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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
Originally published on my blog here in October 2001.
Lewis' earliest novel gives fullest reign to the allegorical impulse which was to form an important part of all his fictional writing. Intended to be a [b:The Pilgrim's Progress|29797|The Pilgrim's Progress|John Bunyan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328865403s/29797.jpg|1960084] for the twentieth century, the story of his central character John mimics Lewis' own spiritual journey from the dry church of his childhood to a personal Christian faith. (Even without confirmation from the later foreword, the autobiographical element should be clear to anyone who has read Surprised by Joy, his memoir of this process, or knows that he was called "Jack" by his friends.)
In Bunyan's work, the major difference is in intent; The Pilgrim's Progress is designed to show the tribulations of the Christian after conversion while Lewis is more interested in the journey to conversion. This difference may partly be connected with a change in emphasis in the Protestant church in Western Europe towards evangelism rather than the development of the individual - and Christian is very much an individual rather than part of a church congregation. Lewis was almost certainly not going to want to update Bunyan's famous story, the most read book in English after the King James Bible.
There is also a difference in method. Bunyan externalises Christian's psychological states and spiritual experiences at least as much in geography as in the people that he meets - the Slough of Despond being the most famous example. Lewis has John meet personifications of major twentieth century mindsets; the landscape is far less important, even though it is the fulfilment of a vision of an island that John is seeking.
Lewis' novel is far less successful than Bunyan's story, as might be expected of a work so thoroughly in its shadow, and indeed is less convincing as fiction than anything else he wrote. The reason for this, as the foreword indicates, is that the journey he describes is not typical. Though it maps Lewis' own philosophical wanderings before he embraced Christianity, most people don't even generally introspect about what they believe and don't change so comprehensively. Most people today also don't come from a church background, though this change has occurred since the thirties. (This return to something like the start is needed for the title to make sense, of course.)
However, it would be possible to enjoy the novel not as an allegory on each person's spiritual life but as a satire on thirties ideas, except that Lewis makes another mistake which is common for a convert. He shows little sympathy for the philosophical ideas he is mocking, but portrays each as something so insubstantial and ludicrous it is impossible to see how anyone can be taken in. This gives The Pilgrim's Regress the feeling of a novel which contains only one dimensional, repetitive characters, and makes it a dull read. Perhaps Lewis needed to get this out of his system, but it is his poorest published writing, fiction or non-fiction.
Lewis' earliest novel gives fullest reign to the allegorical impulse which was to form an important part of all his fictional writing. Intended to be a [b:The Pilgrim's Progress|29797|The Pilgrim's Progress|John Bunyan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328865403s/29797.jpg|1960084] for the twentieth century, the story of his central character John mimics Lewis' own spiritual journey from the dry church of his childhood to a personal Christian faith. (Even without confirmation from the later foreword, the autobiographical element should be clear to anyone who has read Surprised by Joy, his memoir of this process, or knows that he was called "Jack" by his friends.)
In Bunyan's work, the major difference is in intent; The Pilgrim's Progress is designed to show the tribulations of the Christian after conversion while Lewis is more interested in the journey to conversion. This difference may partly be connected with a change in emphasis in the Protestant church in Western Europe towards evangelism rather than the development of the individual - and Christian is very much an individual rather than part of a church congregation. Lewis was almost certainly not going to want to update Bunyan's famous story, the most read book in English after the King James Bible.
There is also a difference in method. Bunyan externalises Christian's psychological states and spiritual experiences at least as much in geography as in the people that he meets - the Slough of Despond being the most famous example. Lewis has John meet personifications of major twentieth century mindsets; the landscape is far less important, even though it is the fulfilment of a vision of an island that John is seeking.
Lewis' novel is far less successful than Bunyan's story, as might be expected of a work so thoroughly in its shadow, and indeed is less convincing as fiction than anything else he wrote. The reason for this, as the foreword indicates, is that the journey he describes is not typical. Though it maps Lewis' own philosophical wanderings before he embraced Christianity, most people don't even generally introspect about what they believe and don't change so comprehensively. Most people today also don't come from a church background, though this change has occurred since the thirties. (This return to something like the start is needed for the title to make sense, of course.)
However, it would be possible to enjoy the novel not as an allegory on each person's spiritual life but as a satire on thirties ideas, except that Lewis makes another mistake which is common for a convert. He shows little sympathy for the philosophical ideas he is mocking, but portrays each as something so insubstantial and ludicrous it is impossible to see how anyone can be taken in. This gives The Pilgrim's Regress the feeling of a novel which contains only one dimensional, repetitive characters, and makes it a dull read. Perhaps Lewis needed to get this out of his system, but it is his poorest published writing, fiction or non-fiction.
This may be a 2.5, but I'm bumping it to 3 stars because it is C.S. Lewis. This book felt like homework -- I enjoyed it, but I also found it tedious.
C.S. Lewis seems to take the sledgehammer approach to allegory in this book, but I cannot decide if the symbolism seems so obvious because I had just completed Surprised by Joy or whether it really is that transparent. Perhaps a bit of both. Yet, I am so glad I read this AFTER I read Surprised by Joy because I am not sure this allegorical novel would have been understandable otherwise.
The Pilgrim's Regress covers much of the same ground as Surprised by Joy, telling a fictionalized account of C.S. Lewis' own path to faith and Christianity. His love of fables, myths and fairy tales is apparent in this novel, as the story echoes the structure of a fable with its episodic approach and lack of narrative flow.
I would not recommend this book to the casual reader, but it is required reading for the student of C.S. Lewis' writing.
C.S. Lewis seems to take the sledgehammer approach to allegory in this book, but I cannot decide if the symbolism seems so obvious because I had just completed Surprised by Joy or whether it really is that transparent. Perhaps a bit of both. Yet, I am so glad I read this AFTER I read Surprised by Joy because I am not sure this allegorical novel would have been understandable otherwise.
The Pilgrim's Regress covers much of the same ground as Surprised by Joy, telling a fictionalized account of C.S. Lewis' own path to faith and Christianity. His love of fables, myths and fairy tales is apparent in this novel, as the story echoes the structure of a fable with its episodic approach and lack of narrative flow.
I would not recommend this book to the casual reader, but it is required reading for the student of C.S. Lewis' writing.
I'm not sure if I genuinly did not like this book or if I wasn't in the mood to read it and then forced myself to read it and hated myself for doing that.. to myself. Yeah.
But at the moment this book was not my favourite.
2/10
But at the moment this book was not my favourite.
2/10
This is an absolutely brilliant book. If you have a background philosophy and like allegory this will be pure bliss for you. Lewis paints in new light the shortcomings of the philosophy and wisdom of the world.
I either love or can't be bothered with CS Lewis, and this came somewhere in the middle. Interesting as an allegory of his conversion.
Read thw Afterword first; enjoy the book several times more
One of Lewis's writings that did not age well,The Pilgrim's Regress is an allegory that works out some of the author's own spiritual journey as well as assesses some of the main spiritual/philosophical options of his day.
While Lewis's take on Christianity as the only tenable way toward "the good life" is at times helpful and a cause for spiritual reflection, his allegory often seems forced. I read this book in my quest to understand this pivotal Anglican thinker and his influence on Western (especially American) Christianity, but I wouldn't recommend it to the casual reader. While not devoid of substance for the present Western Christian milieu, it's strongest points are largely limited to the WW2 era.
One of Lewis's writings that did not age well,The Pilgrim's Regress is an allegory that works out some of the author's own spiritual journey as well as assesses some of the main spiritual/philosophical options of his day.
While Lewis's take on Christianity as the only tenable way toward "the good life" is at times helpful and a cause for spiritual reflection, his allegory often seems forced. I read this book in my quest to understand this pivotal Anglican thinker and his influence on Western (especially American) Christianity, but I wouldn't recommend it to the casual reader. While not devoid of substance for the present Western Christian milieu, it's strongest points are largely limited to the WW2 era.
What a thought-provoking 20th century take on Pilgrim's Progress! Lewis wrote this after converting to Christianity. He styles his narrator's journey on Bunyan's famous character, except Lewis' Christian travels through 19th and 20th century philosophy and atheism. Honestly, much of it might have been a bit over my head, but this edition has headings that help explain what each allegorical chapter is referring to. It's a terrific read for any Lewis enthusiast.