WEBVTT 1 00:00:08.080 --> 00:00:10.759 Hello, and welcome a Mythic Mind, where we pursue wisdom 2 00:00:10.759 --> 00:00:13.640 in the path between primary and secondary worlds. I'm doctor 3 00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:20.839 Andrew Snyder, and I'm glad that you're here. Hey, there, 4 00:00:20.839 --> 00:00:23.199 and welcome back. Now, before we get going today, I 5 00:00:23.199 --> 00:00:24.719 want to make sure that you know about the other 6 00:00:24.839 --> 00:00:27.879 two Mythic Mind podcasts that are already running. First, there's 7 00:00:27.920 --> 00:00:30.879 the Mythic Mind Games podcast, which already has a couple 8 00:00:30.879 --> 00:00:33.240 episodes on Knights to the Old Republic, and in the 9 00:00:33.240 --> 00:00:37.119 most recent episode, I discuss Red Dead Redemption Tow's Arthur 10 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:40.840 Morgan in relation to Tolstoys evon Iliach from his short 11 00:00:40.840 --> 00:00:44.840 story The Death of evon Iliach. Whether you like games, literature, 12 00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:47.479 or both, I think that there's something for you there. 13 00:00:47.840 --> 00:00:49.439 And in the next episode we're going to have a 14 00:00:49.520 --> 00:00:53.039 roundtable general discussion of Red Dead Redemption two. So go 15 00:00:53.079 --> 00:00:55.560 ahead and subscribe to make sure that you don't miss it. 16 00:00:56.000 --> 00:00:57.840 I think that this is an important venture that we're doing. 17 00:00:57.880 --> 00:01:02.799 It's a fun venture as we examine how ideas are 18 00:01:02.960 --> 00:01:07.400 communicated in various ways through the art form of video games. 19 00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:10.200 I think it's sometime that's often overlooked and it's often 20 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:15.400 dismissed unnecessarily that there is. Indeed, there's a lot going 21 00:01:15.439 --> 00:01:18.280 on there, and I think that it's worth taking a 22 00:01:18.359 --> 00:01:22.319 general Christian humanities perspective into this domain and you know, 23 00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:24.840 hopefully having some kind of impact, but also just kind 24 00:01:24.879 --> 00:01:26.640 of enjoying what we're doing along the way as we 25 00:01:26.680 --> 00:01:28.840 do that. Also, you can go ahead and subscribe to 26 00:01:28.879 --> 00:01:33.200 the Mythic Mind Movies and Shows podcast as this episode releases, 27 00:01:33.239 --> 00:01:35.760 the one that you're listening to right now, there's already 28 00:01:35.840 --> 00:01:38.359 a brief introduction over there on the Mythic Mind Movies 29 00:01:38.359 --> 00:01:42.079 and Shows podcast, and on Friday, June twentieth, our discussion 30 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:45.040 of the Empire Strikes Back will drop over there, and 31 00:01:45.079 --> 00:01:46.599 so from the rest of there, we'll be doing the 32 00:01:46.640 --> 00:01:49.920 rest of the Star Wars movies over on the Mythic 33 00:01:49.959 --> 00:01:52.920 Mind Movies and Shows podcast, and then we'll just see 34 00:01:52.920 --> 00:01:55.640 where we go from there. Obviously, the Star Wars series 35 00:01:55.680 --> 00:01:58.079 will will take us a good while, so make sure 36 00:01:58.079 --> 00:02:01.439 that you are subscribed to this show, to Mythic Mind Games, 37 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:04.319 and to Mythic Mind Movies and Shows for all of 38 00:02:04.359 --> 00:02:07.719 your Mythic Mind needs. Now as I work on getting 39 00:02:07.719 --> 00:02:10.360 these new shows up and going and really focus on 40 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:13.719 getting my book done soon. Over here, I'm going to 41 00:02:13.759 --> 00:02:17.159 be posting weekly content from my Fiction and Philosophy of CS. 42 00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:19.520 Lewis course that I ran in the summer of twenty 43 00:02:19.560 --> 00:02:22.560 twenty four. Throughout we'll have some other things as well. 44 00:02:22.680 --> 00:02:24.560 We'll have some episodes from our book club on A. 45 00:02:24.639 --> 00:02:27.039 Gustin's Confessions, maybe some other book clubs along the way, 46 00:02:27.479 --> 00:02:30.840 wat some occasional interviews, and some other things. But the 47 00:02:30.960 --> 00:02:33.680 Lewis material will be the most consistent thing happening here 48 00:02:33.719 --> 00:02:37.280 for a while, starting with the first and introductory lesson, 49 00:02:37.400 --> 00:02:40.840 called It's All in Plato the World of C. S. Lewis. 50 00:02:41.520 --> 00:02:44.439 I think I may have posted this here around the 51 00:02:44.479 --> 00:02:46.439 time that the class began back in the summer at 52 00:02:46.439 --> 00:02:49.080 twenty twenty four, but I'm going to provide it again now, 53 00:02:49.120 --> 00:02:52.159 just to keep things together. You can also purchase access 54 00:02:52.199 --> 00:02:55.319 to the entire course through the Mythic Mind Patreon shop, 55 00:02:55.680 --> 00:03:00.000 which provides the video content for all lessons, recommended secondary reader, 56 00:03:00.599 --> 00:03:03.319 which includes many of the PDFs wherever I could get them, 57 00:03:03.639 --> 00:03:06.360 and recordings of our weekly live meetings which are not 58 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:09.960 going to be publicly available now. Before we get to it, 59 00:03:10.439 --> 00:03:12.599 I do want to remind you that I very much 60 00:03:12.639 --> 00:03:15.360 rely on patron support to do the various things that 61 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:17.960 I'm doing. The various things that we are doing. 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Now, one more thing before we get started. 87 00:04:30.399 --> 00:04:32.800 I want to thank all my patrons, and by name, 88 00:04:32.839 --> 00:04:35.360 I want to thank all my Tier three patrons, So 89 00:04:35.399 --> 00:04:43.040 that's Mark, Amanda, Chase, Chas, Christopher Clinton, David, don Evy, Adam, Jamie, Justin, Justin, Kyle, Paul, Roger, 90 00:04:43.160 --> 00:04:46.480 Ross Tyler, and William We are growing the ranks here 91 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:48.839 and I would love for you to join us in 92 00:04:48.920 --> 00:04:52.000 this venture the various things that we are doing as 93 00:04:52.040 --> 00:04:54.800 the Mythic Mind Fellowship. So head over to patreon dot 94 00:04:54.879 --> 00:04:58.360 com slash Mythic Mind to join today. But for now, 95 00:04:58.399 --> 00:05:01.360 let's go ahead and get into our first video in 96 00:05:01.439 --> 00:05:05.279 the C. S. Lewis series called It's All in Plato 97 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:06.800 The World of C. S. 98 00:05:06.879 --> 00:05:17.199 Lewis. 99 00:05:21.000 --> 00:05:23.720 Hello, and welcome to the philosophy and fiction of C. S. Lewis. 100 00:05:23.839 --> 00:05:26.319 I'm doctor Andrew Snyder, and I'm delighted to be leading 101 00:05:26.360 --> 00:05:28.439 you in this study over the next twelve weeks as 102 00:05:28.480 --> 00:05:32.680 we dive into really the majority of Lewis's works of fiction. 103 00:05:33.199 --> 00:05:35.560 And so whether you've been reading Lewis for a long time, 104 00:05:35.639 --> 00:05:37.839 you know, you've been reading them on repeat for decades, 105 00:05:38.519 --> 00:05:40.759 or you're just now picking them up for the very 106 00:05:40.759 --> 00:05:42.920 first time. I hope that this is going to be 107 00:05:43.000 --> 00:05:46.800 a very meaningful experience for you. And even aside from 108 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:49.120 a diversity in acquaintance with Lewis, I know there's a 109 00:05:49.160 --> 00:05:52.600 pretty big diversity in interest and backgrounds represented in the 110 00:05:52.600 --> 00:05:55.079 participants of this group. I know that some of you 111 00:05:55.920 --> 00:05:58.319 have advanced degrees in the humanities, some of you have 112 00:05:58.360 --> 00:06:01.240 probably done some academic work on Lewis. I know that 113 00:06:01.279 --> 00:06:04.079 there are many of you who just love good stories 114 00:06:04.199 --> 00:06:08.439 and you recognize that there is something more than rest 115 00:06:08.560 --> 00:06:12.399 on the surface in Lewis's writing, and you know that range. 116 00:06:12.480 --> 00:06:13.839 I mean, it kind of makes sense that you would 117 00:06:13.879 --> 00:06:16.720 have that built around Lewis, that would have this kind 118 00:06:16.759 --> 00:06:19.720 of community between those who just love stories and those 119 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:23.519 who are drawn more toward the academic This because Lewis 120 00:06:23.560 --> 00:06:28.839 himself had a wonderful career both in the academy as 121 00:06:28.839 --> 00:06:32.800 well as in more popular literature, both in his stories 122 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:35.720 as well as his more popular apologetics works, you know, 123 00:06:35.720 --> 00:06:38.639 his mere Christianity and whatnot. And so he really had 124 00:06:38.680 --> 00:06:41.439 two robust careers, to the point where you know, if 125 00:06:41.439 --> 00:06:43.720 you had never written The Chronicles of Narnia, he still 126 00:06:43.720 --> 00:06:47.600 be well respected in academia, in literary criticism, in medieval 127 00:06:47.639 --> 00:06:51.160 and Renaissance literature. And then likewise, you know, obviously he 128 00:06:51.160 --> 00:06:55.079 could have an entire career solely built off his popular works. However, 129 00:06:55.199 --> 00:06:58.480 the same time, his more popular works are very much 130 00:06:58.560 --> 00:07:03.360 rooted in deeper wells, and that is part of what 131 00:07:03.399 --> 00:07:05.519 I want to be doing in this course, and helping 132 00:07:05.560 --> 00:07:10.160 you to pass through the wardrobes that are each of 133 00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:12.720 his works in order to find the world that exist 134 00:07:12.879 --> 00:07:16.160 on the other side. So it doesn't matter if you 135 00:07:16.240 --> 00:07:20.439 are already a party to academic jargon or if the 136 00:07:20.879 --> 00:07:24.439 language of philosophy leaves you feeling a little bit confused 137 00:07:24.480 --> 00:07:28.079 and a little bit anxious. My goal is to bring 138 00:07:28.160 --> 00:07:30.399 everybody into the mix here so that way we all 139 00:07:30.439 --> 00:07:34.360 benefit and we all participate in a meaningful community that 140 00:07:34.480 --> 00:07:38.720 is doing meaningful things with these meaningful stories. In this 141 00:07:38.800 --> 00:07:42.199 introductory video, I want to do a few things. First, 142 00:07:42.240 --> 00:07:44.040 I want to tell you a little bit about my 143 00:07:44.199 --> 00:07:46.600 experience with C. S. Lewis, and then I want to 144 00:07:46.639 --> 00:07:49.000 tell you a little bit about the structure and flow 145 00:07:49.040 --> 00:07:51.360 of the course so you know exactly what to expect. 146 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:55.759 And then lastly, I want to delve into some of 147 00:07:55.839 --> 00:07:59.439 the ideas from the classical and from the medieval world 148 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:03.360 that are particularly important for Lewis, especially as we get 149 00:08:03.360 --> 00:08:06.879 ready for the Ransom trilogy, but even beyond. And so 150 00:08:06.920 --> 00:08:08.240 when we get to that part, I will let you 151 00:08:08.279 --> 00:08:09.959 know that this is going to be probably the most 152 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:14.920 philosophically heavy video that we do. But again, I think 153 00:08:14.959 --> 00:08:17.399 that this is pretty important for just setting up some 154 00:08:17.480 --> 00:08:19.439 ideas that you're going to see again and again and 155 00:08:19.480 --> 00:08:22.519 again throughout his writings. After all, if you're familiar with 156 00:08:22.600 --> 00:08:25.120 the Last Battle, which we'll be getting to at the 157 00:08:25.199 --> 00:08:28.800 end of the course, you know, Professor Kirk, who very 158 00:08:28.879 --> 00:08:34.240 much bears kinship to Lewis himself, you know, says it's 159 00:08:34.279 --> 00:08:36.320 all in Plato, and so if you're going to understand 160 00:08:36.320 --> 00:08:38.240 what's going on there, as well as in many of 161 00:08:38.240 --> 00:08:40.519 his other stories, it's gonna be helpful if you know 162 00:08:40.639 --> 00:08:43.799 a little bit about Plato. If that's where it all is. 163 00:08:45.320 --> 00:08:49.919 And so I didn't grow up reading an extensive amount 164 00:08:50.080 --> 00:08:53.639 is something that I very much lamant today. I just didn't. 165 00:08:54.360 --> 00:08:56.919 It was not common for me to voluntarily pick up 166 00:08:56.960 --> 00:09:00.879 a book as a kid. Now that being said, I 167 00:09:00.919 --> 00:09:04.679 do fondly remember reading the Narnia books with my parents 168 00:09:05.759 --> 00:09:09.679 in middle school. I eventually made it through the Hobbit, 169 00:09:10.720 --> 00:09:12.799 but even that kind of dragged on. It didn't really 170 00:09:13.440 --> 00:09:16.519 connect with me yet. I wasn't yet prepared to really 171 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:19.399 engage with fiction, and so that didn't really stick to 172 00:09:19.399 --> 00:09:22.279 any significant degree. Now, as I got a little bit 173 00:09:22.320 --> 00:09:24.879 older my youth, later teenage years, I did start to 174 00:09:24.879 --> 00:09:28.279 read a little bit more kind of nonfiction, theology works, 175 00:09:28.279 --> 00:09:30.240 that sort of thing. I was sort of the mindset 176 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:33.200 that if I'm going to make the time and energy 177 00:09:33.240 --> 00:09:36.799 investment in reading, well I need to learn something, And 178 00:09:37.039 --> 00:09:39.519 so I didn't see much value in picking up a 179 00:09:39.559 --> 00:09:42.399 novel in reading fiction. If I wanted a story, well, 180 00:09:42.399 --> 00:09:46.679 I did watch a movie. Now I cringe terribly saying that, 181 00:09:46.799 --> 00:09:53.360 because that idea is so anathema in my current evaluation 182 00:09:53.679 --> 00:09:57.279 of the significance of literature. But nonetheless, that's where I 183 00:09:57.399 --> 00:10:00.600 was so I really was not an active reader. Now. 184 00:10:00.600 --> 00:10:04.240 I studied philosophy in my undergrad at college, and then 185 00:10:04.399 --> 00:10:07.720 my experience or my relationship with literature really started to 186 00:10:07.799 --> 00:10:10.519 change in grad school when I took a course on 187 00:10:10.679 --> 00:10:13.720 Saint Augustine, and so during that course I read the 188 00:10:13.720 --> 00:10:17.360 Confession City of God, on Christian Doctrine, on the Trinity, 189 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:21.440 his anti Pallasian writings, and that was really a formative 190 00:10:21.440 --> 00:10:26.120 time for me philosophically, intellectually, but more to the task 191 00:10:26.159 --> 00:10:30.440 at hand. The Confessions in particular awakened something within me, 192 00:10:31.080 --> 00:10:36.080 something about the way Augustine laid out his life narrative, 193 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:39.360 you know, even though since it is nonfictionary, he's telling 194 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:44.919 his own intellectual rather his own spiritual biography, his own 195 00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:49.080 spiritual narrative as he understands it. Well, that very much 196 00:10:49.519 --> 00:10:54.360 mapped onto my own experience, and so that's when I 197 00:10:54.360 --> 00:10:57.159 first started to get this idea that when you're reading 198 00:10:57.240 --> 00:11:01.440 a narrative, whether it's biograph, whether it's fictional, or whether 199 00:11:01.440 --> 00:11:05.519 it's nonfictional, something about narratives play a significant role that 200 00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:09.399 more didactic texts simply are not fit to do. And 201 00:11:09.440 --> 00:11:11.879 so that's when that started to sort of sync in 202 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:16.480 that there is power in narratives. And then that really 203 00:11:16.519 --> 00:11:19.200 got deepened as I started to read and to study 204 00:11:19.600 --> 00:11:23.200 Soaring Crecguard, who became the subject for my doctoral dissertation, 205 00:11:24.039 --> 00:11:26.440 and all during this time my study of Augusted, my 206 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:29.720 study of Carecguard, I started to kind of get opened 207 00:11:29.759 --> 00:11:34.000 up to some of these figures who are doing psychological 208 00:11:34.000 --> 00:11:37.519 analysis of fairy tales and myths and you know, bringing 209 00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:39.919 out the insights that are embedded in these narratives. And 210 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:42.279 so these ideas continue to work on it continue to 211 00:11:42.320 --> 00:11:45.879 work on me until about twenty twenty one, when I 212 00:11:45.960 --> 00:11:48.759 was dealing with one of the most difficult seasons of 213 00:11:48.759 --> 00:11:50.879 my life. And those of you who've been connected with 214 00:11:50.919 --> 00:11:53.799 me for quite a while probably already knows something about 215 00:11:53.799 --> 00:11:56.559 what I'm talking about. But anyways, it was during this 216 00:11:56.639 --> 00:12:01.799 time of great suffering when I started to become more real, 217 00:12:01.960 --> 00:12:06.519 when I started to develop a greater sense of desire 218 00:12:06.720 --> 00:12:11.240 for something that can carry me through the brokenness. And 219 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:14.840 this is when I really started to get this strong 220 00:12:14.919 --> 00:12:21.519 sense of desire, it kind of broken longing for something real, 221 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:25.039 and I didn't even know exactly what I meant by that. 222 00:12:25.879 --> 00:12:28.120 I mean, on one hand, you know, it was a 223 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:32.639 time of deepening of faith. I learned what it means 224 00:12:32.720 --> 00:12:36.240 to press into the wounds of Christ with the hope 225 00:12:36.279 --> 00:12:40.639 that they could hold every faithful sorrow and would redeem 226 00:12:40.720 --> 00:12:43.679 them in the fullness of joy. And so during this 227 00:12:43.720 --> 00:12:46.639 time my faith is deepening, I'm pressing into Christ. I'm 228 00:12:46.679 --> 00:12:49.720 learning what it means to not just no truth, but 229 00:12:49.799 --> 00:12:54.759 to experience truth. And something about all of this my philosophical, 230 00:12:55.159 --> 00:13:00.519 intellectual development, my spiritual development. I was primed now to 231 00:13:00.600 --> 00:13:04.840 appreciate stories. Now, I'm very grateful that also during this time, 232 00:13:04.840 --> 00:13:07.720 I was connected with some solid people on Twitter who 233 00:13:07.720 --> 00:13:11.480 were really into Tolkien, and so I kind of just 234 00:13:11.480 --> 00:13:13.720 started to get pulled in through some of the content 235 00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:16.000 that they were putting out. A started listening to podcasts, 236 00:13:16.000 --> 00:13:18.840 despite the fact that up to this point my relationship 237 00:13:18.840 --> 00:13:21.120 with Tolkien was pretty nominal. I mean, like I said, 238 00:13:21.159 --> 00:13:23.679 I made it through The Hobbit in middle school. I 239 00:13:23.679 --> 00:13:25.960 watched the movies as a kid and enjoyed them, but 240 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:28.679 that's pretty much where it ended. Well, during this time, 241 00:13:28.960 --> 00:13:31.879 thanks again to some of these people who were producing 242 00:13:31.919 --> 00:13:35.159 some worthwhile content that was getting my attention, I finally 243 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:38.919 ordered the books and I started reading. Now, this was 244 00:13:38.960 --> 00:13:43.200 a definitive turning point in my life, not just in 245 00:13:43.240 --> 00:13:46.759 my literary pursuits, but in my life. From the very 246 00:13:46.799 --> 00:13:50.240 beginning of reading The Fellowship of the Ring, I knew 247 00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:54.360 that I was reading something real, that this wasn't made up. Now, 248 00:13:54.360 --> 00:13:56.320 obviously we don't live in a world with Hobbits and 249 00:13:56.840 --> 00:13:59.799 elves and dwarves and all this stuff, but at the 250 00:13:59.799 --> 00:14:03.799 same time, Tolkien is communicating something that is true. At 251 00:14:03.799 --> 00:14:05.799 the same time it might be different kind of truth, 252 00:14:05.840 --> 00:14:08.240 there's still nonetheless true. And you know, at the time, 253 00:14:08.240 --> 00:14:11.679 I didn't have the categories for understanding exactly what I 254 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:15.399 even meant by that, but I knew is true. And 255 00:14:15.559 --> 00:14:18.200 one thing that really pulled me in and caused me 256 00:14:18.240 --> 00:14:21.360 to particularly attach to Tolkien was the way that he 257 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:28.120 brought sorrow together with beauty and love and joy. This 258 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:31.200 is a common theme throughout his legendary and writings, this 259 00:14:31.320 --> 00:14:36.600 idea that faithful sorrow and joy are directly connected. He 260 00:14:36.639 --> 00:14:40.159 has this great line in the Silmarilion that is something like, 261 00:14:40.480 --> 00:14:43.159 if joyful is the fountain that rises in the sun, 262 00:14:43.879 --> 00:14:47.399 it's springs are in the wells of sorrow. Unfathomed at 263 00:14:47.399 --> 00:14:50.039 the foundations of the earth. That might not be exactly right, 264 00:14:50.159 --> 00:14:53.279 but that's the basic idea, the idea that the Cross 265 00:14:53.279 --> 00:14:56.200 of Christ ultimately is the world tree that brings heaven 266 00:14:56.240 --> 00:14:58.200 to earth, but it also reaches down into Hell. And 267 00:14:58.240 --> 00:15:00.440 so it's this idea that the worst that we can 268 00:15:00.480 --> 00:15:03.639 experience is brought up to the best that we could 269 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:09.279 experience when it is following this redemptive, crystological direction. And ultimately, 270 00:15:09.320 --> 00:15:11.440 I mean, that is the Christian message, but it's something 271 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:15.320 that really was It's something that I really learned how 272 00:15:15.320 --> 00:15:18.519 to experience even better through Tolkien's writings, as well as 273 00:15:18.519 --> 00:15:20.440 many other things that I could talk about as well, 274 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:22.960 but this is not a Tolkien class. And so I 275 00:15:23.039 --> 00:15:25.519 finish out Lord of the Rings, immediately go to Silmarillion 276 00:15:25.639 --> 00:15:30.159 and The Great Tales Baron and Luthian Falled, Gondolin, Children 277 00:15:30.159 --> 00:15:33.799 of Huron, as well as some other Tolkien writings, and 278 00:15:33.879 --> 00:15:35.759 then aside to switch to Lewis, and that's the natural 279 00:15:35.799 --> 00:15:39.519 next step, and I jumped right into Till We Have Faces, 280 00:15:39.879 --> 00:15:43.000 which once I got to the end, that absolutely just 281 00:15:43.759 --> 00:15:46.399 blew me up. And I just knew I needed to 282 00:15:46.679 --> 00:15:50.519 read everything that Lewis had to write, and so Rowly's 283 00:15:50.600 --> 00:15:54.120 ran through and I have not stopped running through as 284 00:15:54.200 --> 00:15:56.519 much Lewis as I can get my hands on. And 285 00:15:56.600 --> 00:15:59.720 so I say all that to say that I'm a 286 00:15:59.799 --> 00:16:02.440 pro this from kind of a unique perspective. On one hand, Yes, 287 00:16:02.519 --> 00:16:06.440 I came to Lewis later in life, relatively recently, right 288 00:16:06.480 --> 00:16:09.320 I started this, I mean started Lewis probably a couple 289 00:16:09.360 --> 00:16:13.840 of years ago. But I approach him with an academic 290 00:16:13.879 --> 00:16:17.120 background in philosophy and theology, which I think gives me 291 00:16:17.360 --> 00:16:21.679 a unique perspective of dealing with Lewis. Also, I approach 292 00:16:21.720 --> 00:16:26.159 him with a passion. Right, this is not a slow 293 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:29.480 simmering interest. This is something that I'm passionately invested in, 294 00:16:29.759 --> 00:16:32.519 and it's something that I've been filling my mind with continually, 295 00:16:32.879 --> 00:16:36.480 in text, in audio. Lewis very much lives in my 296 00:16:36.639 --> 00:16:39.600 mind at this point, and I'm delighted to be sharing 297 00:16:39.679 --> 00:16:41.720 some of that passion with you. I'm delighted to be 298 00:16:41.799 --> 00:16:45.120 sharing some of my research, some of my thoughts, some 299 00:16:45.200 --> 00:16:48.679 of the ways that I've appropriated Lewis. But this is 300 00:16:48.720 --> 00:16:52.320 not fundamentally about me. This is about Lewis. And I 301 00:16:52.360 --> 00:16:55.039 hope that in this study that you, if you don't 302 00:16:55.080 --> 00:16:57.279 already have it, that you will develop a passion for 303 00:16:57.320 --> 00:16:59.159 his writing. Not in the sense that you have to 304 00:16:59.200 --> 00:17:01.320 agree with everything he has to say, but I mean 305 00:17:01.320 --> 00:17:03.000 you should probably agree with most of what he has 306 00:17:03.039 --> 00:17:06.720 to say. And that's because, you know, he's often understood 307 00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:10.480 as being a stage of swords, a kind of profit 308 00:17:10.920 --> 00:17:15.960 in that he had penetrating insights into his times in 309 00:17:16.319 --> 00:17:19.599 ways that have really come to even greater fulfillment in 310 00:17:19.720 --> 00:17:23.160 our time. And the reason why he had such insight 311 00:17:23.359 --> 00:17:27.279 is not simply because he was a naturally remarkable man, 312 00:17:27.279 --> 00:17:30.039 although I'm sure he was that. But one reason why 313 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:32.799 he was able to have such brilliant insights, why he 314 00:17:32.839 --> 00:17:35.559 had such a keen grasp on kind of what is 315 00:17:35.839 --> 00:17:38.480 going on in the world of ideas, in the world 316 00:17:38.519 --> 00:17:41.839 of human experience, is because he was deeply rooted in 317 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:46.000 another time. C. S. Lowist was very much a medieval 318 00:17:46.039 --> 00:17:49.319 man in the way that he thought. Now that doesn't 319 00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:53.880 mean that, you know, the medieval mind is full only 320 00:17:53.960 --> 00:17:56.000 of wisdom, but what it does mean is is full 321 00:17:56.039 --> 00:17:58.720 of a different kind of wisdom, for certain, than the 322 00:17:58.839 --> 00:18:01.200 kind of wisdom you would get from a modern man. 323 00:18:01.680 --> 00:18:05.960 Ciez Lewis talks about this in his introduction to athanasiuses 324 00:18:06.359 --> 00:18:10.480 on the incarnation. When Lewis talks about the value of 325 00:18:10.480 --> 00:18:13.720 reading old books, it's not because books are good just 326 00:18:13.759 --> 00:18:17.680 because they're old. Old books create the mistakes that were 327 00:18:18.680 --> 00:18:21.880 common during the time that they were made. However, those 328 00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:23.640 mistakes are going to be different than the mistakes that 329 00:18:23.680 --> 00:18:26.920 we make today. Two heads are better than one, and 330 00:18:26.960 --> 00:18:30.759 so if we can use the strengths of the past 331 00:18:31.079 --> 00:18:34.720 to correct the weaknesses of today, well, also again not 332 00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:37.599 missing the mistakes of the past, well would that not 333 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:41.240 be better? And so Lewis stands apart as somebody who's 334 00:18:41.279 --> 00:18:46.039 able to operate under the auspices of medieval wisdom to 335 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:49.079 understand what's going on in the modern era, to find 336 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:52.480 our blind spots, and to give us warnings about some 337 00:18:52.519 --> 00:18:56.400 of the trajectories that we are on. Okay, so now 338 00:18:56.480 --> 00:18:59.319 let's talk a little bit about the structure and flow 339 00:18:59.400 --> 00:19:02.119 of this study so you know exactly what to expect. Well, 340 00:19:02.119 --> 00:19:04.960 each week is going to have typically a couple of videos. 341 00:19:05.400 --> 00:19:09.039 The first one will be a short introductory video that 342 00:19:09.759 --> 00:19:11.720 It's going to be short because I don't want to 343 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:13.480 give any spoilers for those of you who are reading 344 00:19:13.519 --> 00:19:15.759 the stories for the first time, nor do I want 345 00:19:15.799 --> 00:19:19.880 to put too many preconceived notions in your mind as 346 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:22.039 you encounter these stories, because I want for you to 347 00:19:22.039 --> 00:19:26.039 be able to explore these strange worlds as the narrative develops. 348 00:19:26.079 --> 00:19:28.599 I think that's important. And so the initial video is 349 00:19:28.680 --> 00:19:32.839 really just going to get at some major themes. I'm 350 00:19:32.839 --> 00:19:35.759 going to tell you what some companion text might be. 351 00:19:36.160 --> 00:19:39.240 I'm going to give you some basic ideas that you 352 00:19:39.279 --> 00:19:41.240 should look out for, but they're not going to be 353 00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:43.799 very comprehensive, because again I don't want to ruin anything 354 00:19:43.839 --> 00:19:45.680 for you. And then at the end of the week, 355 00:19:45.720 --> 00:19:47.440 there will be a longer video in which we go 356 00:19:47.839 --> 00:19:51.200 back and do a deeper analysis, pointing out some of 357 00:19:51.200 --> 00:19:53.200 the ideas that are play, some of the implications, as 358 00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:57.640 ideas have some connections to other literature and that sort 359 00:19:57.640 --> 00:20:00.640 of thing. Now, I should say that in this course 360 00:20:00.680 --> 00:20:03.079 we are doing a lot. We're covering a lot of 361 00:20:03.119 --> 00:20:06.240 ground in twelve weeks, and so what I can't do 362 00:20:06.599 --> 00:20:09.920 a chapter by chapter analysis. I can't look at every 363 00:20:09.960 --> 00:20:12.559 single detail because well, if we're going to do that, 364 00:20:12.559 --> 00:20:14.920 then any one of these books could easily take well 365 00:20:15.000 --> 00:20:18.319 more than twelve weeks. And so as far as the 366 00:20:18.400 --> 00:20:20.759 pre recorded videos, go, I'm really going to focus on 367 00:20:20.839 --> 00:20:23.240 big picture and looking at some of the details as 368 00:20:23.240 --> 00:20:25.680 they point out some of these big pictures or you know, 369 00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:28.000 a few of these major angles that we should look 370 00:20:28.000 --> 00:20:30.279 at that I think will play an important role in 371 00:20:30.359 --> 00:20:33.640 helping us to get more significance, more substance out of 372 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:36.839 the text that will help us go further up and 373 00:20:36.880 --> 00:20:40.359 further in, which obviously is a phrase that many of 374 00:20:40.400 --> 00:20:46.039 you will recognize. Now in our ongoing discord chat, that's 375 00:20:46.079 --> 00:20:49.319 when we can really get into more of the details, 376 00:20:49.359 --> 00:20:51.839 more of the particular things that interest you, questions that 377 00:20:51.839 --> 00:20:54.720 you have, things that you see as particularly significant on 378 00:20:54.880 --> 00:20:58.559 the smaller scale level. And so you can find the 379 00:20:58.599 --> 00:21:03.079 link to the discord in the first module, and so 380 00:21:03.160 --> 00:21:05.680 follow that link over to the Mythic Mind discord server 381 00:21:05.839 --> 00:21:07.960 that's going to land you in the general chat over there. 382 00:21:08.119 --> 00:21:11.480 Once you get there, just post something about who you 383 00:21:11.519 --> 00:21:12.799 are and that you're part of the course, and then 384 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:14.720 I'll make sure that you get permissions to join the 385 00:21:14.759 --> 00:21:19.680 course channel. Now, in that course channel, the discord channel, 386 00:21:20.039 --> 00:21:22.440 that's when you can said get into the various things 387 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:24.480 that interest you. You can ask questions, you can have 388 00:21:24.519 --> 00:21:27.559 free flowing conversation with the other participants in the course. 389 00:21:28.839 --> 00:21:32.200 I strongly encourage you to participate in this. I think 390 00:21:32.240 --> 00:21:34.119 that this is going to be in a very important 391 00:21:34.720 --> 00:21:38.960 component of this of this experience that we're doing here together. 392 00:21:39.359 --> 00:21:41.559 It's an important way to build some community, and it's 393 00:21:41.559 --> 00:21:44.920 an important way to get more out of it, to 394 00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:46.680 kind of choose your own adventure and to focus on 395 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:50.400 the things that are most important to you. And also, 396 00:21:51.039 --> 00:21:54.119 the discord conversation will play an important role in helping 397 00:21:54.160 --> 00:21:56.480 me to shape the live conversations that we're going to 398 00:21:56.519 --> 00:21:58.319 have on a weekly basis for those of you who 399 00:21:58.319 --> 00:22:02.359 are able to join, because I don't want the live 400 00:22:02.400 --> 00:22:05.720 conversations to just be more of me talking about the 401 00:22:05.720 --> 00:22:08.519