Customer Reviews

Mere Humanity: G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and J. R. R. Tolkien on the Human Condition

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In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lucy Pevensie found an interesting book on her friend's bookshelf titled Is Man a Myth? The subject matter makes sense from a world in which no human had been for quite some time. But even in our world questions about what it means to be human are at best unresolved by our culture. In Mere Humanity, Donald T. Williams explores humanity in the work of G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkien.

Mere Humanity consists of an introduction, six chapters, concluding thoughts, and two appendices. In between each of these are one-page poetic "interludes" that reflect on various aspects of humanity. Over the six chapters, Dr. Williams analyzes The Everlasting Man by G.K. Chesterton, "On Faerie Stories" and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien, and The Abolition of Man, The Space Trilogy, and The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.

Dr. Williams did an excellent job of analyzing these popular works in light of contemporary philosophies and, most importantly, biblical revelation. He showed how Chesterton, Tolkien, and Lewis each dealt with contrary ideologies in their own ways in order to point their readers to the biblical understanding of what it means to be human. My favorite chapter was "The Abolition of Talking Beasts," as it shows what peril our culture is in by losing its human identity.

It is often said that we stand on the shoulders of giants. Chesterton, Lewis, and Tolkien were three Christian giants who have given people a better perspective of the world. In Mere Humanity, Dr. Williams brings their collective perspectives together to form an insightful and urgent critique of the contemporary popular view of humanity.

Really, I can hardly believe that this book only has one review, so far, not including my own. This is simply a fantastic book on every level. It's very well written and, for non-fiction, quite a page turner. I could hardly put it down. Also, Wiliams really knows his subject, which is the Christian view of humanity through the works of G. K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien as opposed to materialistic reductionism in all it's manifestations. Mr. Williams gives a very intelligent overview and analysis of a variety of works of the subject authors and shows, very eloquently, how they are an intelligent and thorough refutation of modern and (prophetically) post-modern reductionistic thinking.

Unlike the first reviewer, whose review I enjoyed, I have no favorite chapters. I think they are all very well written and enlightening. I recommend this book to literally everyone who cares about the direction humanity is headed and especially to Jews and Christians who want to understand how the worldview of their faith is the correct one insofar as giving dignity, freedom and inalienable rights to human beings and how modern and post-modern ideology is seriously threatening nearly every value that we believe to be indispensable. Five well deserved stars!

Mere Humanity is a study of whether man, a being especially endowed by God to be more than an animal, is a myth. The question is prompted by contemporary concepts, such as materialism, naturalism, and Freudianism, which try to debunk the myth that man is anything but an animal. Williams answers by observing selected works of the three authors: G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkien.

The three authors have in common their Christianity and their use of story. For Chesterton and Tolkien the fact that man creates stories proves he is different from the animals, above the beasts; they are endowed with reason, as stated in Chesterton's Everlasting Man and Tolkien's essay, "On Faery Stories." Lewis's belief in the elevation of man is evident in both his Space trilogy and the series Chronicles of Narnia, in which man is related to the animals by their Maker, but made to rise above animal nature, though some will give into it by choice. (Note, in the Chronicles man is meant to rule the land and the creatures, but not meant to exploit them. Given with dominion is responsibility.) Lewis incorporates the medieval/Renaissance view that man is higher than the beasts and just below the angels, such as expressed in Pico Mirandola's On the Dignity of Man. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, and The Simarillion illustrate a special place for man also. He is mortal, moral, and ever hopeful.

Williams applies these views to contemporary philosophies, especially those influencing the academic world. An appendix addresses postmodernism, which is defined as a disbelief in any objective truth, largely as a result of disillusionment with modernism earlier in the twentieth century, which promised absolute objective truth. Both reject Christianity because both consider it to be subjective. Williams also addresses reductionist philosophies, which reduce man to a product, such as of economy (Marxism), or conditioning (Behaviorism). The authors who elevate man reject the reduction, as they allow, like God, that he has a free will.

I found the book very useful and entertaining. While it is scholarly, offering a very good reference list for further study, it does not read as many academic papers do - for a very select group It is especially relevant for Christian scholars and students, but also offers an overview of three authors Christians should know. As Donald Williams is both a scholar and a pastor, he applies the literature to the world Christians live in.