Joy's Influence on C.S. Lewis in the Shadowlands Film - Kate Bennett

 When the lights came up in our classroom after we’d finished the Shadowlands film, I could tell I wasn’t the only one affected by its emotional intensity. C.S. Lewis’ relationship with Joy seemed to happen suddenly, and all at once. From the beginning, there was no question of the connection the two shared. Lewis, who constantly picks intellectual fights with his students and begs to have his philosophical boundaries challenged, had finally met his match in Joy. She always seemed to have the perfect rebuttal to his arguments, as if she knew what he was going to say before he said it. Joy’s passing was heartbreaking, but the film portrayed the couple’s preparation for it beautifully. My favorite theme throughout this course has been the notion that humans have a natural desire to hold communion with another. Lewis’ relationship with Joy became an excellent representation of the wonders of communion, and this undeniably bled into his later works. 

    We’ve noted that Lewis already knew Joy by the time he wrote Till We Have Faces. I’ve kept this in mind as I’ve read the novel and I can definitely notice the difference in his portrayal of female characters compared to works prior to meeting Joy. For one, I think Lewis does a masterful job of depicting the deep, one-of-a-kind love that comes from a sisterly connection. While undoubtedly intense, Orual and Psyche’s relationship is, in a way, innocent and pure. Considering the book’s narration is performed by Orual’s character, Lewis also did a great job of articulating the constant inner dialogue of a female character. I found the line, “I wanted to be a wife so that I could have been her real mother. I wanted to be a boy so that she could be in love with me. I wanted her to be my full sister instead of my half sister. I wanted her to be a slave so that I could set her free and make her rich” (26). Ultimately, Joy’s influence on Lewis’ life, although early at this point, is incredibly apparent. I enjoy the fact that I am able to compare this influence across several works regarding Lewis, like the Shadowlands film and the novel Till We Have Faces itself. 

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