C. S. Lewis
November 29, 1898 –November 22, 1963
Writer, Poet, University teacher, Novelist, Philosopher, Medievalist
Lived 64 years
- Born in
- Belfast
- Passed away in
- Oxford
Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British author, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalene College, Cambridge (1954–1963). He is best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, but he is also noted for his other works of fiction, such as The Screwtape Letters and The Space Trilogy, and for his non-fiction Christian apologetics, including Mere Christianity, Miracles and The Problem of Pain.
Lewis was a close friend of J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings. Both men served on the English faculty at the University of Oxford and were active in the informal Oxford literary group known as the Inklings. According to Lewis's 1955 memoir Surprised by Joy, he was baptized in the Church of Ireland but fell away from his faith during adolescence. Lewis returned to Anglicanism at the age of 32, owing to the influence of Tolkien and other friends, and he became an "ordinary layman of the Church of England". Lewis's faith profoundly affected his work, and his wartime radio broadcasts on the subject of Christianity brought him wide acclaim.
Lewis wrote more than 30 books which have been translated into over 30 languages and have sold millions of copies. The seven books that make up The Chronicles of Narnia have sold the most and have been popularized on stage, television, radio and cinema. His philosophical writings are widely cited by Christian scholars from many denominations.
In 1956 Lewis married the American writer Joy Davidman; she died of cancer four years later at the age of 45. Lewis died on 22 November 1963 of kidney failure, at age 64. In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of his death, Lewis was honoured with a memorial in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey.
Notable works: The Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Space Trilogy, Till We Have Faces, Surprised by Joy, Fern-seed and elephants and other essays on Christianity Awards: honorary doctorate at the Laval University, Fellow of the British Academy, Sir Israel Gollancz Prize, Carnegie Medal, doctor honoris causa from the University of Dijon, doctor honoris causa from the University of Lyon Education: University College, Oxford, Campbell College, Malvern College, Wynyard School
Source: Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._S._Lewis