THROUGH THE OPEN DOOR Through THE Open Door A NEW LOOK AT c. S. LEWIS DABNEY ADAMS HART THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA PRESS Copyright© 1984 The UniversityofAlabamaPress Tuscaloosa,Alabama35487-0380 Allrightsreserved Manufacturedinthe UnitedStates ofAmerica 00 Thepaperonwhichthisbookisprintedmeets the minimum requirements ofAmericanNationalStandardforInformation Science-Permanence ofPaperforPrintedLibraryMaterials, ANSI Z39.48-1984. LibraryofCongress Cataloging-in-PublicationData Hart,DabneyAdams,1926 Throughthe opendoor. Bibliography:p. Includesindex. 1.Lewis,C.S.(Clive Staples),1898-1963-Criticismand interpretation.I.Title PR6023.E926Z673 1984 828'.91209 83-6520 ISBN0-8173-0187-9 ISBN978-0-8173-0187-3 (cloth:alk.paper) ISBN978-0-8173-5636-1 (pbk.:alk.paper) ISBN978-0-8173-8508-8 (electronic) Permission to quote copyrighted material is gratefully acknowledged as follows: Excerptsfrom The FourLoves byC. S. Lewis,© 1960by HelenJoy Lewis. Reprinted by permission ofHarcourt BraceJovanovich, Inc., Curtis Brown, Ltd., and William Collins, Sons & Company PLC. ExcerptsfromSurprisedby]oy:TheShapeofMyEarlyLifebyC.S.Lewis,© 1955 byC. S. Lewis. Reprinted by permissionofHarcourt BraceJovanovich, Inc., Curtis Brown, Ltd., and William Collins, Sons & Company PLC. Excerpts from Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis, © 1956 by C. S. Lewis. Reprinted by permission ofHarcourt BraceJovanovich, Inc., Curtis Brown, Ltd., and William Collins, Sons & Company PLC. ExcerptsfromLettersofC.S. LewiseditedbyW. H. Lewis,© 1966byW. H. Lewis and Executors of C. S. Lewis. Reprinted by permission of Harcourt BraceJovanovich, Inc., and Curtis Brown, Ltd. Excerpts from Perelandra by C. S. Lewis, © 1944 by Clive Staples Lewis, renewed 1972 by Alfred Cecil Harwood and Arthur Owen Barfield. Re printedwith permissionofMacmillan PublishingCompanyand i'he Bodley Head, Ltd. Excerptsfrom ThatHideous StrengthbyC. S. Lewis,© 1945,1946byClive Staples Lewis, renewed 1973, 1974 by Alfred Cecil Harwood and Arthur Owen Barfield. Reprinted by permission ofMacmillan PublishingCompany and The Bodley Head, Ltd. Excerptsfrom TheLion, theWitch andtheWardrobe byC. S. Lewis,© 1950 by the Trustees ofthe Estate ofC. S. Lewis, renewed 1978by Arthur Owen Barfield. Reprinted by permission of Macmillan Publishing Company and William Collins, Sons &Company PLC. Excerpts from The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis, © 1956 by C. S. Lewis. Reprintedby permissionof·MacmillanPublishingCompanyandTheBodley Head, Ltd. ExcerptsfromEnglishLiteratureinthe SixteenthCentury, ExcludingDrama byC. S. Lewis,© 1954byOxford UniversityPress. Reprintedby permission. ExcerptsfromA PrefacetoParadiseLostbyC.S. Lewis,© 1942byOxford University Press. Reprinted by permission. Excerpts from The Allegory ofLove by C. S. Lewis, © 1938 by Oxford University Press. Reprinted by permission. Excerpts from The DiscardedImage by C. S. Lewis,© 1964by Cambridge University Press. Reprinted by permission. Excerpts from Studies in Words by C. S. Lewis, © 1960 by Cambridge University Press. Reprinted by permission. Excerpts from An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis, © 1961 by Cambridge University Press. Reprinted by permission. CONTENTS Preface / ix I. Face to Face with C. S. Lewis / 1 II. Myth: The Master Key / 12 III. The Power of Language / 30 IV. The Real Renaissance / 48 V. The Teacher's Role / 74 VI. The Pedagogical Style / 97 VII. The Prophetic Theme / 121 Notes / 149 Selected Bibliography / 159 Index / 162 PREFACE The splendid irony ofC. S. Lewis's reputation and influ ence is that this conservative Christian medievalist encouraged radical reassessments in all his writing. One of his favorite images was the open door: the oppor tunityfor new perspectives, new views, free movementof the mind and spirit. The purpose ofthis book is to show how this theme unifies and dominates Lewis's varied works. Though the key to my interpretation was given me by Lewis himselfwhen we metin 1956, I did nottry the lock until recentyears. I have beeninspired to share myideas by the response ofnumerous audiences who have asked me to talk and teach about Lewis. In addition to these people ofall ages and types, many individuals have been helpful in opening doors. My colleague Hugh Keenan, who suggested that I submit a paper on Lewis for a conference, got me started; my department chairman, Paul Blount, who allowed me released time, enabled me to finish. The encouragement of Clyde S. Kilby, now retired as curator of the Marion E. Wade Collection at Wheaton College, gave me confidence; and the friend ship of Caroline Rakestraw, now retired as director of the EpiscopalRadioTVFoundation, sustained mydeter mination to get the book written. Elizabeth McWhorter, Mary Anderson, and Georgia Christopher read the manuscript in various drafts and made excellent suggestions. Although I have done most of the typing myself, Brenda Coker's help at a crucial stage was invaluable. My indebtedness and appreciation go back to much earlier stages. I would never have been able to write this book without research in London, under the benevolent ix