Abstract
C. S. Lewis wrote Studies in Words "to help students understand the lexical and historical meaning of certain common words, in effect, to assist “a more accurate reading of old books.” His choice of words, with their classical, European, and British contexts, is reflective of Lewis’s vocation as a professor of English literature. However, the chosen words also contain moral meanings. While the primary purpose of Studies is to train the reader in making conceptual distinctions, it also provides a kind of training in interpretive and historical responsibility that runs parallel with Lewis’s view of the natural moral law. The twin concerns of historical accuracy and ethical judgment are always beneath the surface in Studies in Words, for Lewis is modeling for his readers an understanding of public meaning and lexical change, along with a psychology of agency based on beliefs and intentions that is worth engaging, even accepting or rejecting.5 That is, he is practicing what he recommends in The Abolition of Man—a formative education with commitment.
Recommended Citation
Mitchell, Philip Irving
(2018)
""Raised by Implication": C.S. Lewis's Studies in Words and Historical and Moral Judgment,"
Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal: Vol. 12
:
Iss.
1
, Article 2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55221/1940-5537.1151
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/cslewisjournal/vol12/iss1/2