Courage, Dear Heart: A Conversation w/Monika Hilder on Lewis's Great Divorce (Episode III)

Welcome to Episode 3 of 9 in our series on C.S. Lewis's novel, "The Great Divorce." Join us as we explore the ideas presented by Lewis in this fantastic tale, a dream vision, written in response (according to Lewis) to William Blake's "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell."       Today's conversation features Monika B. Hilder, an author, professor and speaker who specializes in Fantasy and Children's Literature, with a particular focus on the writings of C.S. Lewis and other Inklings-related writers.       Monika and I discuss the importance of listening to Aslan, of trusting God, the dangers of hell and the interaction between Lewis and his afterlife guide, George MacDonald. Monika's newest fiction book is ⁠Letters to Annie: A Grandmother’s Dreams of Fairy Tale Princesses, Princes, & Happily Ever After ⁠(2022). She has published fiction, poetry, drama, articles, and a three-volume study of C.S. Lewis and gender: ⁠The Feminine Ethos in C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia⁠ (2012), ⁠The Gender Dance: Ironic Subversion in C.S. Lewis’s Cosmic Trilogy⁠ (2013), and ⁠Surprised by the Feminine: A Rereading of C.S. Lewis and Gender⁠ (2013).       She is co-editor of ⁠The Inklings and Culture: A Harvest of Scholarship from the Inklings Institute of Canada ⁠(2020). Monika has also published on George MacDonald, Madeleine L’Engle, and L. M. Montgomery. She has a passion for educating the moral imagination through literature and writes about spirituality, gender metaphor, ethics, fairy tale, suffering and consolation, joy, imagery of Heaven, and celebrating one’s gifts.       She has written children’s picture books and an inspirational book for creative artists. Monika has appeared on CBC Radio and has spoken at conferences across Canada, in the United States, England, Scotland, and Romania. She is Professor of English at Trinity Western University and co-founder and co-director of the Inklings Institute of Canada.       And as the first Canadian-born member of her family, Monika explores the meaning(s) of homeland, the plight of the refugee, and identity—in short, the importance of story.                  Discover more from Monika at https://monikahilder.com/