Till We Have Faces Cupid Psyche The Story Behind The Myth

"Till We Have Faces" is a retelling of a story about Cupid and Psyche. This story had haunted Lewis all his life, because he realized that some of the main characters' actions were illogical. As a consequence, his retelling of the story is characterized by a highly developed character, the narrator, with the reader being drawn into her reasoning and her emotions. This was his last novel, and he considered it his most mature, written in conjunction with his wife, Joy Davidman. The first part of the book is written from the perspective of Psyche's older sister Orual, as an accusation against the gods. The story is set in the fictive kingdom of Glome, a primitive city-state whose people have occasional contact with civilized Hellenistic Greece. In the second part of the book, the narrator undergoes a change of mindset (Lewis would use the term conversion) and understands that her initial accusation was tainted by her own failings and shortcomings, and that the gods are lovingly present in humans' lives. Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963) was a British novelist, poet, academic, medievalist, lay theologian and Christian apologist. He is best known for his fictional work, especially The Screwtape Letters, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Space Trilogy, and for his non-fiction Christian apologetics, such as Mere Christianity, Miracles, and The Problem of Pain.

A repackaged edition of the revered author’s retelling of the myth of Cupid and Psyche—what he and many others regard as his best novel. C. S. Lewis—the great British writer, scholar, lay theologian, broadcaster, Christian apologist, and bestselling author of Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, The Chronicles of Narnia, and many other beloved classics—brilliantly reimagines the story of Cupid and Psyche. Told from the viewpoint of Psyche’s sister, Orual, Till We Have Faces is a brilliant examination of envy, betrayal, loss, blame, grief, guilt, and conversion. In this, his final—and most mature and masterful—novel, Lewis reminds us of our own fallibility and the role of a higher power in our lives.

Fascinated by the myth of Cupid and Psyche throughout his life, C. S. Lewis reimagines their story from the perspective of Psyche’s sister, Orual. c

A Far-Off Country offers a comprehensive introduction to C.S. Lewis' major works of fantasy fiction: The Chronicles of Narnia, The Space Trilogy, and Till We Have Faces. Drawing on Lewis' manuscripts as well as unpublished letters, Sammons provides a detailed background for the novels, including biographical information on Lewis as it pertains to each work. She thoroughly investigates the characters, symbols, and themes of the novels, highlighting the Christian doctrines that are embedded in them in addition to the many Biblical parallels. Sammons also includes numerous references from Lewis' other books, ultimately relating the ideas presented in his written works to his Christian beliefs. Exhaustive in its analysis yet accessible to a wide audience, this book will excite those in search of an insightful guide to Lewis' works.

This thesis investigates how C.S. Lewis has used the old Cupid and Psyche myth in his last novel Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold and focuses on the five main changes which Lewis has made in his own story. These changes are all concerned with the problems of self. This first chapter examines the general features of Cupid and Psyche tales, as they are examined by D.D. Griffith, and then relates the tale by Apuleius, a representative version of this myth, which is the "source" of Lewis' own story. The second chapter examines still another version of the myth as it is retold in Lewis' story. This version is connected with a kind of nature religion which is based on the myth of regeneration of time and vegetation. The third chapter analyzes Erich Neumann's psychological interpretation of the tale by Apuleius. For Neumann this is a myth of the psychological development of the feminine. This representative modern approach to this myth, however, is found to be quite different from Lewis' own approach, which is examined in later chapters. The fourth chapter relates Lewis' own story as a final preparation for examining the central subjects of this thesis: Lewis' thematic concerns in Till We Have Faces. The fifth chapter, "Ugliness: The Problem of Self-Recognition," discusses what ugliness is and how it is compensated for in Lewis' story and his own experience. Ugliness is our ego hidden behind our external veil. Through our self-recognition we notice our inner ugliness, which can be compensated for only by our complete submission to real beauty. The sixth chapter focuses on the problem of barbarism. For one thing barbarism is the dark side of religion, which is recongnized in Lewis' own experience in his search for Joy. For another thing barbarism is our collective brutality, which wears the mask of anger in our civilized world. The seventh chapter looks into Lewis' treatment of scepticism as nothing but another of our willful veils which keeps us from seeing beyond the material world. An abyss is between our sceptical attitude and our readiness to believe the supernatural. In our experiences, however, we are led by some warning signs from above to springboard of knowledge to cross this abyss. The final chapter, "Love: The Way to the New Man," shows how our natural being is transformed into something new. God's love for us is Grace, by which our natural loves are changed into Charity. It is through our experience of death of our old self that we are regenerated as New Men. This pattern follows the death of our old self that we are regenerated as New Men. This pattern follows the death and rebirth of Jesus Christ. Lewis' novel, thus, is a Christian Myth. Gerneral myth is based on larger patterns of reality, but not yet upon historical fact; while Christian Myth is Myth which has become Fact in history. Lewis illuminates a new dimension of the old myth of Cupid and Psyche by taking it up as a Christian Myth of regeneration or transformation from old life into new life.

True Myth examines the meaning and significance of myth as understood by C.S. Lewis and Joseph Campbell and its place in the Christian faith in a technological society. C.S. Lewis defined Christianity, and being truly human, as a relationship between thepersonal Creator and his creation mediated through faith in his son, Jesus. The influential writer and mythologist Joseph Campbell had a different perspective, understanding Christianity as composed of mythical themes similar to those in other religious and secular myths. While accepting certain portions of the biblical record as historical, Campbell taught the theological and miraculous aspects as symbolic - as stories in which the reader discovers what it means to be human today. In contrast, Lewis presented the theological and the miraculous in a literal way. Although Lewis understood how one could see symbolism and lessons for life in miraculous events, he believed they were more than symbolic and indeed took place in human history. In True Myth, James W. Menzies skilfully balances the two writers' differing approaches to guide the reader through a complex interaction of myth with philosophy, media, ethics, history, literature, art, music and religion in a contemporary world.

The characters, plots, and potent language of C. S. Lewis's novels reveal everywhere the modern writer' admiration for Dante's Divine Comedy. Throughout his career Lewis drew on the structure, themes, and narrative details of Dante's medieval epic to present his characters as spiritual pilgrims growing toward God. Dante's portrayal of sin and sanctification, of human frailty and divine revelation, are evident in all of Lewis's best work. Readers will see how a modern author can make astonishingly creative use of a predecessor's material - in this case, the way Lewis imitated and adapted medieval ideas about spiritual life for the benefit of his modern audience. Nine chapters cover all of Lewis's novels, from Pilgrim's Regress and his science-fiction to The Chronicles of Narnia and Till We Have Faces. Readers will gain new insight into the sources of Lewis's literary imagination that represented theological and spiritual principles in his clever, compelling, humorous, and thoroughly human stories.

This is a print on demand book and is therefore non- returnable. C. S. Lewis was one of the twentieth century's foremost Christian authors -- at once a scholar, a teacher, a social critic, an amateur yet profound theologian, and an apologist. This study of his writings provides a perceptive and illuminating guide to readers who may be unacquainted with Lewis; a help to those wishing to understand him better; and an evaluation for those who want a survey of his works as a whole. Clyde Kilby examines Lewis's Christian works one by one, compares them with each other and with books by other authors, and discovers and elucidates the themes that recur throughout the main body of Lewis's writings.

A distinguished academic, influential Christian apologist, and best-selling author of children's literature, C. S. Lewis is a controversial and enigmatic figure who continues to fascinate, fifty years after his death. This Companion is a comprehensive single-volume study written by an international team of scholars to survey Lewis's career as a literary historian, popular theologian, and creative writer. Twenty-one expert voices from the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, Princeton University, and Wheaton College, among many other places of learning, analyze Lewis's work from theological, philosophical, and literary perspectives. Some chapters consider his professional contribution to fields such as critical theory and intellectual history, while others assess his views on issues including moral knowledge, gender, prayer, war, love, suffering, and Scripture. The final chapters investigate his work as a writer of fiction and poetry. Original in its approach and unique in its scope, this Companion shows that C. S. Lewis was much more than merely the man behind Narnia.

This study of the literary relationship between Charles Williams and C. S. Lewis during the years 1936-1945 focuses on the theme of 'co-inherence' at the centre of their friendship. The idea of 'co-inherence' has long been recognized as an important contribution of Williams to theology, and had significant influence on the thought of Lewis. This account of the two writers' conviction that human persons 'inhere' or 'dwell' both in each other and in the triune God reveals many inter-relationships between their writings that would otherwise be missed. It also shows up profound differences between their world-views, and a gradual, though incomplete, convergence onto common ground. Exploring the idea of co-inherence throws light on the fictional worlds they created, as well as on their treatment (whether together or separately) of a wide range of theological and literary subjects: the Arthurian tradition, the poetry of William Blake and Thomas Traherne, the theology of Karl Barth, the nature of human and divine love, and the doctrine of the Trinity. This study draws for the first time on transcriptions of Williams' lectures from 1932 to 1939, tracing more clearly the development and use of the idea of co-inherence in his thought than has been possible before. Finally, an account of the use of the word 'co-inherence' in English-speaking theology suggests that the differences that existed between Lewis and Williams, especially on the place of analogy and participation in human experience of God, might be resolved by a theology of co-inherence in the Trinity.

Is it merely an accident of English etymology that 'imagination' is cognate with 'image'? Despite the iconoclasm shared to a greater or lesser extent by all Abrahamic faiths, theism tends to assert a link between beauty, goodness and truth, all of which are viewed as Divine attributes. Douglas Hedley argues that religious ideas can be presented in a sensory form, especially in aesthetic works. Drawing explicitly on a Platonic metaphysics of the image as a bearer of transcendence, The Iconic Imagination shows the singular capacity and power of images to represent the transcendent in the traditions of Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Islam. In opposition to cold abstraction and narrow asceticism, Hedley shows that the image furnishes a vision of the eternal through the visible and temporal.

Published in the centenary year of Lewis's birth, The Pilgrim's Guide offers a study of Lewis's witness to the truth of Christianity, especially in his works of fiction and popular apologetics. Written by nineteen leading Lewis scholars and authors, these essays examine Lewis's character and the way he engaged the challenges of the Christian mind, vision, imagination, and understanding in the twentieth century. The studies range from discussions of specific Lewis works to critical interpretations of Lewis's most important theological themes. Also included is a guide to the best books and other resources on Lewis, a timeline that places Lewis's life in the context of history, and a note on the source for Lewis's use of the phrase "mere Christianity." Contributors: Harry Blamires Stratford Caldecott Colin Duriez Bruce Edwards Leslie Fairfield Sheridan Gilley Diana Pavlac Glyer Kendall Harmon Thomas Howard Michael Macdonald David Mills Christopher Mitchell Doris T. Myers James Patrick Thomas Peters Jerry Root Mark Shea Stephen Smith Kallistos Ware "Highly recommended for general readers and all academic levels." - Choice

C. S. Lewis is one of the best loved and most engaging Christian writers of recent times, and he continues to be a powerful defender of the faith. It is in his imaginative fiction that his genius finds its fullest expression and makes its most lasting theological contribution. Famously, Lewis had friends - who, like him, employed powerfully creative imaginations to explore the profundities of Christian thought and their struggles with their faith.

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal, established by the Arizona C. S. Lewis Society in 2007, is the only peer-reviewed journal devoted to the study of C. S. Lewis and his writings published anywhere in the world. It exists to promote literary, theological, historical, biographical, philosophical, bibliographical and cultural interest (broadly defined) in Lewis and his writings. The journal includes articles, review essays, book reviews, film reviews and play reviews, bibliographical material, poetry, interviews, editorials, and announcements of Lewis-related conferences, events and publications. Its readership is aimed at academic scholars from a wide variety of disciplines, as well as learned non-scholars and Lewis enthusiasts. At this time, Sehnsucht is published once a year.

An important contribution to studies in literature and religion, The Divine Face in Four Writers traces the influence of Christian and Classical prototypes in ideas and depictions of the divine face, and the centrality of facial expressions in characterization, in the works of William Shakespeare, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Hermann Hesse, and C.S. Lewis. Maurice Hunt explores both the human yearning to see the divine face from post-Apostolic time to the 20th century, as reflected in religion, myth, and literature by writers such as Augustine, Shakespeare, Hardy and Dostoyevsky, as well as the significance of the hidden divine face in writings by Spenser, Milton, Hesse, and Lewis. A final coda briefly detailing Emmanuel Levinas's system of ethics, based on the human face and its encounters with other faces, allows Hunt to focus on specific moments in the writings of the four major writers discussed that have particular ethical value.

A Handbook to the Reception of Classical Mythology presents a collection of essays that explore a wide variety of aspects of Greek and Roman myths and their critical reception from antiquity to the present day. Reveals the importance of mythography to the survival, dissemination, and popularization of classical myth from the ancient world to the present day Features chronologically organized essays that address different sets of myths that were important in each historical era, along with their thematic relevance Features chronologically organized essays that address different sets of myths that were important in each historical era, along with their thematic relevance Offers a series of carefully selected in-depth readings, including both popular and less well-known examples

C S Lewis is widely known worldwide, but often enthusiasts are only aware of one part of his work - his children's stories, perhaps, but not his science fiction, or his literary criticism; his popular theology but not his work for the BBC during the Second World War. This volume brings together all aspects of C S Lewis's life and thought. Arranged in alphabetical order, it goes from The abolition of man - a book Lewis wrote in 1943 and described as 'almost my favourite' to Wormwood, a character in The Screwtape Letters. This book will delight anyone who is interested in C S Lewis and wants to learn more about him, his thought, his works and his life.

"What has Jesus Christ to do with English literature?" ask David Lyle Jeffrey and Gregory Maillet in this insightful survey. First and foremost, they reply, many of the world's best authors of literature in English were formed--for better or worse--by the Christian tradition. Then too, many of the most recognized aesthetic literary forms derive from biblical exemplars. And finally, many great works of literature demand of readers evaluative judgments of the good, the true and the beautiful that can only rightly be understood within a Christian worldview. In this book Jeffrey and Maillet offer a feast of theoretical and practical discernment. After an examination of literature and truth, theological aesthetics, and the literary character of the Bible, they turn to a brief survey of literature from medieval times to the present, highlighting distinctively Christian themes and judgments. In a concluding chapter they suggest a path for budding literary critics through the current state of literary studies. Here is a must-read for all who are interested in a Christian perspective on literary studies.

Word and Story has broken new ground by enlisting well-known scholars in the examination of Lewis's ideas about language and narrative, both as stated in theory and as exemplified in practice. Never before has such clear, significant, and thorough work in these areas been brought together in one place. This compilation of sixteen essays demonstrates how an awareness of Lewis's ideas about language and narrative is essential to a full understanding and appreciation of his thought and works. The contributors examine Lewis's poetry, The Dark Woods, Studies in Words, and other works that have so far received little attention, in addition to more familiar parts of the Lewis canon. By approaching Lewis primarily as an artist and theorist, not just a Christian apologist, these essays offer new insights into his creative imagination, critical acumen, and his craftsmanship as a writer. One comes away from this book with a fresh vision and with heightened expectation, eager to return to Lewis's works.

Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold is a 1956 novel by C. S. Lewis. It is a retelling of Cupid and Psyche, based on its telling in a chapter of The Golden Ass of Apuleius. This story had haunted Lewis all his life, because he realized that some of the main characters' actions were illogical.