LotR Blog

Hey guys!

I'm going to need the e-mail addresses of everybody who wants to read Tolkien's works and join my blog:

www.squirrelinsanity.blogspot.com

if you want to join and haven't told me, please post that you want to join and give me your e-mail address. I need e-mails to invite you to write on the blog. We'll be starting ASAP after the last C.S. Lewis class. Hopefully we can figure everything out before then and start on Sat. the 25th. People I've already heard from:

Glennellen, I already have your e-mail.
Anna
Meghan
Ari, I need to know if you are definitely going to join us.

Also, if you read this, please make sure everyone else in the class reads it and knows about it.

Sorry I'm late!

Hey everyone, I have been on time for the first two online classes but late for the third and a tad bit late for the fourth. Please know that I've posted my comments on the last two letter we read and am continuing making more comments for the other letters. Please read them when you can! Thank you guys!!

~Glennellen

Letter 18...Falling in Love

This letter discusses falling in love. Screwtape points out that God wants either abstinence from us or complete monogamy in marriage. Screwtape discloses that the devils have made monogamy (staying with just one person) very difficult. The devils have done this by promoting the idea of "falling in love." He (Screwtape) explains that falling in love is a short term excitement that he wants humans to think should last forever. If that feeling of excitement doesn't last forever (which it won't) then a marriage should end.

I think the first point C.S. Lewis is trying to make in this letter is that the expectation that a long term relationship will have the giddiness of falling in love is not possible. That God describes marriage as "one flesh." God did not say marriage was a happy married couple or a couple that married because they fell in love, at least not in the way we define falling in love today. God created marriage so man and women could help each other, so they would not be lonely. Marriage does include love, but not the giddy kind of love we expect today, it has more of the enduring steadfast love. By expecting the excitement of new love to last throughout a lifetime will only produce disappointment.

The devils in this letter explain that they can use the idea of "falling in love" to tempt man to do many things. We will see exactly how this is done in the following letters.

Letter 17...Gluttony anyone?

This letter is about gluttony. What is gluttony? Gluttony is
1. Eating before the time of meal in order to satisfy the palate.
2. Seeking delicacies and better quality of food to gratify the "sense of taste."
3. Seeking after sauces and seasonings for the enjoyment of the palate.
4. Exceeding the necessary amount of food.
5. Taking food with too much eagerness, even when eating the proper amount, and even if the food is not luxurious.

So, while you may have thought gluttony was just overeating, it can also mean being too particular, eating just to eat or just focusing too much on food.

How can focusing on food interfere with your life?

In what ways according to the letter are women made to be gluttonous?

In what ways are men to be made gluttonous?

Letter 16...Beware of Loyal churchgoers....

One word that may help you understand this letter better is coterie: an intimate and often exclusive group of persons with a unifying common interest or purpose.

In this letter, Screwtape is alarmed that the patient has been loyal to one church.

What does he suggest Wormwood do about this situation?

What 2 reasons according to Screwtape is "church shopping" better than belonging to one church?

What does Screwtape suggest can be done between "party churches" to cause disruption?

Letter 15.....Live for the Present

Before we get started, here are a few words defined to help you understand the letter:

Avarice: excessive desire for wealth or gain (hhmm, not much avarice in the world today, she says flippantly).

Philological: Study of literature or language.

Complacency: self satisfaction accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiency.

In this letter, Wormwood notes a lull in the war and wonders how he should take advantage of this lull. Should he use "Stupid confidence," or anxiety about the future? This question brings about a discussion of time. Time is defined as the past, present and future.

What is so bad about living in the past?

Why would the devils want us to avoid living in the present?

Which virtues look to the future?

How should we look to the past, present and future?

***Search for quotes about "living in the present" on google. Post your favorite quote here, remember to note the author.***

Letter 14....

This is a great letter, and one who's meaning is very hard to achieve. My questions for this letter are simple:

What is the theme of this letter (remember the theme is the point the author is trying to convey) ?

What does God want for us?

Letter 13....The blunders of Wormwood

Screwtape shames his nephew, Wormwood in this letter for allowing his patient to experience 2 real pleasures. This letter explains that the devils would rather keep people focused on things they don't truly enjoy. I don't think this means they have to focus on horrible things or even behaving badly, they just need to be kept busy doing things that really don't matter much.

Often, the things people enjoy are what God has given them in the form of gifts and talents. By using these talents they often become closer to God. Something so simple as a walk along a beautiful path can produce a sense of peace and delight that can bring one closer to God. Remember the verse, "Even the rocks cried out His name."

What do you think the "asphyxiating cloud" was that surrounded the patient on his walk from the old mill?

What characteristic does Pain and Pleasure bring?

What state does Screwtape want the patient to be in and why?

How can Wormwood turn this disaster concerning his patient around?

To all who actually LIKE to read and were ever thinking of reading stuff by Tolkien:

I got an awesome idea. Since this class is helping us understand Lewis's writings, why don't those of us who like to read and want to read Tolkien's works, read Tolkien's works over the summer and make a blog to discuss them as we read them. And we could, like, all read at the same pace, so that we're all at the same place in the book. Such books that we could read:

The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King)
Smith of Wootton Major, and Farmer Giles of Ham (It's one book, two stories)
The Silmarillion (haha, just kidding)

Let me know what you guys think. I've actually made a blog which I don't use... at all, and that I would have to rename, but we could use it if you guys want to do this. SO LET ME KNOW.

P.S. I lost the GAME!!

Letter 12....The Slippery Slope

In this letter, Screwtape congratulates his nephew on his progress. It seems his patient is spending increasing amounts of time with his new group of friends, and less time developing his faith. Sure, he still attends church, but his whole heart is not there. A "dim uneasiness" settles in. This "dim uneasiness" can cause him to repent and turn to God or guilt might build up and turn him farther away.

What will God not allow the devils to completely suppress?

What do you think the "dim uneasiness" is that Christians feel when they're being spiritually lazy?

What is the safest road to hell? How can we prevent this in our own life?

Screwtape says, "As one of my own patients said on his arrival down here, I now see that I spent most of my life in doing neither what I ought nor what I liked." Explain what this means? How does not following God produce this type of life?

Here's a link to a music video that sums it all up...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLJF9vaIJ_0

Enjoy!

Letter 11...The Art of Telling Jokes.......

Here are a couple words defined before you start to read, that will help you to understand the letter better.
Incongruities: not compatible, not harmonious
Flippancy: Excessive silliness and lack of steadiness especially regarding grave or sacred matters.

This letter discusses the patient's increasing circle of friends. Screwtape comments that much laughter can be heard and goes on to explain the 4 causes of laughter.

What are the 4 causes of laughter?

Which 2 causes are NOT useful to the devils?

Why do the devils hate fun?

Why is flippancy great for the devils? How can they use it to their advantage?

comments

Ya'll have really interesting comment conversations on here.... I'm just sayin.

Welcome to The Screwtape Letters

A tip from the teacher... if you're not sure you know the meaning of a word, look it up. It can really enlighten the meaning of the letter (if you choose the right word to look up that is).

Screwtape Letters... for Tolkien?

I don't know if anyone saw this, but The Screwtape Letters are dedicated to J.R.R. Tolkien.  I thought that was pretty cool! Yeah so look in your book and see if it is in there.

The Last Battle (literally)

Okay, the chapter the with very last battle with the very last king of Narnia really got to me. I thought of how sad it was that Eustace and Jill were thrown into the stable...but how wonderful it was that they made it to Aslan's country, and soon Tirian did too to see to see High King Peter, King Edmund, Queen Lucy, Lady Polly and Lord Diggory. Not to mention, QUEEN Jill and KING Eustace. What did you all think of it?

Also, I found it VERY sad that Susan is no longer a friend to Narnia, as Peter puts it. I saw it coming...what about everyone else?

What is your favorite part so far?

My favorite part would be when the ape said,"I'm a Man: you're only a fat, stupid old Bear."
I don't think an ape can be a man! HA! HA! Though we are pretty close.

Welcome to The Last Battle...

I hope you all enjoy this last story which will wrap up the Chronicles of Narnia. It's a great read!

Attention Tolkien fans (aka Matthew)...

A unpublished manuscript from Tolkien is being published. It's a Norse mythology story (C.S. Lewis was obsessed for a long time with Norse mythology).

Name of Blog

I suggest that we rename this blog: "The Wonderings of C. S. Lewis Through the Eyes of Ms. Michelle, Matthew, & Glennellan(sp?)" What do you guys think?

Challenge for next class...

Find as many Biblical allegories as you can in this last part of the book and bring them to class on Friday.

Whoops...

Sorry, I added the same post twice you guys. Sorry for any confusion, haha!

Jill Pole

Hey everyone, what do you guys think of Jill? Do you think that she is maturing, or that perhaps she is like Eustace when he first came to Narnia (though not nealry as bad) as has a while to go?

Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie

I've been wandering around the World Wide Trash Heap and found some stuff out. Eustace Scrubb has been cast: http://www.narniaweb.com/news.asp?id=1878&dl=20066430. Dawn Treader will be released on December 10, 2010 and be directed by Michael Apted, not Andrew Adamson. Susan may make an apperence in it. And Caspian, Edmund, and Lucy are going to be the same actors (duh). And, "Production was put on hold when Disney chose not to produce the film after a budget dispute with Walden Media, who then negotiated with 20th Century Fox to replace them. Fox joined with Walden Media officially as of January 28th, 2009."

Also, there is a good chance that The Silver Chair will be made, but it is not yet in pre-production.

Just a few useful tidbits for those who are impatient and can't wait for the movies (*cough*Glenn*cough*).

Welcome to The Silver Chair

This is a fun and exciting book. I'm really surprised at this since it involves Eustace, a character I didn't particularly like in Dawn Treader.

Anyway, here's a challenge for you all: in CH 1 where do you suppose they landed? I'll give you a hint, think back to what was behind the wall of water in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. How can you tell this is where they've landed?

On to The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.....

Before reading you may find it helpful to become familiar with the different parts of a ship. Otherwise, the unending references to "poop deck" and "starboard" may become a little annoying.

To see a complete picture of the diagram above (the words got cut off the right side of the page), copy and paste this address:
http://rcbcp.wordpress.com/rockhoppers-ship/

Background information to read before you begin Prince Caspian

"In the years since the Pensvie children were in Narnia. about 1300 Narnian years have passed. Some humans have stumbled into the land of Telmar, invaded Narnia and conquered it. They have suppressed the "Old Narnians," the talking beasts and so on, and because of their fear of the sea, they have allowed a great wood to grow up along the sea. Narnia has been conquered by Caspian the Conqueror, also known as Caspian the First.

By the time our book begins, Caspian the Tenth is growing up in the court of his Uncle Miraz, a man who murdered Caspian's father, the rightful king." Douglas Wilson, Omnibus 1.

Telmar is not to be confused with Tashbaan. Tashbaan, the capital city featured in The Horse and His Boy is located to the south of Narnia and Archenland. Telmar is in what was Narnia.

Please read the post below too.

Prince Caspian begins...

Welcome to Prince Caspian, our 4th book in the Chronicle of Narnia series. So far in the series we have discovered the themes of Creation and the Fall, Redemption and Providence. With Prince Caspian we are going to explore the themes of loyalty and government.

"Everyday our loyalties are tested...Today, each of us faces issues of loyalty. Will you be obedient to your parents? Will you hide your faith? Will you crumble and betray Christ or His people?" Douglas Wilson, Omnibus 1 (I can't take credit for these words or wisdom).

Or like Paul, will you hold to your beliefs despite the cost?

As you read, pay attention to who is loyal to whom. How do their beliefs affect their actions? Take notes if you will and we'll discuss this in class.

Happy Reading!