C.S. Lewis and a Problem of Evil
An Investigation of a Pervasive Theme
Published on 26. June 2014
284 pages
978-0-227-90300-1 (ISBN)
Description
C.S. Lewis was concerned about an aspect of the problem of evil he called subjectivism: the tendency of one's perspective to move towards self-referentialism and utilitarianism. In C.S. Lewis and a Problem of Evil, Jerry Root provides a holistic reading of Lewis by walking the reader through all of Lewis's published work as he argues Lewis's case against subjectivism. Furthermore, the book reveals that Lewis consistently employed fiction to make his case, as virtually all of his villains are portrayed as subjectivists. Lewis's warnings are prophetic; this book is not merely an exposition of Lewis, it is also a timely investigation into the problem of evil.
Reviews / Votes
' Let me not fail to stress the strengths of Root's book, among which is the comprehensive knowledge displayed, not merely of the work of Lewis himself, but also of the secondary literature that has flourished around that work. [...] help us to look at the various symbols, stories, and arguments presented in Lewis's body of work and also to step into the beam of that work and look along it, gaining and understanding of Lewis's fertile spiritual vision from the inside. 'Mikel Burley in The Journal of Religious Studies, Vol. 47, 2011
' In this work of Lewis scholarship, Jerry Root argues that 'subjectivism' - by which he means a rejection of objective reality and objective values in favour of a selfish, inward focus - is an attitude Lewis repeatedly attacks in his popular fiction, non-fiction, and professional literary criticism. Lewis, he maintains, saw that grave evil could result from this self-deceptive conforming of reality to one's personal desires. '
Paul Gage Logan in Theological Book Review, Vol. 23 (2), 2011
'The strength of Root's book, it seems to me, is its comprehensiveness. Root ranges widely over the Lewis oeuvre, and encompasses not only Lewis's apologetic works but also literary criticism, his poetry and his fiction [...] it will be illuminating for those to whom Lewis is new territory.'
Barry Livingstone, The Glass, Number 23, Spring 2011
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
File size
1,71 MB
ISBN-13
978-0-227-90300-1 (9780227903001)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
08/2010
James Clarke & Co Ltd
€55.89
Shipment within 10-20 days
Person
Jerry Root is Assistant Professor of Evangelism and Associate Director of the Institute for Strategic Evangelism, Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois. He is also visiting Professor at Biola University and at Talbot Graduate School of Theology, La Mirada, California.
Content
Acknowledgements; Preface; Objectivity and Evil; The Problem of Pain; Lewis's Literary Criticism and a Problem of Evil; The Rhetorical Aim of Lewis's Fiction in Light of a Problem of Evil; Literary Analysis; Conclusions; Permissions; Bibliography; Index.
