The 'postmodern challenge' is increasingly felt in the 'end of modernity' to which Gianni Vattimo refers. The West and the world has hitherto been dominated by what Andrew Gamble characterises as the Modern or Western Ideology. But the validity of that worldview and its associated ways of thinking, going back to the 'Enlightenment' and beyond, has come to be radically questioned. It is within this context that the work and thought of CS Lewis is examined. Although Lewis is generally recognised, and regarded himself, as conservative and even reactionary, there is a paradoxical quality to his conservatism, the elements of which coexist with features which might be regarded as liberal and as radically socialist respectively. Similarly, his commitment to the religious and cultural tradition of Western Europe co-exists with a vehement anticolonialism. A paradoxical association of postmodermism with 'premodernity' has been widely noted in Buddhism and, by Derrida, in Eastern Christian theology. This thesis seeks to demonstrate that a paradoxical postmodernism is evident in the thought of Lewis. One source suggested for this is his interest in Eastern Christianity. Another is identified as the influence on Lewis of the opposition of Romanticism to 'Enlightenment' modernity. But Lewis's own engagement with modernity is also shown to be significant. Two broad trends in postmodernism are discussed. The affinities of Lewis's thought with the nihilistic tradition of postmodernism, going back to Nietzsche, is traced with regard to issues such as rationalism, science, the autonomy of the subject, and authorship. But the ambivalent relationship of Lewis to spiritually-oriented, affirmative postmodernism, and particularly Rudolf Steiner's Anthroposophy, is also analysed. The crucial role of Scholasticism in the development of Western thought is investigated in a comparison of Steiner's views with the Christian position of Lewis. It is concluded that there are grounds to regard Lewis as. 'prophet of postmodernism', and he is compared with Nietzsche and Pope John-Paul II in this regard. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Church History)

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Two literary conversion narratives with much historical detail, are compared in this thesis: the Confessiones written by the renowned fourth century church-father, St. Augustine, and Surprised by Joy written by the twentieth century writer and scholar, C.S. Lewis. In order to understand St. Augustine's conversion to the Christian faith, Christian religion as a social phenomenon in the Ancient World is discussed. As background for the discussion and comparison of the two conversion narratives, a brief biography is given of St. Augustine and of Lewis, as well as a description of each one's course of conversion. The research is structured In terms of beacons that St. Augustine identified during the course of his conversion: people who played a significant role, events that influenced his life, and inner conflict that spurred him on his way. By means of an analysis regarding theme and content, it is shown that there are clear similarities between the beacons identified by Augustine and Lewis in their conversion narratives. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie tesis word twee literêre bekeringsverhale waarin die historiese werklikheid deur die skrywers weergegee word, met mekaar vergelyk: die Confessiones van die vierde eeuse kerkvader Augustinus, en Surprised by Joy van die twintigste eeuse skrywer en geleerde C.S. Lewis. Om Augustinus se bekeringsverhaal histories te kan plaas teen die agtergrond waarin hy geleef en tot bekering gekom het, word 'n uiteensetting gegee van die Christelike godsdiens as 'n sosiale fenomeen in die Antieke Wêreld. 'n Kort lewensbeskrywing van Augustinus en Lewis en 'n oorsig van die weg wat elkeen se bekering gevolg het, dien as agtergrond vir die bespreking en vergelyking van die twee bekeringsverhale. Die navorsing word gestruktureer aan die hand van bakens wat Augustinus op sy bekeringsweg uitgelig het: persone wat 'n beduidende rol gespeel het, gebeure wat hom beïnvloed het, innerlike konflik wat hom voortgedryf het. Die tesis toon deur 'n analise op grond van inhoud en tematiek aan dat daar duidelike ooreenkomste is tussen die bakens op Augustinus se bekeringsweg en dié op Lewis se bekeringsweg.

The 'postmodern challenge' is increasingly felt in the 'end of modernity' to which Gianni Vattimo refers. The West and the world has hitherto been dominated by what Andrew Gamble characterises as the Modern or Western Ideology. But the validity of that worldview and its associated ways of thinking, going back to the 'Enlightenment' and beyond, has come to be radically questioned. It is within this context that the work and thought of CS Lewis is examined. Although Lewis is generally recognised, and regarded himself, as conservative and even reactionary, there is a paradoxical quality to his conservatism, the elements of which coexist with features which might be regarded as liberal and as radically socialist respectively. Similarly, his commitment to the religious and cultural tradition of Western Europe co-exists with a vehement anticolonialism. A paradoxical association of postmodermism with 'premodernity' has been widely noted in Buddhism and, by Derrida, in Eastern Christian theology. This thesis seeks to demonstrate that a paradoxical postmodernism is evident in the thought of Lewis. One source suggested for this is his interest in Eastern Christianity. Another is identified as the influence on Lewis of the opposition of Romanticism to 'Enlightenment' modernity. But Lewis's own engagement with modernity is also shown to be significant. Two broad trends in postmodernism are discussed. The affinities of Lewis's thought with the nihilistic tradition of postmodernism, going back to Nietzsche, is traced with regard to issues such as rationalism, science, the autonomy of the subject, and authorship. But the ambivalent relationship of Lewis to spiritually-oriented, affirmative postmodernism, and particularly Rudolf Steiner's Anthroposophy, is also analysed. The crucial role of Scholasticism in the development of Western thought is investigated in a comparison of Steiner's views with the Christian position of Lewis. It is concluded that there are grounds to regard Lewis as. 'prophet of postmodernism', and he is compared with Nietzsche and Pope John-Paul II in this regard. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Church History)

In this study, C. S. Lewis's books, essays, stories, and poems, in addition to biographies and essays written about Lewis, were read in an attempt to understand the relationship between Lewis's spiritual quest and his total health. The spiritual quest is defined as the search for the ultimate truth and meaning of life. For Lewis, who was a Christian, the quest for the Spirit is a journey toward God-Jesus-the Holy Spirit. Health is defined as total experience; the interrelationship of the body, mind, and spirit with all there is, has been, and will be. Health is considered a changing perception, not a fixed state. The dimensions of Lewis's health—physical, psychological, social, and spiritual—are studied. Lewis's physical states, literary works, literary themes, friendships, ethics, marriage, and views on religion are considered as each relates to his determination to know and to love God. For Lewis, anything without God is nothing. God is the creator of all living things and all matter. He is the inventor of all loves and is Love. In Lewis's opinion, one's health is in direct proportion to one's love for God. When man loves God he is healthy, the more he loves Him the healthier, the less he loves Him the less healthy.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis is internationally considered as one of the classics of children’s literature. The series consists of seven books, of which only the first four were translated into Afrikaans, namely Die Towenaar se Neef (The Magician’s Nephew), Die Leeu, die Heks en die Hangkas (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), Die Perd en sy Seun (The Horse and his Boy) and Prins Kaspian (Prince Caspian). According to the publisher, Human & Rousseau, they have no intention to translate the remainder of the series. The three books that have not been translated into Afrikaans are The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair and The Last Battle. The main aim of this study is the practical translation of a selection of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The Functionalist approach of Vermeer and Nord, Toury and Chesterman’s translation norms from Descriptive Translation Studies, Venuti’s foreignisation and domestication and Klingberg’s cultural contex adaptation form the theoretical framework for both the discussion and analysis of the source text as well as the translation. The four types of translation problems as identified by Nord are used as the framework for the annotations of the translation. By doing a theoretically based translation, the connection between theory and practice is illustrated: the translator chooses a general approach and translation strategies and is consequently guided to make consistent translation choices on macro as well as micro levels. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: C.S. Lewis se Chronicles of Narnia beklee internasionaal ’n gevestigde plek in die kanon van kinder- en jeugliteratuur. Die reeks bestaan uit sewe boeke, waarvan slegs die eerste vier in Afrikaans vertaal is, naamlik Die Towenaar se Neef, Die Leeu, die Heks en die Hangkas, Die Perd en sy Seun en Prins Kaspian. Volgens die uitgewer, Human & Rousseau, word daar nie verdere vertalings van die reeks beoog nie. Die drie onvertaalde boeke in die reeks is The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair en The Last Battle. Hierdie studie fokus hoofsaaklik op die praktiese vertaling van ’n gedeelte van The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Vermeer en Nord se Funksionalisme, Toury en Chesterman se vertaalnorme uit Deskriptiewe Vertaalstudies, Venuti se vervreemding en domestikering en Klingberg se kulturele konteksaanpassing dien as teoretiese raamwerk vir sowel die bespreking en ontleding van die bronteks as die vertaling. Nord se vier tipes vertaalprobleme dien as raamwerk vir die annotasies tot die vertaling. Deur ’n teoreties gebaseerde vertaling te doen word geïllustreer hoe teorie en praktyk by mekaar aansluit: die vertaler kies ’n algemene benadering en vertaalstrategieë, en word sodoende begelei tot konsekwente vertaalbesluite op makro- en mikrovlak.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University, 1965. / Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Leland B. Jacobs. Dissertation Committee: Mildred L. Fairchild. A study of the children's works of George MacDonald, William Henry Hudson, Antoine de Saint Exupéry, John Ronald Renel Tolkien and Clive Staples Lewis--Cf. leaf 1. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Missouri State University, 2008. / "May 2008." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 67-68). Also available online.

This thesis argues that George MacDonald's literary influence upon C. S. Lewis-concerning the themes of pain, suffering, evil and goodness-was transforming and long-lasting. It is argued in the opening chapter that MacDonald's work had a great deal to do with the change in young Lewis's imagination, helping to convert him from a romantic doubter to a romantic believer in God and his goodness. A review of both writers' first works suggests that such influence may have begun earlier in Lewis's career than has been noticed. The second chapter examines how both authors contended with the problems that pain and suffering present, and how both understood and presented the nature of faith. Differences in their treatment of these subjects are noted, but it is argued that these views and depictions share fundamental elements, and that MacDonald's direct influence can be demonstrated in particular cases. The view that MacDonald was primarily a champion of feelings is challenged, as is the idea that either man's later writing displays a loss of faith in God and his goodness. The third chapter, in specifically refuting the assertion that MacDonald's view of evil was inclusive in the Jungian or dualistic sense, shows how both authors' work maintains an unmistakable distinction between evil fortune and moral evil. The next two chapters examine fundamental similarities in their treatment of evil and goodness. Special care is taken in these two chapters to trace MacDonald's direct influence, especially regarding the differences they believed existed between hell's Pride and what they believed God to be. The fifth chapter reviews their ideas and depictions of heaven in summing up the study's argument concerning the overall influence of MacDonald's writing upon Lewis's imagination-in particular the change in Lewis's understanding of the relations between Spirits, Nature, and God.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:29:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2011-02-25Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:59:47Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 marques_mc_me_sjrp.pdf: 878935 bytes, checksum: 764ef3d1dbc56457288c4d8d81bd3b78 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Este trabalho propõe-se a rediscutir o conceito corrente de conto de fadas, tal como proposto por autores como Jolles (1976) e Propp (1983), a partir de um contraponto dessas teorias com as formulações de J. R. R. Tolkien em seu ensaio “Sobre histórias de fadas” (2006). Partindo dessa revisão, pretende-se demonstrar como As crônicas de Nárnia, de C. S. Lewis, pode ser lida como o que Tolkien denomina “história de fadas”, pois a presença da oposição entre o “mundo real”, com tempo e espaço histórico bem definidos, e o mundo maravilhoso ou “outro mundo” parece ser um fator decisivo para diferenciar um conto de fadas de uma história de fadas / This research proposes to revisit the current concept of fairy tale as proposed by authors such as Jolles (1976) and Propp (1983), counterpointing those theories with the formulations of J.R.R. Tolkien in his essay “On Fairy-Stories” (2006). The aim is to demonstrate how The Chronicles of Narnia, by C. S. Lewis, can be read as a fairy story according to Tolkien, since the presence of an opposition between the real world, with well defined time and historical space, and the wonderful world or other world seems to be a decisive factor to differentiate a fairy tale from a fairy story

This thesis reports on an analysis of the discursive construction of female and male physical identity in children’s literature and explicitly combines corpus linguistic methods with a critical discourse approach. Based on three novels from each of the Chronicles of Narnia and the Harry Potter series, it shows clear gendering of body parts, not only in terms of the purely quantitative preferences for certain body parts to be associated with one or other gender, but in terms of discourse prosody, or the uses to which the body parts are put. Human body parts in these series are mostly used in the following four ways, all of which show differences in realisation in terms of gender: · to describe individuals, physically, in order to distinguish one from the other; · to convey emotion, unintentionally as well as consciously; · for physical interaction between people and · for interaction with the world more broadly: responses to danger and agency, i.e. the ability to act on the world and the nature of what is achieved. The use of body parts by characters to express emotion and act agentively on the world is revealed to be strongly gendered in the two series. I characterise the most prominent patterns in terms of the bodily products blood, sweat and tears, of which the last is strongly connected to female characters, who are generally associated with emotion. The other two, referring to active participation in fighting and injury, as well as agency, are almost exclusively reserved for males, with female characters rendered unable to act on the physical world as a result of overwhelming feelings. The females’ response to danger suggests stereotyped discourses of inequality which see women and girls as requiring protection and being physically incapable. Thus gender is still a particularly salient aspect in these widely-read examples of children’s literature, despite plots which appear to be fairly positive towards women. The strength of the inclusion of a corpus approach in this study lies in its capacity to reveal objective, and often fairly covert, trends in language use. These in turn enrich the critical analysis of discourses in these influential texts, which facilitates social change through linguistic analysis.