The Literary Life Podcast Episode 67: Til We Have Faces, Ch. 16-21
Lewis's Educational Tension
- C.S. Lewis, a gifted writer of fairy tales and myths, majored in philosophy, surprising everyone.
- This choice reflects the tension between his love for imagination and the perceived seriousness of rationalism.
Mirroring Struggles
- C.S. Lewis's lifelong struggle between reason and imagination is central to "Till We Have Faces."
- Orual's journey mirrors Lewis's own, exploring the human tension between these two forces.
Education as a Meeting Point, Not a Solution
- Both Orual and Lewis find a meeting point in education, but it does not fully reconcile their internal conflicts.
- Orual's rational education clashes with her imaginative experiences, while Lewis's schooling lacked space for his imaginative pursuits.
Welcome back to The Literary Life Podcast! This week, our hosts are covering chapters 16-21 of C. S. Lewis' masterpiece Til We Have Faces. Also, to celebrate Cindy's re-release of her book Hallelujah: Cultivating Advent Traditions with Handel's Messiah, she is doing a social media giveaway over the next four weeks. To enter to win a copy, post about the book release with hashtag #hallelujahadvent.
They begin the conversation about Til We Have Faces with an examination of Lewis' personal journey and its similarity to Orual's own in this story. This opens up a discussion of education, Lewis's schooling, and Charlotte Mason's philosophy. Angelina then goes on to talk about the three types of veils worn by Orual, and Cindy and Thomas explore the idea of veils and their role in relationship and power. Orual's friendships with Bardia and the Fox further highlight her continued blindness to her own disordered affections.
Join us next week for the last installment in our series on Til We Have Faces. The following episode will be a special interview with Wendi Capehart on her literary life!
Commonplace Quotes:Hundreds of people can talk for one who can think, but thousands can think for one who can see. To see clearly is poetry, prophesy, and religion. All is one.
John RuskinSince then I have always been addicted to something or other, usually something there's no support group for. Semicolons, for instance, I can never give up for more than two hundred words at a time.
Hilary MantelThe two hemispheres of my mind were in the sharpest contrast. On the one side, a many-islanded sea of poetry and myth; on the other, a glib and shallow "rationalism." Nearly all that I loved, I believed to be imaginary. Nearly all that I believed to be real, I thought grim and meaningless.
C. S. Lewis Moonlightby Walter de la Mare
The far moon maketh lovers wise In her pale beauty trembling down, Lending curved cheeks, dark lips, dark eyes, A strangeness not their own. And, though they shut their lids to kiss, In starless darkness peace to win, Even on that secret world from this Her twilight enters in.
Book List:(Amazon affiliate links are used in this content.)
Hallelujah by Cindy Rollins
Sesame and Lilies by John Ruskin
Giving Up the Ghost: A Memoire by Hilary Mantel
The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C. S. Lewis by Alan Jacobs
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
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Connect with Us:You can find Angelina and Thomas at HouseofHumaneLetters.com, on Instagram @angelinastanford, and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ANGStanford/
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