Battling Words: an Alternative Reading of C.S. Lewis' Til We Have Faces
type: CreativeWork
description: C.S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces was the deliberate culmination of a lifelong project. Despite this deliberation, the novel has proven consistently problematic for critics because of its multi-faceted symbolism and profusion of themes. Lewis was publicly absorbed with mythology, so many critics have attempts to apply either Lewis’ own ideas about mythology or a Jungian approach to the work. These readings, while useful, frequently subordinate valid alternative readings. Through a combination of reader-response criticism and deconstruction, this thesis argues that Lewis intentionally subverted the expectorations of evangelical fan base by establishing the internal tension of certain binaries and then suggesting their inability to be resolved.
abstract: C.S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces was the deliberate culmination of a lifelong project. Despite this deliberation, the novel has proven consistently problematic for critics because of its multi-faceted symbolism and profusion of themes. Lewis was publicly absorbed with mythology, so many critics have attempts to apply either Lewis’ own ideas about mythology or a Jungian approach to the work. These readings, while useful, frequently subordinate valid alternative readings. Through a combination of reader-response criticism and deconstruction, this thesis argues that Lewis intentionally subverted the expectorations of evangelical fan base by establishing the internal tension of certain binaries and then suggesting their inability to be resolved.
author: Griffith, Robert A.
keywords: C.S. Lewis, mythology, deconstruction, reader-response, criticism, English Language and Literature
date published: 2005-05-01T07:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T03:16:06Z
provider: Missouri State University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Missouri State University