That Hideous Strength

I struggled with this book, I have to admit, making two separate attempts to complete it, but ultimately I did enjoy it.

The Cosmic Trilogy, of which this is the final part, opened my eyes to Lewis's phenomenal creative and brilliant literary talent. There is so much more to Lewis than the Narnia chronicles. Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra relate the science fiction space travel story, to other worlds, of Ransom, the central character. In That Hideous Strength, the story is based on Earth, with Mark Studdock playing the wayward human and N.I.C.E. the organisation trying to bring the downfall of mankind. Ransom plays a smaller part, together with Mark's wife Jane, both of whom try and show the righteous way. The analogy with Adam and Eve and the serpent is clear.

Like most of Lewis's books, there are lots of Christian analogies throughout, which you can take or leave as you please. They certainly do not detract from a great story.

Lewis and Tolkien went to college together, and both were members of the Inklings literary group. Possibly Tolkien is more in the public spotlight these days, however, the more you read Lewis, the more you just get blown away by his writing.

I recommend reading the trilogy and persevering. Reading That Hideous Strength on its own may be possible, but would make a lot more sense if the 2 others are read first.

More than you might think (0/0 people found this helpful)

This book is curious, at the very least because at the time it was published there was a mild fuss over the possibility that Lewis was referring to parallel organizations and individuals quite close to hand. I am aware of at least two communities of Christians who bear an astonishing resemblance to those in the book; and this intrigues me greatly. Were those communities real distant cousins of St Annes?

...and whether or not that is true, his ability to puts words and music to some of the most vexing characters you may ever meet is extraordinary. I never get tired, for instance, of Lewis's depiction of Wither, and Frost is even more strange; both are characteristically mundane and quite terrifying. Close to central to the book' focus is the idea that any individual can unwisely decouple themselves from the warmth and happiness that accompanies the human experience in exchange for knowledge and power. In this case, obviously, you would say "forbidden knowledge and power", but by examining this in extremis, we can read this both as entertainment, and as admonition for lesser and more common problems in our own cosmos.

Well, to more detail. Lewis's story here is/was tremendously ahead of it's time - dreams of a hideous experiment, ostensibly concerning rehabilitation engineering (which is the proper term) whose consequences spill out far further into destructive metaphysics and politics, would work well in the 21st century in the hands of any of the contemporary directors (though I'm not sure they would interpret the main content of the book so very well), but regardless, there is here an acute pace and imminent feeling of decision and action that overbears nicely into the current frame; it's not really suitable for children but teenagers will lap it up.

Arthur? Merlin? Eldils? Words whispered to a pet bear? ...and that is another piece of marvellous descriptive prose; that part where Mr Bultitude's world view and whose pre-Adamite furry mind shows him to be quite a formidable character... The happiest of endings, where Mr Bultitude the bear finds a mate, everyone finds each other, and the angels dance?

Take your pick. I have no idea if Lewis honestly meant these things by allegory or something more literal; he always seems to write far beyond anything I ever experienced (or at least, so I think most of the time) but there are strange things in the world to be sure. And we are there, embedded into that world; as evidence for that, gaze into a mirror some time. We are all stranger than we know.

Great (1/1 people found this helpful)

This is the third and final book in C.S. Lewis's amazing Space Trilogy. This book was written as a sequel to the immensely popular Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra but Lewis also wrote it so that the story can stand on its own. So if you haven't read the first, you can start here.

That Hideous Strength, unlike the first 2 books in this series, where Ransom leaves earth and fights evil in space and on other planets, the battle in this book takes place on earth.

Ransom must lead a group of faithful believers against National Institute for Coordinated Experiments or N.I.C.E., an organization that believes that Science can solve all of humanity's problems. He must battle the people in this organization, super aliens trying to invade and control earth and use its population against other planets and against God.

On top of all of that, Merlin has arisen from his long sleep and has arisen in England's time of greatest need. But the question is, who will find him first - N.I.C.E. or Ransom and his team? The fate of the world, and possibly the universe, rests on this question.

Lewis called this story an adult's fairy-tale. It is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy, and a book that will keep your attention as you raptly turn the pages to find out where Lewis will lead you.

Great (1/1 people found this helpful)

Best characters, weakest plot (4/5 people found this helpful)

Serials can be subject to the law of diminishing returns, and that is certainly true to an extent here. That extent is the plot, which remains resolutely silly in order to accomodate some (admittedly very valid) points about expediency and power against morality and indeed humanity. What makes this book compelling is the magnificent characterisation of the married couple Mark and Jane Studdock, taking opposite sides in a particularly bitter struggle between the Hideous Strength and its opponents, and who take up whole chapters describing struggles within themselves and their uncertainty about their relationship. Not for those who like light reading, but for purists and fans of the other two books who want to know the ending, this is definitely worth reading.

That Hideous Strength

C. S. Lewis

Reader Reviews:

Part 3 of the trilogy (0/0 people found this helpful)

More than you might think (0/0 people found this helpful)

Great (1/1 people found this helpful)

Great (1/1 people found this helpful)

Best characters, weakest plot (4/5 people found this helpful)

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