The Abolition of Man & The Great Divorce

I had to read certain passages slowly and more than once as some of the prose was unfamiliar to me and the writer C.S.Lewis is such a master with language but I really enjoyed this learning experience.I intend to read this 90 page book again.

Professor Lewis debates the recurring notions that sentience, free will, and spontaneity are organic constructs; that virtue is entirely arbitrary; and that existence is without cause or purpose. He argues that accepting such notions reduces men to nothing more than mindless sheep ruled by equally mindless wolves. His debate is as relevant today as it was 70 years ago when he wrote this book. And it is as relevant as when it was debated by Socrates, Confucius, and Hammurabi.

Professor Lewis pointed his arguments at the growing totalitarianism in Europe in the early 20th century, but he made a prescient warning to future generations in democratic societies that this philosophy leads to the same end regardless of the structure of the society that adopts it.

This is for the highly intellectually gifted person. I enjoyed the challenge, but, I must confess I will need to read several times to fully understand. Probably over 90 per cent will not fully comprehend.

This little book is wonderful on its subject. But what terrified me as I read it was how crazy it is to think of anyone now writing something this literate. We have already become what Lewis calls "men without chests." Are we now so far from the Tao as to be irredeemable?

Sharp analyses of todays situation written seventy years or so ago. On how the new morality bases its self on 'reason' or 'instinct' and how it will necessarily fail. Lewis argues in favour of tradition. He sums up the universal values of traditional moral in what he calls the Tao. All religions have contributed very similar moral rules to this Tao. With one exception. Lewis does not mention islam. Is that coincidence or choice? My guess is for the latter. Lewis choose not te mention islam because there is no universal moral law to be found in islam, as islam discriminates strongly against non-muslims who are seen as Untermenschen. So to speak.

This book effectively describes the trend in modern society to teach people what to think rather than how to think. Increasingly in first world countries, people are becoming progressively more spineless because they have no idea of what is real intellectual competence. As a country (I live in the USA) we are satisfied to let someone else do the real thinking for us, and relegate ourselves to merely seeking the next pleasure or familiar security--disgusting! This book begins to describe how this process originates in grade-school and continues more aggressively throughout our "education" process and beyond. It will challenge you to redefine your personal perspective. It will challenge you not to be a mindless automaton.

Thorough discussion of the difficulties and problems of viewing man as a mere product of nature and not as a unique creation who finds himself only through obedience to the Tao, the term Lewis uses for natural law. Modern "conditioners" are a sad part of modern civilization, from Hitler to Stalin ,Mao Zedong, Pol Pot and more, and even elements of democratic societies who seek to reform man while treating humans as objects, missing the joy and spontaneity only found when man learns to find liberation through obedience to the Tao but not to the temporal rulers who use Nature to control men and treat them as objects, leading to the abolition of man himself.

Lewis succinctly states in this small book a thesis that is all too relevant in today's post-modern society. He clearly argues his point and is more than persuasive, yet retains a eloquent and readable style. He captures the problem of post-modernistic ideals while holding them up against more classical views of morality, virtue, and objective standard. This is a captivating read, and a classic in its genre - still a must-read to this day.