—William O’Flaherty, author of The Misquotable C. S. Lewis and C. S. Lewis Goes to Hell and host of the podcast All About Jack
Steven A. Beebe
C. S. Lewis and the
Craft of Communication
Foreword by Jerry Root
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Beebe, Steven A., author.
Title: C. S. Lewis and the craft of communication / Steven A. Beebe.
Description: New York: Peter Lang, 2020.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019045758 (print) | LCCN 2019045759 (ebook)
ISBN 978-1-4331-7233-5 (hardback: alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-4331-7234-2 (paperback: alk. paper) | ISBN 978-1-4331-7235-9 (ebook pdf)
ISBN 978-1-4331-7236-6 (epub) | ISBN 978-1-4331-7237-3 (mobi)
Subjects: LCSH: Lewis, C. S. (Clive Staples),
1898–1963—Knowledge—Communication. | Communication. | Written
communication. | Authorship. | Interpersonal communication.
Classification: LCC PR6023.E926 Z5856 2020 (print) |
LCC PR6023.E926 (ebook) | DDC 823/.912—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019045758 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019045759 DOI 10.3726/b15950
Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.
Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the “Deutsche
Nationalbibliografie”; detailed bibliographic data are available
on the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de/.
© 2020 Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York
29 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, NY 10006
All rights reserved.
Reprint or reproduction, even partially, in all forms such as microfilm,
xerography, microfiche, microcard, and offset strictly prohibited.
About the author
Steven A. Beebe (Ph.D., University of Missouri-Columbia) is Regents’ and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Communication Studies at Texas State University. He is an internationally recognized communication educator and prolific author and co-author of best-selling communication books used at universities throughout the world. He served as president of the National Communication Association and was named Outstanding Communication Professor in America by the National Speaker’s Association.
About the book
C. S. Lewis, based on the popularity of his books and essays, is one of the best communicators of the twentieth century. C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication uses Lewis’s own words to unlock the secrets that explain Lewis’s success as a communicator so that you, too, can communicate like C. S. Lewis.
“I envy Dr. Beebe because he has learned from C. S. Lewis what it is like to be able to say exactly what he means. But I'm getting beyond the envy, thanks to Dr. Beebe’s C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication. He wants us to be as clear in what we say, as in what we hear. And his book provides us with a framework and advice for how to do this well.”
—Walter Hooper, former secretary to C. S. Lewis, Literary Advisor of the C. S. Lewis Estate, and author of C. S. Lewis: A Companion and Guide
“When Beebe turns his attention to C. S. Lewis, the combination is unbeatable: Lewis the master communicator, and Beebe the master teacher.”
—Jerry Root, co-author of The Quotable C. S. Lewis
“…a thoughtful, insightful, delightful book that informs, instructs and illuminates.”
—Michael Ward, Senior Research Fellow, University of Oxford, co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to C. S. Lewis and author of Planet Narnia
“This important book offers clear and surprisingly practical insight into a truly remarkable communicator.…I look forward to reading it again and again.”
—Diana Pavlac Glyer, author of The Company They Keep: C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien as Writers in Community
“Here indeed we find a great treasure…Beebe has brilliantly answered a question readers have long felt but perhaps never formed: How did Lewis communicate so clearly?”
—Andrew Lazo, co-editor of Mere Christians: Inspiring Stories of Encounters with C. S. Lewis
“This is a must-read for all who study the craft of communication.”
—Will Vaus, author of Mere Theology: A Guide to the Thought of C. S. Lewis
This eBook can be cited
This edition of the eBook can be cited. To enable this we have marked the start and end of a page. In cases where a word straddles a page break, the marker is placed inside the word at exactly the same position as in the physical book. This means that occasionally a word might be bifurcated by this marker.
To my family, for their love and encouragement, and to C. S. Lewis, for teaching me lessons about communication and The Source of all Joy.
Contents
1 The Case for C. S. Lewis as Master Communicator
HI TEA: A Preview of Lewis’s Communication Lessons
2 The Making of a Master Communicator
His Family: Flora, Albert, and Warnie
The Education of a Master Communicator
Arthur Greeves: First Friend and Intimate Confidant