. (5) The world is a set of stories, which must be chosen among to live the good life (pp. 64-65)." I believe this quote reveals why we can relate to stories in books and film especially these fantasy stories that C.S. Lewis has created.

Vincent Farino Outside reading

I believe that religious themes can be found in books that are not even intended to be spiritual. Author C.M. Barsotti states, "It is not just, or even primarily, the stories of angels and demons that are rightly labeled ‘spiritual.’ Rather, God is more typically encountered in the everyday, in the stuff of life. When we truly experience forgiveness, reconciliation, alienation, or friendship at the movies, that is a spiritual experience" (p. 17). In books there are these themes of forgiveness and reconciliation that can relate to Biblical themes such as the story of the Good Samaritan. The Good Samaritan helped the man on the road when no one else would. Even though it was against what his people believed and lived the Good Samaritan helped the man on the road. These types of stories and themes are found in books of all kinds.

Vincent Farino Outside reading

Owen Barfield was another man who studied C.S. Lewis’ theories and ideologies. Barfield notes that Lewis used longing through the imagery that he would create in his stories (1989). This imagery is very evident in the storyline of The Chronicles of Narnia. Barfield reveals that there is a symbolic significance that this longing is connected to through the landscape and symbols in the writing (1989). The fictitious place of Narnia is symbol in itself of longing because it is an escape of reality into a different world that was created by a man.

Vincent Farino Narnia

In the second book of this series The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe I believe Lewis takes a lot of this story from the Bible. The relations to the story of Christ are very obvious especially with the sacrifice theme of this book. There are many similarities between Jesus Christ and that of Aslan. They are both said to be King of all Kings, they were both guilty of no wrong when they sacrificed themselves, and they both have a power that was not of this world. These similarities are how I believe Lewis includes his beliefs in his work.

Vincent Farino Narnia

In The Chronicles of Narnia I felt that the first book the Magicians Nephew was a very interesting way to set this series up. Not only did Lewis include mystery and adventure, but I believe there is a longing that is found within this whole series that Lewis makes very evident if one is looking for it. The children wanted to explore different worlds and their curiosity especially the boys almost ended there adventure with the Witch. I believe that we are all motivated by these urges of adventure and curiosity. These urges I believe can relate to the longing that we all feel.

Amy Jackson- Miracles

What is a miracle? I define it as an event that defies scientific and natural laws that can only be described as the work of God. That is still a fairly broad definition. I was recently talking to a friend about what counts as a miracle. Is it me passing my math test? Is it someone making it out of a bad car accident without a scratch? Or should the word just be reserved for the things recorded in the Gospels that Jesus did? C.S. Lewis wrote a whole book on miracles. In it he says, "You are probably quite right in thinking that you will never see a miracle done. They come on great occasion: they are found at the great ganglions of history - not of political or social history, but of that spiritual histroy which cannot be fully known by men." Lewis believes that miracles are rare. He does not take the word lightly. I think miracles are more common than Lewis believes, but less common than the way we use the word in our society. Lewis goes on to say, "How likely is it that you or I will be present when a peace-treaty is signes, when a great scientific discovery is made, when a dictator commits suicide? That we should see a miracle is even less likely." Lewis reserves the word for the great acts of God that are remembered, or prophesized about, for years and years to come.

Amy Jackson- Letters to Malcolm

In Lewis' book, Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, he writes, "We must lay before Him what is in us, not what ought to be in us. If we were perfected, prayer would not be a duty, it would be a delight. Someday, please God, it will be." This got me thinking about the reasons for praying. God gets glory through our prayers, however, he does not need them. We need them. If we stopped praying, if the whole world stopped praying, what would happen? It's scary to think about. However, we can also look at it the other way. What would happen if the whole world started praying? If we come to God trying pretending we have everything, He will have nothing to give us. Not because we don't need anything, but because we don't know that we need anything. We must come to him as we are, in full need of everything he is. A lot of times I pray because I think God will be pleased with me. What I don't realize is how much I need prayer and how important it is to talk to God. We need prayer, therefore it is a duty. One day, in Heaven, we will be able to talk to God and delight in the conversation knowing that we fully have God.

Amy Jackson- The Scientific Novels of C.S. Lewis

In a book by Jared Lobdell called "The Scientific Novels of C.S. Lewis", he writes about Lewis' style, "Lewis had grave trouble in constructing story lines: his strength is in his poet's eye for detail and, of course, he eventually turns to established myth for his story lines, as in 'Till We Have Faces" (171). How was C.S. Lewis so successful in his writings if most of his story lines were taken from somewhere else? Books like The Pilgrims Regress, Till We Have Faces, and even Narnia, all had inspiration from other works. Lewis got the idea of the Pilgrims Regress from the story by John Bunyan. He decided to write the same type of story, but with somewhat different themes. Till We Have Faces is a retelling of the old Psyche and Cupid myth. Narnia, in some way was also a retelling. The strong Christian parallels are impossible to ignore. The story of the Bible guided the story of Narnia. These original stories must have impacted C.S. Lewis enough to write them in a different way or with different intentions. He gave these older stories new perspectives. Due to Lewis' brilliance in literary writings, he was able to recreate these stories to draw people in and help them to learn something new.

Amy Jackson- Till We Have Faces Assignment

Welcome, Orual. My name is Tandra. I am the goddess of the moon. Although you only see me at night, I am constantly watching over the world from the skies. I have seen your life and your progression of character. Your love, although it seems pure, is twisted. You have been obsessive over Psyche. Do you want the best for her? Where did you learn of this jealous love?

Although you place the blame on the gods, it is clear to see that Psyche’s misfortune is your doing. Psyche was beautiful and good. She was happy with her husband and palace. Your love was selfish. Your ugliness has made you bitter. It has given you a feeling that you need to control people in order to have power.

Your actions have had a negative effect on many. However, I am a merciful goddess and I know that people’s character can change, just like the ocean’s tide. So I am going to give you a second chance. That is only if you accept it. You may only receive this mercy if you admit your wrongdoings and your need for a second chance. I leave the choice to you. If you want a second chance, may it be so. But if you cannot admit that you were wrong in your selfishness toward Psyche and your accusation of the gods, then you may have what you so desire, death.

Kelsey Garegnani - new world

The story of the creation of Narnia I thought was very beautifully abstract. It didn’t stick straight with the biblical version but had many similar part. I think the similar parts serve to connect the two and make an inference which gives us concept of where it is going. The differences, the artistically redefined version, I thought served to expand our view of the process. All the songs and the movements are more symbolic …and who is to say it didn’t happen like that? Maybe God did sing? Or his words created songs? But either way I saw it as a way of expanding the story to incorporate more feelings and magic. Also, when I first read this story I thought of it from the world perspective and how that would feel to be created, exploring new things piece by piece. That processes ende up being what I thought was very similar to what becoming a Christian is like. How you don’t realize you are empty until you are filled, and do not do not realize what it means to be thirsty until you are quenched….is like how you might feel empty but until you are filled with the spirit you don’t realize how empty you are or how much you have been thirsting after Him.

"My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?"

We are living in a generation that is heavily focused on justice and fairness. We see poverty in various countries and different organizations stepping up to help those in need, because it is fair. Lewis ponders this definition of just and fair- what do we have to compare to?

Jesus was really into justice. He hung out with the prostitutes, tax collectors, thieves, and everyone that was not accepted from society. He wanted to show them that He loved them and their lives had meaning.

The straight line Lewis mentioned was referring to Jesus. He provides the example of how we should love others and how we should judge what is right and not right in our daily lives.

Class reflection - Elizabeth Roy

Class reflection
Choice blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

This is certainly the most difficult blog I have written. It's hard to look over a semester and reflect or evaluate the entire experience.

I can say that I have definitely learned a lot more about Lewis as a person, and about how to think about myth and fairy tales. I feel rather vindicated in fact - I've always loved fantasy as a genre and generally face disparaging comments about it. It's satisfying also to know that Lewis read stories the same way I do - the beloved ones over and over again.

Unfortunately, there is also a lot I wish I had gotten out of the class and didn't. I feel like one of the most important aspects of this class was the personal experience that each student brought to it - but that wasn't shared as much as I would have liked. I would have liked being able to get to know my classmates a little better.

I do think that after this class I will continue reading Lewis' works. I am fascinated especially by his apologetic works, as his views alternately repel me or make me want to cheer. I'm also anticipating the future releases in the Chronicles of Narnia film series that is in production right now. I think I might see the future films in a different light based on what I know about Lewis himself now - although most likely, I'll be even more frustrated when the directors leave things out now!

Kelsey Garegnani - kings

Shasta in The Horse and His Boy is an orphan and is taken in by a fisherman. He is mistreated and abused growing up even though he has royal blood. He doesn’t seem to expect anything better because he doesn’t know he is royalty. The whole time though, while he is obedient to his “dad” he longs for affection and love. Only when he meets his real father and brother does everything seem to really fit. It becomes like the way it was supposed to be. And he learns, form his new father how to be a great king. I think that this is a story which parallels our story in finding Christ. Before we know God we live on our sin not knowing there is something better for us. We are abused by this world and things we look to in it. We think we can belong certain places but they only let us down in our search for love and affection. Some people think they are worthless and think they do not deserve anything better. But, we are of royal blood being made in the image of God. When we meet God and are accepted into his family everything seems like we were made for this…because we were! And we, being adopted into this new family start to learn form our heavenly father how to be great kings as well.

Lewis on equality - Elizabeth Roy

Lewis on Equality
Non-assigned reading/choice blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

In Present Concerns, Lewis discusses his view on democracy and more generally on equality. As an American - and a woman, and part of several minority segments of the population - I confess to being a little appalled. Lewis says that equality is not intrinsically good, but that it is necessary because we are fallen. He says: "Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his fellows…I reject slavery because I see no men fit to be masters" (17.) On some level, I do agree with Lewis - mostly in the political realm. A truly benevolent and good dictator might be able to combine what is best about a single ruler and what is necessary about a democracy. However, I don't think that this viewpoint should carry on to other relationships, such as those between friends or between a husband and wife. Furthermore, I think some of Lewis' logic is flawed. He uses priests and laymen as an example of a relationship of authority that is good, that if we were not fallen would exist with no regards to equality. But if we were not fallen, would we still need priests? Mankind needed religion as a way to get back closer to god after the fall. If we truly were not fallen, would there not be complete equality, except for all of us under God's rule?

God Speaks- Emily Williamson

"God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

C.S. Lewis makes this statement in The Problem of Pain. He wrote this novel in an objective view of what pain is and how it relates to the Christian tradition. This book becomes extremely relevant to C.S. Lewis' life as he falls in love and loses his wife to cancer. He writes A Grief Observed in response to his wife's death, which is an application of the ideals addressed in The Problem of Pain.

This quote explores the themes of pain and suffering and the role God plays in it. While God speaks to us throughout our lives, He uses our times of suffering immensely as a growing experience and an outlet for Him to speak to us. I recently heard the analogy of God trying to talk to us clearly is like trying to talk to someone 500 feet from you in a crowded, loud room. You would have to shout over all the people in order to kind of hear the other person. Messages can be mixed as well. However, despite the noise and static, God does not give up. He still speaks to us.

The Narnia Films - Elizabeth Roy

The Narnia Films
Choice blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

I was interested to see, when I researched Lewis earlier this semester, that Lewis did not want the Chronicles of Narnia to be turned into films. Many people argue that the technology is so much better today, to the point where the books can be done true justice. However, I am not entirely convinced. It is true that cinematography has improved so that we can have more accurate (and less creepy) depictions of talking animals, such as Mr. and Mrs. Beaver. However, this does not necessarily mean that the books should of necessity be made into films. A movie reflects the society that produces it, which happens to be a rather different culture from Lewis'. For example, unlike in the older (and agonizingly bad) Narnia films, the most recent Prince Caspian adds on a ridiculous subplot of Susan and Caspian falling in love. To me, part of the charm of the Narnia novels is that they are just the slightest bit quaint and dated. This disappears in film. Also, no movie will ever be completely true to the book - the more so because we each create different images in our imaginations when reading. Lastly, making a film means that the question of commercial success enters the picture, such as in the case of the newest segment (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.) I do like the first two of the modern Chronicles of Narnia films, but - the possibility of the others being ruined fills me with dread. Should Narnia just stay in our imaginations?

Shining in the Sun (choice blog) -Emily Williamson

Yesterday, as I was walking across Warwick on my way to class, I was foolishly trying to put my silver cross necklace on. Since I was walking and trying to be coordinated, I dropped my cross charm- the charm my mother got me for Christmas from the same jeweler that made her engagement ring. I became quite upset when I was unable to find my charm. I didn't want to be late to class, so I told myself to go back and look for it later.

I texted my roommates to alert them of my missing charm which was on the Warwick crosswalk somewhere. I knew none of them had left for class yet, so I let them know so they could be on the lookout. While I was sending out the message, I typed: "It might be easier to look for in the..." and then I accidentally typed son instead of sun. While it was a simple typo, it was also a great metaphor. Yesterday morning was dark and dreary, but the weather cleared up very nicely as the day went on. This can relate to the suffering in our lives: while our sorrow may last for a short time, joy is on the horizon. I thought of Jesus and how He suffered for us on the cross. His suffering was great- the most that can ever be suffered- but out of that suffering comes eternal life. What a blessing!

I have yet to find my cross charm- for all I know it's still out there on Warwick. However, it is just a charm and can easily be replaced. I am thankful, however, that losing such a small charm can give me a joyful reminder that our suffering is only temporary, for joy comes in the morning.

Space Trilogy- Emily Williamson

I was questionning him on the subject [of his journey to Perelandra] - which he doesn't often allow - and had incautiously said, "Of course I realise it's all rather too vague for you to put into words," when he took me up rather sharply, for such a patient man, by saying, "On the contrary, it is words that are vague. The reason why the thing can't be expressed is that it's too definite for language."

I've often been baffled with the concept of "there are no words" to describe something. How awesome of a feeling it must be, though! In order for words to fail in describing something, the experience must be greater than excitement and richer than joyful. Having a loss for words when reflecting on a particular subject matter or experience can be quite an amazing thing that each of us should experience one day.

The Child-Hero - Elizabeth Roy

The Child-Hero
Non-assigned reading
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

As an avid fantasy reader throughout my whole life, I have read a huge variety of fantasy books aimed at children, most of which have a child as the main character and hero of the story. The actual role of the child hero, however, has changed significantly since Lewis' Narnia series. Lewis, in On Stories, discusses how fairy tales allow us to have both the best of childhood and the best of adulthood. In the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the children function mostly as children; it is the animals, such as the Beavers, who have this dual child/adult role. However, in most modern fantasy stories the child-hero also takes the child/adult role. Three of the most clear examples are the Artemis Fowl books, the Percy Jackson series, and the Harry Potter series. In all of these, the main character is a child. Each main character has an adult role of freedom from rules and great responsibility. All three must save the world using magic or divine powers. However, all of them are also children in that they do not have things such as troublesome financial problems. Artemis and Harry have both inherited a fortune from their deceased parents and then supplement that through skillfully-earned money. Percy, it turns out, is a god and doesn't need such common things as normal food and shelter. All are far from being the rather innocent, well-meaning children of Narnia.

Till We Have Faces (2)- Emily Williamson

"You don't understand. Not that kind of longing. It was when I was happiest that I longed most. It was on happy days when we were up there on the hills, the three of us, with the wind and the sunshine … where you couldn't see Glome or the palace. Do you remember? The colour and the smell, and looking at the Grey Mountain in the distance? And because it was so beautiful, it set me longing, always longing. Somewhere else there must be more of it."

Longing is literally something that we desire. Longing could be anything, from longing for a job or career, a husband or wife, or longing for satisfaction that runs deeper than the surface. Longing is something that we all have experienced. In this passage, Psyche states that the beauty of creation makes her think about longing. This longing stems from a longing for beauty and a longing to be satisfied and fulfilled. Her desire runs deeper than the surface with hints of the supernatural and the realm of what nature can give us.

Till We Have Faces- Emily Williamson

"There must, whether the gods see it or not, be something great in the mortal soul. For suffering, it seems, is infinite, and our capacity is without limit."

This quote from Till We Have Faces discusses the reality of the suffering that we experience in our lives. Oural experiences some intensive suffering that she is resentful of, mostly dealing with jealousy of her sister. However, she realizes that yes, the soul has great purpose, and the 'gods' recognize this. It seems to be that this quote connects how our suffering effects our soul.

James 1:2-4 from the New Testament states that we should be joyful in our suffering, for that suffering builds us up in our faith and strengthens us in many facets. This quote alludes to the fact that there is a commonality with how suffering effects our soul, relating to Christian principles.

Free Post 4--Matt Brennan

My roommate and I were sitting around the other day talking about a verse one of the freshman guys were talking to us about. We forgot the specific reference but it said something about fleeing from sin. My friend gave us an interesting illustration for this. He says he finds often finds himself, when being tempted about something he’s not sure he can do, he asks “can I do this and still be a Christian?” He used the analogy of bringing two magnets together very slowly—when they start getting close to eachother, it is near impossible to restrain them from connecting before you realize it’s happening. He said he gets too close to temptation sometimes that it sucks him in before he realizes it. That is when he showed us the said verse. I took a long interest on the use of the word “flee.” It could have easily said “be aware of…,” or “don’t do…”, or a number of other things but I think there was a lot of thought into choosing this particular word. I began thinking of all the other times I have seen the word used. All I could come up with was when it was in regards to some form of immigration. Take for example John Locke. He was a member of the Rye House Plot, conspiring to kill (I believe it was) King James. The Plot was compromised and Locke had to flee to Holland. He fled because he was trying to escape death from those who stood for the king. In all other historical examples of people fleeing, there are literally running for their lives because they know if they do not, then they could very well die. This is the same for sin—we must flee from committing sin and falling into temptation. We must run from our lives, because as Paul tells us in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death.”

Free Post 3--Matt Brennan

My roommate and I lead a Bible study each week with a handful of strong freshman guys. Despite the unrelated name of this weekly adjourning group, “Shenanigans,” this has been an extremely profound experience for my own walk with Christ. As most of these guys are preparing to become leaders within a formal ministry such as Young Life and Intervarsity, my roommate and I found it only appropriate to have each of them for the last weeks of the year to take over and lead discussion individually on the Biblical topic of their choice. This past week the freshman leading discussion shared with us that he was feeling especially convicted about the “Christian community” that we submerge ourselves in here at CNU. He looked at the group from an objective standpoint and felt that we were just like any other group and that we were seemingly exclusive. It is a dangerous thing when a group such as our that stresses so much about being inclusive, that we obliviously become exclusive, when we try to attain our goal. It was inspiring to talk to these guys about this. I feel like many groups go through these phases and some come out with the problem solved, but others do not. I believe my friends and I emerged from this problem with resolution, but when he asked my roommate and I how to fix this, all I could think is that even if I could really put the steps of solution into an easy formula for him, I wouldn’t. If we did, we would only be robbing him of what Lewis said is God’s gift of suffering; for if there were no suffering, we may not know love.

Free Post 2--Matt Brennan

In one of my classes, one of our readings came from The Essentials of Plotinus. I had never before heard of this ancient philosopher, Plotinus, but I was quickly drawn into his contemplative thoughts regarding beauty. He questions two aspects of the concept of beauty: (1) “Is everything beautiful with the one same beauty, or is there a beauty proper to the bodily and another to the bodiless? What, one or many, is beauty?”; and (2) “…bodily forms are not themselves beautiful but are beautiful because of something added to them: the same bodies are seen to be at times beautiful, at other times not, so that to be body is one thing and to be beautiful is something else again” (Plotinus 34). Here we see Plotinus searching the deepest sense of the meaning of beauty; to him beauty is not just a word or mere attribute—instead, it is an elaborately schemed body in an of itself, worthy of its own detailed attention. Many see beauty to be simply an attribute and do not think twice to label something as beautiful, judging only its immediate, instinctive thought.
Plotinus has clearly put his whole self into contemplating every aspect of beauty, whereas it is often written off as being present or absent and taken for granted. The thoughts mentioned above alone have helped shed light on my own thoughts about beauty being more than just a characteristic, but rather an intrinsic extraordinary connective element of the self or object instead of a separate, a priori feature. It makes you realize the appreciation deserved of true beauty when it is observed under close scrutiny. His thoughts and observations of prompted me to ask myself a question to see how I really see beauty, which I would like to share for anyone who is interested…
Based on the questions Plotinus raises, imagine a obvious example of where beauty can be thought to be seen: You are attracted to a specific person. One day you observe how you think he/she is beautiful, but the next she is not wearing making, or he is wearing ratty clothes, and you do not see the beauty you saw the day before. Was the beauty you originally saw beauty of the person in its every form, or only beauty because of outside factors added to it? If it is only beauty of the additions, are the additions themselves beautiful in and of its self, from the inside and out, or was it this perceived beauty confused and misconstrued as mere attraction to cosmetically supplemented effects, perhaps as love can be confused with lust or infatuation?

Kelsey Garegnani - Trinity

The other night in class we discussed the idea suggested in Sever Mercy (again I know) of seeing the trinity through a literary metaphor. I loved that we discussed this because when I read the book that part really stood out to me as an interesting and unique way to see the trinity. I also saw how from this we can see a metaphor for God as an author and the way he writes history as being similar to how CS Lewis creates fiction. Cs lewis uses books to create meaning that might not have been otherwise comprehended. In the same way God uses history as a way of symbolically creation that teaches us of that which we don’t understand. Iv heard it said before that God is the author of life and I really think that this is completely true in this way.

Free Post 1--Matt Brennan

Studying Political Science, I have taken a special interest in the philosophy and theory behind law, and over the past year or so I have twice studied briefly the subject of civil disobedience, and find it to be a very interesting concept in order to achieve great change for society when liberties are in jeopardy. In this time the question has arose, do you think the Civil Rights Movement would have been effective as it was without civil disobedience.
There are two definitions of civil disobedience that I found particularly compelling. First, “A refusal by a group of people to obey laws or pay taxes, as a peaceful way of expressing their disapproval of those laws or taxes in order to persuade the government to change them” (Cambridge Dictionary). And the second is his John Rawls defines civil disobedience: “A public, non-violent and conscientious breach of law undertaken with the aim of bringing about a change in laws or government polices” (Stanford Encyclopedia). These definitions outline a stark difference compared to official disobedience. Disobedience without the presence of civility is characterized by chaos, violence, and lawlessness. The effect of this often goes nowhere. I believe in making an effort to make change, it needs to be done so in a stand up, class act, respectable way. I personally would not want to support or follow a change that is put in place by a reckless outlaw. For this reason, I do not believe the Civil Rights Movement would have been nearly as effective without civil disobedience and its supporters.

Outside Reading 5--Matt Brennan

There is another quote later on in The Silence of Adam that specifically relates to how Adam’s silence during the Fall of Man applies in our lives:
“I count myself as one who believed in God. But when I am silent, I live as an atheist: I give witness to my belief that chaos is more powerful than God.”
Chaos can sometimes be considered darkness in our lives, in the sense that we are not sure how to handle these things. When we decide not to do anything when we encounter the darkness, we are forgetting about our God that is more powerful than darkness. Take for instance the story of creation in the first lines of Genesis: “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep.” If we were the ones looking over the dark earth, we would surely think that we were incapable of making a decision of what needs to then happen, much less we would think we were incapable of performing whatever could be decided. God did not do this. The scripture says, “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that it was good.”
There are two things to mention here. (1) God did not sit on his hands anxiously wondering what he should do with this formless and void earth. No. He took action to perform what he knew would be good. (2) Emphasis should be placed on the fact that he spoke and conquered the darkness. When Adam was silent, he forgot he was made in the image of the all-powerful God, and therefore rejected Him. We also do this when we remain silent and do not speak up when we see things that are wrong—we tacitly give others permission (“witness”) to carry on with the things they do which are not glorifying God.

Outside Reading 4--Matt Brennan

Why is it that when we know that we sin every day, we blame others, or even God, when something bad comes our way? As I was reading further in The Silence of Adam, I came across this quote that helps explain that it is not their fault, but it is all our own:
Men are created in God’s image…the wrong choice, when unrecognized, results in the violation of man’s essential nature…departure from our intended design is the root of the problem, and the departure is always a choice.
If we aren’t necessarily blaming others for our problems, most of the time we still aren’t blaming ourselves. Why do we not think twice about that fact that it is actually our own fault these bad things are occurring in our lives? They happen because of the things we do, or do not do, in our own lives. As much or as little as we acknowledge it, we always have a choice. Perhaps this is the gift of free will, and if we make the right choices God will ultimately be glorified. But either way, we cannot continue to deny this ever-so-present truth.

Outside Reading 2--Matt Brennan

“Men who, for their sense of well being, depend on facing tasks they can handle are not usually effective in their close relationships.”
This quote from The Silence of Adam is referring to what they call “recipe theology.” Basically this means that men all too often try to approach their problems by figuring out what is wrong and immediately go to fix it. While this approach can be good for certain applications, it will not fix the source of our problems which occur in our close relationships, whether it be with friends, family, spouse, or God. Men cannot embrace the fact that we cannot control certain things and that more times than not, we must be still and listen for God in the darkness that occurs in our lives instead of using our other senses to overpower and deafen our ears, preventing us from hearing the truth. It goes on to say, “Recipe theology studies the bits and pieces of life in order to help us tell our story better. God invites us to join him in telling his…Recipe theology…treats confusion as something to be solved rather than entered.”

Outside Reading 2--Matt Brennan

Over the semester I have been meeting with a group of guys: one graduating this semester with me, and the other 3 have graduated from CNU a few years ago, 2 of which are married. It has been an extremely influential experience that has formed strong bonds through fellowship. We have been reading a book called The Silence of Adam. This book is very interesting because in the past, many people have placed blame solely on Eve for the Fall of Man; however, as this book has helped us realize, Adam was equally, if not more at fault for committing original sin. While so many tend to focus so heavily on the fact that Eve was the one who performed the action of sin by eating the apple, Adam committed sin through inaction when he did not speak up when the serpent deceived her. In other words, Eve committed a sin of commission, when Adam committed a sin of omission. The scriptures themselves back this claim in Genesis 3:6—“…She took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.” The authors base this book around this notion and use it to put forth the idea of biblical manhood, not as a movement, but rather a reformation.

Mountains that Evoke Giants - Elizabeth Roy

Mountains that Evoke Giants
Choice blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

When discussing landscape in Lewis' works and his inspirations, we often discussed his comments about how to him, some landscapes just needed giants. For me, such a landscape was when I visited the Czech nature preserve, Cesky raj. There were miles upon miles of wooded trails, huge jagged hills, and most of all, fantastic castle ruins. I am certain that I felt the same way Lewis did. It seemed, as I hiked in Cesky raj, that it was impossible for something incredible and magical not to happen around the next corner. This feeling was heightened even more when at the second of the castle ruins, an excavation had just in the past few years uncovered another dungeon room. I think that although for some people Lewis' words might not have made perfect sense, to me they really hit home.

Outside Reading 1--Matt Brennan

(Taken from suggested reading, I and Thou)
“The world is twofold for the man in accordance with his twofold attitude.”
This seems to be the basis for I and Thou, and it seems to be saying something about the difference between the objective and subjective. The truth seen from this is that man in particular is constantly making choices—day to day, and big picture choices. But the question is whether people make these choices by taking the variables into account objectively or subjectively. The fact that we are able to reason using these two different methods provides that the world is then ‘twofold’ in response. I think this could be misconstrued that the world is the one that sometimes changes, but instead I believe that we create the second fold when we view our different options either objectively or subjectively.

Kelsey Garegnani - signifier and the signified

One story that I loved was the story in class about telling a child that a troll under a bridge is not lying because in a sense that is what is under there! She was not able to conceptualize death yet, but she knew what a troll was because of books and stories. She knew that they et you up, which means death, and therefore to her is the same thing. Since she is young and hasn’t learned a lot yet hasn’t discriminated between wider groupings and learned specific words or symbols. In psychology, Pavlov was able to discover, through animals, that learning is a pairing process that can be shaped and there can be discrimination or inclusion. Learning discrimination means the subject learns to recognize small differences between things in order to better separate things. Through inclusion though, which can be learned but is mostly a more natural response, means the subject uses a wide and general descriptors that create large groupings. We can see how younger children, without the knowledge to begin discrimination, tend towards inclusions. They can make these connections at all because of the idea of pairing. In the same way the girl paired the troll with death , we pair things too. In its most applicable sense we use symbols, such as words, and pair them with ideas and things we know. The word dog becomes the signifier which is paired to the signified, which is the actual dog. Through this we have no only created a language but also formed cultural understanding in our society such as how fire trucks represent emergency to us.

Till We Have Faces 2--Matt Brennan

“Perhaps in the soul, as in the soil, those growths that show the brightest colours and put forth the most overpowering smell have not always the deepest root.”
This quote from Till We Have Faces, although I might be taking it out of context, got me thinking as I was reading one day. There are things we see or experience every day that give us a feeling of what we consider to be joy. However, this is a false sense of pride because some of these things just have an outer layer of what is good, while the center is only masked temptation. Although they can give us a great sense of fulfillment, this only lasts temporarily, and we should be warned that they are dangerous. If we get too caught up in trying to sustain ourselves on seeking their fulfillment, we will continually be let down time after time again. Some of us realize this earlier than others, but some begin searching for something similar at the point where they are no longer satisfied because they are still hungry for it and thirst it. In regard to the Christian faith, the Bible warns us of these things, and that we should seek only His will. In John 6:35, Jesus says: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

Till We Have Faces 1--Matt Brennan

When Psyche is talking to Maia, he raises a profound question: “Don’t you think the things people are most ashamed of are the things they can’t help?” I think this is a frightening realization most of us come to, and we come to it more than once. But instead of trying to take it head on and embrace it, we so often sweep it under the rug, refusing to accept and deal with it. It’s one of the toughest pills to swallow—to come to find that we are actually not in control of everything in our lives. But why do we feel the need for such control? Genesis tells us that God created man in His image. If we want to change something in our lives because we don’t like it—and I’m not talking about sinful desires, because those we do need to change—then we are saying we want to change the image of God because we don’t like something about Him. This unpleased form of sin derives straight from or prideful nature. An author who wrote about C.S. Lewis’ faith, Richard Cunningham, says that pride is the biggest sin of all and that all other sins are rooted in the pride that is planted so deep in each of us. I believe it is this pride that gets in our way of appreciating the beauty of God’s image.

Space Trilogies 2--Matt Brennan

(Taken from Perelandra)
“Of course I realise it’s all rather too vague for you to put into word,…On the contrary, it is words that are vague. The reason why the thing can’t be expressed is that it’s too definite for language.”
I’ve been taking a course called Mystic Quest with Dr. Rose this semester and he likened essentially the same things said in the quote above to what he refers to as a mystical experience. I find the thought of this fascinating. To think that speech—verbal and non-verbal—are our only means of communication. We might not be able to operate as society if we didn’t have it. But to think that a “mystical” experience (religious or not), which is supposed to be one of the most enlightening personal sensations one can have, could not be expressed in words is both a sad and joyful thing. It is sad because we realize that we are actually limited in our ability to share it with others by our speech. But it is joyous when you think that maybe it is supposed to be that way. Usually considered a divine encounter, it is humbling to think that maybe we just caught a glimpse of a higher power that our minds can’t even wrap themselves around it to dumb it down for us to understand or communicate it with others. It makes it a very personal, intimate experience even more personal and intimate.

Space Trilogies 1--Matt Brennan

This quote is from That Hideous Strength, by Dimble:
“Have you ever noticed that the universe, and every little bit of the universe, is always hardening and narrowing and coming to a point…I mean this…If you dip into any college, or school, or parish, or family—anything you like—at any given point in its history you always find that there was a time before that point when there was more elbow room and contrasts weren’t quite so sharp; and that there’s going to be a time after that point when there is even less room for indecision and choices are even more momentous. Good is always getting better and bad is always getting worse: the possibilities of even apparent neutrality are always diminishing.”
Lewis wrote this book nearly 40 years ago and the quote above itself has remained timeless. As each year goes on, there are more and more contingencies that gradually wrap around the things we enjoy and value, and they begin to constrict them to the point where there is no more breathing room. It’s hard to imagine that there are any more rules or contingencies you can put on some of these things, but at the same time you think about how that whatever it is say 10 years ago and wonder if the people it affected then were thinking the same thing—that there were too much politics tainting it and how could it get any worse. That said it’d difficult to know how we should react—should we try and change the way things are and fight for a looser hold on things? Or should we, in a sense, be a little more apathetic—or grateful, even—and be appreciative of the fact that more rules and contingences will probably be placed on these things we enjoy in the next generation that we don’t have to deal with now?

Narnia 2--Matt Brennan

While reading through Prince Caspian, I found an interesting quote that strongly resembled what is seen in scripture. Edmund says:
“Look here. There’s only one thing to be done. We must explore the wood. Hermits and
knights-errant and people like that always manage to live somehow if they’re in a forest. They find roots and berries and things.”
They proceeded to do this by walking up stream, and it says that “It was very hard work.” But right when they did not think they could go any farther, they are consumed by a delicious smell of an apple tree. “And this is not the only tree…Why, there are dozens of them.”
This reminded me of what is seen in the Gospel of Matthew: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more valuable than they?” (6:26).
So often we are blessed to accomplish great things, but when this occurs we are inclined to attribute these things to our own abilities, and we forget that these abilities were given to us by the Lord. We forget to rely on him, and when we end up relying on our own abilities, things inevitably begin to get difficult. If we only relied on the Lord to provide for us, instead of working ourselves to death in order to give ourselves the things we want, he will give us what we need, just as the Pevensie children were given food from the apple tree when they needed nourishment.

Narnia 1--Matt Brennan

I found it interesting that in Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, how Lucy was the first one to enter the wardrobe, and thus Narnia. Lewis could have easily substituted this with any of the other children, but instead I believe he had an intention of a larger meaning by specifically choosing Lucy. When you think of common everyday circumstances, it is much easier to have a young person, with an imagination that knows no boundaries, to believe what is considered to be the impossible. Older men and women have been exposed to certain events in their life which gradually harden their imaginations until the point that it is impenetrable—they essentially become incapable of imagining anything outside of their objective sight of the world. If anyone else challenges their beliefs with something outside their agendas, they stubbornly insist on denying the mere possibility of it actually occurring. I believe Lewis used Lucy’s character as the first one to enter the wardrobe so that children, which these stories are probably written for in the first place, can identify with her and her experiences. But more than this, I believe that he does this because it is the truth of our own lives, and he opens our eyes to see that we must be more open-minded. Someone once told me a quote that helped change my outlook on things: “Expectation is the thief of joy.” Lucy entered that wardrobe with no expectations, and as a result she was given the opportunity to experience Narnia and her time with Mr. Tumnus—it was a joyous occasion for her. However the older children immediately denied the magical world Lucy told them about, thus denying (or rather delaying) themselves the joy she was able to experience.

Lewis on psychotherapy - Elizabeth Roy

Lewis on Psychotherapy
Non-assigned reading blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

In Mere Christianity, Lewis addresses the growing field (at the time) of psychotherapy. Lewis was referring to Freud, but his comments are widely applicable to all forms of psychotherapy. Lewis says that there are two different things involved with a person's choices - one is what is naturally in a person, and the other is his conscious moral choice. Lewis says that the two are separate issues. Psychology is concerned with the first part, what Lewis refers to as natural impulses. God and the Church, on the other hand, are concerned with the second. I appreciate this point of view, and I wish that this was more common. Many religious people I have encountered have had a dislike of psychotherapy, saying that it is unnecessary in almost all cases. I think to confuse a psychological problem with a moral problem makes moral choice a more difficult prospect. If we cannot distinguish what we have conscious moral control over, how are we supposed to make such choices?

Kelsey Garegnani - Relativity of time

) In class we talked about the idea of time being relative. The idea is that time is form the world, but is constructed by us. Because we have constructed it, it is subject to our perceptions of it, because in a sense, that is how it was created in the first place. Time, then, though it is depicted by us as linear and continuous, doesn’t have to be like that. If it is relative to us, then how we perceive it is how it is. We talked about how instead of being linear it is made up of distinguished moments in our memory which warps its progression in our minds. Also, if a minute feels like an hour is it really a minute? Time, being relative, wouldn’t be fixed into labels, but be based off of how we experience it, and to us be as long as it feels. Also, then I was thinking,, if we are thinking of it like that, then years would get shorter as we get older because of how long they feel relative to our lives. When you are six, and have only experienced six years, every year feel very very long. Seven feels like forever away. But when you are thirty, thirty one comes in a flash, and if you are eighty then eighty five comes in a flash. As we get older and have lived longer each year feels shorter relative to our experience and therefore is shorter. I almost don’t like that idea though because I like to think that even though a year might feel shorter now I still get the same amount of time and then my possibly skewed perception is rushing my life.

The Role of Lewis - Elizabeth Roy

The Role of Lewis
Choice blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23

I recently read an online article bashing C.S. Lewis on every side. Lewis, the author said, should not be taken as an example for the faith he claimed to profess. According to the author, Lewis' writings are doctrinally incorrect and his theology is lacking. But is this a problem? what should Lewis' role be? If, as the author posits, Lewis brings people to Christianity through marred beliefs, is that wrong? I personally do not think that Lewis would have had a problem with this article's argument. I do not think that Lewis saw himself as an absolute authority in the realm of Christianity. I believe it is a mistake to take him as anything other than a very intelligent and devout writer. I further do not think that Lewis himself would be happy about having a feast day in the episcopal calendar - in fact, I think Lewis may very well have been appalled.

http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/exposes/lewis/general.htm

Course Reflection- Buddy Powers

I learned a great deal in this course, not just about Lewis or myth, but about truth and reality as well. It was so interesting to explore how myth is such a part of our reality, and how we take part in it often without knowing. Lewis' take on myth in his stories and essays is revolutionary. Myth as a reliable source of knowledge? Myth as a way of learning about the world? Before this course I would have scoffed at the possibility of myth fulfilling either of these. However, after exploring Lewis' stories through the lens of Chesterton and Tolkein's take on myth, I was blown away at what I found. That mythical worlds are an not always intentionally allegorical, but that often they should be received simply as they are. As Lewis argues to his inklings about the ins and outs of Narnia, "its just magic." Accepting this and adjusting my world perspective accordingly has brought me into deeper appreciation of my religious perspective, my relationship with God, my relationships with my friends, and my relationship with nature. The Christian myth is one that will always guide how I approach the world, and after this course I am able to understand it more clearly that I have ever have before.

Kelsey Garegnani - waves of suffering and victory

Oswald Chambers: "The [wave] that distresses the ordinary swimmer produces in the surf-rider the super-joy of going clean through it. Apply that to our own circumstances, these very things--tribulation, distress, persecution, produce in us the super-joy; they are not things to fight. We are more than conquerors... super-victors, with a joy we would not have but for the very things which look as if they are going to overwhelm us... The saint knows the joy of the Lord not in spite of tribulation, but because of it."
This fits exactly with what Lewis’s wife said in the movie about how it is the pain that makes the happiness that much more complete. They are both intertwined in a relationship that needs not differentiate them but combines them into one experience. This is a little like what I meanitoned early about Gods strength being made more perfect in our weakness, which is why we embrace tribulations, because it is those times of reliance that make us more than conquerors. Also, even too looking at it form the same perspective but on a different level, it is only through the tough times that we can really learn because eif everything was easy there would be no refinement. Using the idea in the bible about being the clay and God being the potter, we are being shaped by God. But this can only be done through pushing and pulling and many pressures in our life which God applies to make us more beautiful. It is then that we become a tribute to the maker and his work. Also, in the same way that the surfers in the quote enjoy the harsh waves because it make their emergence on the other side that much more spectacular, it is our low points which give meaning and make successes out of our high point.

Kelsey Garegnani- Chiastic Structure

To go off my last blog, I want to revisit the idea of suffering and its importance in true success and joy. I think that this idea can be understood well in the concept of Chiastic structure. This is a literary structure, used often in the Bible, is used in order to show the importance of events. It is characterized by its use of opposites in an AB…BA pattern. Chi is Greek letter X which depicts how this structure works. The one line goes one direction and the other goes opposite to it as being juxtaposition. As I mentioned the main idea behind this devise is to show the importance of a event. If we apply this concept to Suffering, we can see how by taking a drastic beginning, there is an emphasis on the successful end. More specifically, let us say that the top left corner is our own prideful strength (A), but through submission we give that up to God, we end on the bottom right corner in weakness (B), but then from our weakness (B) we find our dependence on God who then in turn makes us strong by Him and in His strength. In all though I think that it is through our weakness that God more fully emphasizes his power and we can see that as demonstrated through a literary structure. Therefore, we can also see how looking at patterns and fictional stories we can better understand the workings of God and apply them then to our own world and experiences.

Friends and Myth- Buddy Powers

Friendship is an invaluable aspect of human experience. Only my closest friends know how to truly challenge me, reprove me, and love me. Something that is common in my friend group is story telling. We love to both hear and give a good story about our experiences or a theoretical situation. Most of the time are stories do not have any deep meaning to them, however I have been motivated by the interesting meanings of Dr. Redick's many tales to look deeper into my own. This has been an interesting challenge within my friend group, since we are all such story tellers. Lewis talks about how myth is the union of both experiential and abstract knowledge, however stories are not always myths and often are only taken for their material value. If I juxtapose how I take most stories that I have or friends have, I do not usually find any deeper meaning. However, Dr. Redick always seems to have had some interesting abstract dimension to his stories. Here I realize the difference between myth and story in the verbal story-telling realm. After this class I will certainly try to look deeper than the events of an adventure and tap into the spiritual, and mythical realities of that event.

Anne Taylor Robertson 15: Summary

I have learned new things from Lewis, and old things have been refreshed in new ways from reading his work. His insight and wisdom into the Christian faith have had a profound effect on me as a Christian and as a general reader. The Chronicles of Narnia, The Space Trilogy and Till We Have Faces have all initiated a desire for me to learn more- not necessarily about Lewis but about the faith in general.
It is as hard to explain how this sunlit land was different from the old Narnia as it would be to tell you how the fruits of that country taste. Perhaps you will get some idea of it if you think like this. You may have been in a room in which there was a window that looked out on a lovely bay of the sea or a green valley that wound away among mountains. And in the wall of that room opposite to the window there may have been a looking-glass. And as you turned away from the window you suddenly caught sight of that sea or that valley, all over again, in the looking glass. And the sea in the mirror, or the valley in the mirror, were in one sense just the same as the real ones: yet at the same time there were somehow different -- deeper, more wonderful, more like places in a story: in a story you have never heard but very much want to know.
The difference between the old Narnia and the new Narnia was like that. The new one was a deeper country: every rock and flower and blade of grass looked as if it meant more. I can't describe it any better than that: if ever you get there you will know what I mean.
It was the Unicorn who summed up what everyone was feeling. He stamped his right fore-hoof on the ground and neighed, and then he cried:
"I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now. The reason why we loved the old Narnia is that is sometimes looked a little like this. Bree-hee-hee! Come further up, come further in!"
"The term is over: the holidays have begun. The dream is ended: this is the morning."
And as He spoke, He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at least they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before."
This passage is from The Last Battle. While the children were realizing it was all won, Aslan was telling them that what they saw in that moment was only the beginning. They had a glimpse of what was to come, and like the sickness that Lewis described before, that is better than anything we can ask for while we are here

Anne Taylor Robertson 14: The Prodigal God

In Tim Keller’s book, he talks about the two types of brothers in the book of Luke. The older brother had a chance to welcome his brother and love him like his father did, but he chose not to. Keller raises an interesting point; “The younger son gets a Pharisee for a brother instead. But we do not. By putting a flawed elder brother in the story, Jesus is inviting us to imagine and yearn for a true one,” (Keller 84). God is a wonderful storyteller; He can write in a way that always leaves us wanting more. It’s frustrating and tiring and complicated at times, but we never stop wrestling with it until he makes us understand. I’ve learned from reading Keller that He leaves out critical aspects like these to be incomplete. We must go to him to be complete, and no one else.

Anne Taylor Robertson 13: Surprised By Joy

“And the world itself - can I have been unhappy, living in Paradise? What keen, tingling sunlight there was! The mere smells were enough to make a man tipsy - cut grass, dew-dabbled mosses, sweet pea, autumn woods, wood burning, peat, salt water. The sense ached. I was sick with desire; that sickness better than health.”
There is a passage in the book of Job that reads, “He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.”
After all the suffering that Job went through, he was reminded that there would be a time coming soon when God would fill him with laughter and joy again. Our world is broken and in a state of perpetual suffering, but God promises that one day we will be full with laughter and joy. He also says that this will happen again. If it’s happening again, it’s alluding to the fact that it used to be that way. Things were wonderful before they were broken. I don’t think we will see what Lewis describes as Paradise while we are here, but one day we will instead be sick with the desire for joy.

Anne Taylor Robertson 12: Surprised By Joy

“I should be sorry if I were understood to think, or if I encouraged any reader in thinking, that this invincible disklike of doing things with a bat or a ball were other than a misforture. Not, indeed, that I allow to games any of the moral and almost mystical virtures which schoolmasters claim for them; they see to me to lead to ambition, jealousy, and embittered partisan feeling, quite as often as to anything else. Yet not to like them is a misfortune, because it cuts you off from companionship with many excellent people who can be approached in no other way. A misforture, not a vice; for it is involuntary. I had tried to like games and failed. That impulse had been left out of my make-up; I was to games, as the proverb has it, like an ass to the harp.”
While the confession of playing sports like a donkey plays the harp is a hilarious illustration, I find in the middle of this that Lewis’ thoughts on playing games for companionship to be very interesting. Does he see playing games as sin because they lead to unhealthy competition, jealousy and bitterness? Or does he simply use the metaphor of games to mean sinful behavior? Christ went to the darkest places of the world to be with people, and he spent time with the ‘most’ sinful people; but he never partook in sin. I wonder where his people will go, and where they should stop. Should they stop? Modeling Christ, they should also go to the darkest places, but they should never partake. This is something I wonder about.

Anne Taylor Robertson 11: Surprised By Joy

“We now settled into a routine which has ever since served in my mind as an archetype, so that what I still mean when I speak of a "normal" day (and lament that normal days are so rare) is a day of the Bookham pattern. For if I could please myself I would always live as I lived there. I would choose always to breakfast at exactly eight and to be at my desk by nine, there to read or write till one. If a cup of good tea or coffee could be brought me about eleven, so much the better. A step or so out of doors for a pint of beer would not do quite so well; for a man does not want to drink alone and if you meet a friend in the taproom the break is likely to be extended beyond its ten minutes. At one precisely lunch should be on the table; and by two at the latest I would be on the road. Not, except at rare intervals, with a friend. Walking and talking are two very great pleasures, but it is a mistake to combine them. Our own noise blots out the sounds and silences of the outdoor world; and talking leads almost invevitably to smoking, and then farewell to nature as far as one of our senses is concerned. ... The return from the walk, and the arrival of tea, should be exactly coincident, and not later than a quarter past four. Tea should be taken in solitude... For eating and reading are two pleasure that combine admirably. Of course not all books are suitable for mealtime reading. It would be a kind of blasphemy to read poetry at table. What one wants is a gossipy, formless book which can be opened anywhere... At five a man should be at work again, and at it till seven. Then, at the evening meal and after, comes the time for talk, or failing that, for lighter reading; and unless you are making a night of it with your cronies (and at Bookham I had none) there is no reason why you should ever be in bed later than eleven. But when is a man to write his letters? You foget that I am describing the happy life I led with Kirk or the ideal life I would live now if I could. And it is an essential of the happy life that a man would have almost no mail and never dread the postman's knock.
Such is my ideal, and such then, (almost) was the reality, of "settled, calm, Epicurean life." It is no doubt for my own good that I have been so generally prevented from leading it, for it is a life almost entirely selfish.”
I find it interesting and universal that C.S. Lewis here describes his natural desire to just relax and have his own ideal day. I have an ideal day in my mind that usually pops into my head on Mondays and Thursdays when I can’t wait for the weekend, and then again on Sundays when the weekend has gone by and I’ve missed my chance. But here Lewis reminds us gently through his own experience that this idea of ‘entitlement’ is unacceptable. I haven’t done anything so profound and indebted the world in any way that gives me the exclusive right to have exactly what I want when I want it. This made me laugh because I have this attitude so often, and to read that someone even so renowned as Lewis has felt the same way (as most of us have) is encouraging and amusing.

Anne Taylor Robertson 10: The Problem of Pain

"At this very moment you and I are either committing [selfishness], or about to commit it, or repenting it."
Thoughts like these make convict me, and help me to realize that sometimes in life there are no gray areas. When I think of it in terms of selfishness, I can’t look at myself and see a truly unselfish moment. If one does exist, it is not mine to claim. At the heart of me there is a need for survival; and in a life-threatening situation, not even the most disgusting selfishness would stand in the way of attempting to save my own life. I hope that one day this will be different, and through the slow process of throwing my own rebellion on the Lord and his transformation this selfishness will one day be gone. According to Lewis, we are constantly in the process of either committing selfishness, preparing for selfishness or admitting selfishness.

Anne Taylor Robertson 9: The Problem of Pain

"God has paid us the intolerable compliment of loving us, in the deepest, most tragic, most inexorable sense." God has paid us the unbearable compliment of loving us, in the deepest, most tragic, most unstoppable sense.” Sometimes I like to look at phrases like these with synonyms of the key words. What does it mean to me that God has done this? What does it mean that it is unbearable? His love is a weight we are not suited to bear. That changes everything about the way in which we see love. His love is something that is powerful enough to crush us, but instead it is what gives us life. St. Augustine once said, “I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are wise and very beautiful; but I have never read in either of them: Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden.” We are destined to die under the weight of our sin, but God tells us to throw all of this sin onto His son; under whose love we buckle now. What a paradox.

Myth and Farming

Wendell Berry argues that myth is man's way of connecting to the land. Interacting with the natural world is inherently spiritual and equally mythical. The farmer then, must have a mythical relationship with nature in order to farm correctly. This is lived out by author and prominent figure of the sustainable agriculture movement Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms. Joel is a Christian, so he sees all things as created and having a divine purpose given to each by God. Thus, his farm operates on the principle of symbiosis. Using animals natural activities in conjunction with one another to increase productivity on their farm. He humorously calls this concept honoring the "pigness of the pig" or the "chickeness of the chicken." His perspective is that he does not own creation, and that his job is to leave it in better condition for the next generation. His reverence for God as a creator, lover, and sustainer of creation motivates him to act honorably in his farming techniques. Salatin's wisdom and efficient farming can only be attributed to his perspective in relation to the Christian myth.

Anne Taylor Robertson 8: Surprised By Joy, Till We Have Faces

A recurring theme in these two books is the idea of joy that flattens in its greatness. Lewis says that we are pilgrims, and that are best havings are wantings; that joy is too serious for jokes, and that joy is the serious business of heaven. I am not sure exactly what that means. I will guess that from my limited experience with ‘true joy’ (simply because I’m human) that he is alluding to a type of joy that we can only experience when we are in communion with God.

Anne Taylor Robertson 7: The Prodigal God

I have been reading a book by Timothy Keller, called the Prodigal God. It tells the story in a way, which reveals so much more than the surface level story of two quarreling brothers we have always been told. A quote from the book tells about what Jesus accomplished on the cross, “He came to bring the human race Home. Therefore he did not come in strength but in weakness. He came and experienced the exile that we deserved. He was expelled from the presence of the Father, he was thrust into the darkness, the uttermost despair of spiritual alienation- in our place. He took upon himself the full curse of human rebellion, cosmic homelessness, so that we could be welcomed into our true home,” (Keller 102). This makes so much sense. The question of searching for home, the question of pain, and the question of Jesus. A line in one of my favorite songs states from the perspective of Christ, “Look at these hands and my side, they swallowed the grave on that night when I drank the world's sin so I could carry you in and give you life,”- oh! So this is why… to carry us home. For God to put His son on the cross to carry us home to be with him must mean that home is something bewildering.

Anne Taylor Robertson 6: Till We Have Faces 2

"Nothing is yet in its true form."
This quotes helps me make sense of the way things are in the world. So many times, people ask why there is suffering and pain and tribulation- why is there natural disaster, and death? Why is there terrorism, and insecurity at every turn? This is not how it was made to be. We were not made for this world, maybe like Ransom, or Lucy were not made for their own.

Anne Taylor Robertson 5: Till We Have Faces 1

"It was when I was happiest that I longed most...The sweetest thing in all my life has been the longing...to find the place where all the beauty came from."
I think that in every life there is an unstoppable yearning- not to know the where life began, or to find our purpose, but to be fully immersed in joy. There have been a few moments in my life when I have been so happy that I had to draw myself back from my surroundings because I felt selfish publicly desiring more joy. There is no way to express this kind of elation. It is not a selfish yearning for more; it is the joy of discovering that there is more than what we have or will ever have here on earth. In those few and passing moments of joy in its most refined form, we must withdraw and allow God’s spirit to sweep in and transform.

Anne Taylor Robertson 4: Space Trilogy 2

That Hideous Strength "Now, Mrs. Studdock," said the Director, "you shall see a diversion. But you must be perfectly still." With these words he took from his pocket a little silver whistle and blew a note on it. And Jane sat still till the room became filled with silence like a solid thing and there was first a scratching and then a rustling and presently she saw three plump mice working their passage across what was to them the thick undergrowth of the carpet, nosing this way and that so that if their course had been drawn it would have resembled that of a winding river, until they were so close that she could see the palpitation of their noses. In spite of what she said she did not really care for mice in the neighborhood of her feet and it was with an effort that she sat still. Thanks to this effort she saw mice for the first time as a really are - not as creeping things but as dainty quadrupeds, almost, when they sat up, like tiny kangaroos, with sensitive kid-gloved forepaws and transparent ears. With quick inaudible movements they ranged to and fro till not a crumb was left on the floor. Then the blew a second time on his whistle and with a sudden whisk of tails all three of them were racing for home and in a few seconds had disappeared behind the coal box. The Director looked at her with laughter in his eyes. ...
"There," he said, "a very simple adjustment. Humans want crumbs removed; mice are anxious to remove them. It ought never to have been a cause of war."
I liked this quote of Lewis’ because it sheds light on the original intention of the relationship between men and animals. Compared to the almighty, are we so far above the animals that we should always be treating them as a nuisance, as things to be trapped, and as enemies? In the book of Job, God confronts Job with a harsh reality and reminds him of how small and insignificant he is, “Then the LORD said to Job, "Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God's critic, but do you have the answers?" Then Job replied to the LORD,
"I am nothing--how could I ever find the answers? I will put my hand over my mouth in silence.
I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say." Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind: "Brace yourself, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them,” The Lord goes on to challenge Job and humble him. This is a theme that I find very interesting in Lewis’ works.

Anne Taylor Robertson 3: Space Trilogy 1

Out of The Silent Planet “Then something happened which completely altered his state of mind. The creature, which was still steaming and shaking itself on the back and had obviously not seen him, opened its mouth and began to make noises. This in itself was not remarkable; but a lifetime of linguistic study assured Ransom almost at once that these were articulate noises. The creature was talking. It had a language. If you are not yourself a philologist, I am afraid you must take on trust the prodigious emotional consequences of this realization in Ransom's mind. A new world he had already seen - but a new, an extra-terrestrial, a non-human language was a different matter. Somehow he had not thought of this in connection with the sorns; now, it flashed upon him like a revelation. The love of knowledge is a kind of madness.”
As a philologist, Ransom is familiar with the expressions and messages encoded into linguistics. This quote was interesting to me because when Ransom had just begun to make his peace with the fact that he was in an entirely different world, separate and mysterious to everything he had once known; he was faced with a new kind of life. How alarming would it be to be transported to another world? I can imagine that if I were on another planet, that would be strange and frightening enough. But to suddenly be faced with new life- a kind of life with we I could not communicate and control- I would run the other way. Ransom sees this creature making noise and begins to recognize that it is not just another animal, a creature to be subdued by man; but instead a power far greater than he.

Anne Taylor Robertson: Narnia 2

A recurring theme throughout the Narnia stories is finding home. Where is home? The characters in Narnia are constantly searching for something, whether it’s a different country or a better life. A parallel theme in studies of Christianity, the longing for home is something that I find very interesting.
Each of Lewis’ characters in the Narnia series live in a world that is broken and suffers because of mistakes. This is the same whether they are in Narnia, London, or any other place. I wonder if their adventures are really just underlying searches for something better, something transcendent of the live they are living. Sure, it seems obvious that they want to fight for good, but I think there is a greater underlying desire that the characters have for something other, and I also think that this desire is something that resonates with humans in general.