The Medieval Mind of C. S. Lewis
What made C. S. Lewis such a brilliant writer, scholar, and thinker? In The Medieval Mind of C. S. Lewis, Jason M. Baxter shows how great books shaped a great mind.
The World as a Symphony
The Medieval period this book refers to is the literature, ancient languages, and premodern way of looking at the universe. Lewis loved reading authors like Dante and Boethius because of their worldview.
They saw the world as a symphony. It is a world of beauty, filled with glorious voices that penetrate our perception. This “cathedral” is a symbol or sacrament, or transposition, which points at something beyond. The details build to a harmonious whole, with dazzling light and splendid patterns. This is an academic book, but one that is engages on a spiritual and artistic level.
The Scientific Revolution
Chapter 2 explains how Lewis saw the purpose of literature as enjoying it from the inside. To soak in the atmosphere, to take in the landscape, to breathe in the air. In this way, his Christian literature was not about reading facts, but about feeling faith. When looking at the Bible, it encourages us to slow, prayerful meditation.
The scientific revolution led many to look at the world as a machine. Lewis did not like this. Political, sociological, psychological, and ethical worldviews would change. It was a paradigm shift, and Lewis longed for more than the material world. Baxter helps us track with Lewis, and looks at his greatest influences.
Unveiling Spiritual Realities
I was most interested in how Dante’s poetry influenced Lewis. In these poems, Lewis found a weightiness to his words. It was the ability to see evil as nothingness, and happiness as fullness and joy. It was the ability to see ultimate reality, and Lewis longed for this in his own work. He longed for times of transcendence but also intimate moments.
The end of the book looks at Lewis’ conversion, described as an “unveiling.” It was his desire to see the spiritual realities come alive. His nostalgia for the medieval times manifested into hope. With this in mind, we remember the resurrection of Christ. Our nostalgia for the deeper things is rooted in reality. It moves us forward and directs our gaze beyond.
I received a media copy of The Medieval Mind of C. S. Lewis and this is my honest review. Find more of my book reviews and follow Dive In, Dig Deep on Instagram - my account dedicated to Bibles and books to see the beauty of the Bible and the role of reading in the Christian life. To read all of my book reviews and to receive all of the free eBooks I find on the web, subscribe to my free newsletter.