Collected Letters Volume Three: Narnia, Cambridge and Joy 1950–1963. Walter Hooper

but is now better. I don’t foresee many occasions for copies of Le Lion,¹³⁸ but if you will kindly send me 2, they might come in useful. The translator deserves to be congratulated of course—French is a v. powerful language—the children become perfect little Frenchmen, but that is all to the good. What pleased and surprised me is the passage at the end where I made them talk like characters in Malory, and he has really got some of the quality of the French 13th century prose romances: grande honte en aurions¹³⁹– is exactly right.

May I have 10 copies of M.C.?¹⁴⁰ I had my first bathe at Parsons’ Pleasure yesterday: 68°.¹⁴¹

      Yours

      C. S. Lewis

      

       TO WAYLAND HILTON YOUNG (W):

      [Magdalen College]

      1/7/52

      Dear Hilton Young,

(Shall we drop the honorifics on both sides?) Thanks very much for two copies of the C.J.¹⁴² As I said before, it is almost impossible to make an objective judgement on criticism of oneself, especially when it does one so very proud. But I suspect that your essay is a good one. Certainly the alterations have been made with great skill–invisible mending.

I’m glad Driver played up. I suppose he told you, as he told me, that Judith is already a novel.¹⁴³ I still hope that as you poke about among the realien they will blaze up and a new story will arise relegating Judith to the background.

What do you think of Hesse’s Glasperlenspiel, which I’ve just read in a v. bad translation?¹⁴⁴ Heavy, humourless. But has one merit wh. sets it apart from all other stories about the future. Unobtrusively, without any new machines or new forms of government, it really does give you the illusion of a society in which the general quality of thought is different from ours. I don’t think Wells or Aldous Huxley did that: nor Orwell, except in the epilogue on Newspeak.¹⁴⁵

      All the best, and many thanks.

      Yours

      C. S. Lewis

      

       TO VERA GEBBERT (W): TS

      REF.52/103.

      Magdalen College,

      Oxford. 3rd July 1952.

      Dear Mrs. Gebbert,

We both enjoyed your very interesting letters, and are glad to know that you are so happy. Pity about the antelopes, but inevitable. And we look forward greedily to the promised food parcel. Sun Valley Lodge looks a lovely place, and I hope that I may have the good fortune to see it some day. Here is the translation of the Latin:–Many things will be re-born which have now fallen (into disfavour), and many will fall (into disfavour) which are now fashionable.¹⁴⁶

      With all best wishes to you both,

      yours sincerely,

      C. S. Lewis

      Mere Christianity: A Revised and Amplified Edition, with a New Introduction of the Three Books, ‘Broadcast Talks’, ‘Christian Behaviour’ and ‘Beyond Personality’ was published by Geoffrey Bles of London on 7 July 1952.

       TO MARG-RIETTE MONTGOMERY (W): TS

      REF.52/248.

      Magdalen College,

      Oxford. 8th July 1952.

      Dear Miss Montgomery,

Of course they¹⁴⁷ are right in making the Resurrection a cosmic event: what I am not so sure is whether they really regard Christ as the only-begotten Son of the only God.

      Yours sincerely,

      C. S. Lewis

      

       TO DON GIOVANNI CALABRIA (V):

      e Coll. Stae Mariae Magdalenae

      Jul. XIV. MCMLII

      Gratias ago, dilectissime pater, et pro opusculis Congregationis vestrae et pro hac epistolâ Jul vii datâ. Hora nostra, ut dicis, gravis est: utrum gravis ‘prae omnibus humanae historiae’ nescio. Sed semper malum quod proximum et gravissimum videtur esse; est enim, ut oculis, sic cordibus, sua ‘perspettiva’. Si tamen nostra tempestas rê verá pessima est, si rê vera Dies Illa nunc imminet, quid restât nisi ut gaudeamus quia redemptio nostra iam proprior est et dicamus cum Sancto Joanne ‘Amen; cito venias, domine Iesu.’ Interim sola securitas est ut Dies nos inveniat laborantes quemque in suo officio et praecipue (dissensionibus relictis) illud supremum mandatum ut invicem diligamus implentes. Oremus semper pro invicem. Vale: et sit tecum et mecum pax illa quam nemo potest auferre.

      C. S. Lewis

      *

      from the College of St Mary Magdalen

      July 14th 1952

      Thank you, dearest Father, both for the tracts of your Congregation and for your letter dated July 7th.

The times we live in are, as you say, grave: whether ‘graver than all others in history’ I do not know. But the evil that is closest always seems to be the most serious: for as with the eye so with the heart, it is a matter of one’s own perspective. However, if our times are indeed the worst, if That Day¹⁴⁸ is indeed now approaching, what remains but that we should rejoice because our redemption is now nearer and say with St John: ‘Amen; come quickly, Lord Jesus.’¹⁴⁹

Meanwhile our only security is that The Day may find us working each one in his own station and especially (giving up dissensions) fulfilling that supreme command that we love one another.¹⁵⁰

      Let us ever pray for each other.

Farewell: and may there abide with you and me that peace which no one can take from us.¹⁵¹

      C. S. Lewis

      

       TO RHONA BODLE (BOD): TS

      REF.52/294.

      Magdalen College,

      Oxford. 16th July 1952.

      Dear Miss Bodle,

Thanks for what you tell me.¹⁵² I will indeed. All good wishes to yourself. In great haste,

      Yours sincerely,

      C. S. Lewis

      

       TO WILLIAM BORST (P):

      Magdalen College,

      Oxford. July 21st 52

      Dear