|
A Chronological Introduction to the Background of Lewis’ The Great Divorce 1929, Trinity Term (Spring) at Oxford, Lewis converts to Theism. He subsequently writes two poems containing themes present in The Great Divorce (GD): “Divine Justice,” and “Nearly They Stood.” These are found in his book The Pilgrim’s Regress in the chapters entitled “Limbo” and “The Black Hole.” The latter poem is especially interesting in that it depicts the significance of our choices and their effect on our eternal destiny. Lewis states the purpose of GD on page 71 of the 2001 Harper Collins edition (all further references in GD will be to this edition): “What concerns you is the nature of the choice itself: and that ye can watch them making.” 1931, Aug. – Sept. Lewis purchases the works of Jeremy Taylor. In them, Taylor writes, “The church of Rome amongst other strange opinions hath inserted this one into her public offices; that the perishing souls in hell may have sometimes remission and refreshment, like the fits of an intermitting fever....” The Latin term for this remission is refrigerium. Taylor also mentions a fourth-century poet, named Prudentius Aurelius Clemens, who wrote of holidays from punishments in Hell. Lewis has the character George MacDonald in GD refer to this refrigerium (p. 67f). 28 September, 1931, Lewis converts to Christianity on the way to the zoo with Warnie. 16 April, 1933, Warnie writes in his diary, “J has a new idea for a religious work, based on the opinion of some of the Fathers, that while punishment for the damned is eternal, it is intermittent: he proposes to do sort of an infernal day excursion to Paradise. I shall be very interested to see how he handles it.” (quoted on p. 280, of Hooper’s C.S. Lewis: A Companion & Guide). 28 January, 1940, Lewis writes to Warnie: “I begin to suspect that the world is divided not only into the happy and the unhappy, but into those who like happiness and those who, odd as it seems, really don’t.” (Hooper, p. 281). See GD, p. 71. October, 1940. In The Problem of Pain, Lewis refers to the “loss of the Other” and “solid figures” in his chapter on Hell. His whole development of the concept of true humanity and Reality found in this chapter permeate the GD. Spring, 1944. Lewis begins writing the GD and reading excerpts to the Inklings. Tolkien writes to his son, 13 April, 1444, “I did not think so well of the concluding chapter of C.S.L.’s new moral allegory or ‘vision,” based on the medieval fancy of the Refrigerium, by which the lost souls have an occasional holiday in Paradise.” Note: Lewis seems to have written the conclusion early. 14 May: “...I saw C. S. L. from 10:45 to 12:30 this morning: heard 2 chapters of his ‘Who Goes Home?’- a new allegory on Heaven and Hell....” 31 May: “The chief entertainment was provided by a chapter of Warnie Lewis’ book ... and some excerpts from C.S.L.’s ‘Who Goes Home?’ – a book on Hell, which I suggested should have been called rather ‘Hugo’s Home’.” Tolkien here makes a joke at the expense of their friend Hugo Dyson. ‘Who goes home?’ was the cry of the policeman on duty in Parliament just before he closed up the doors for the evening. Summer, 1944, GD is finished. 10 Nov., 1944 – 14 April, 1945, the GD is published as 15 instalments in The Guardian. It was finally published in book form, 14 January, 1946. |