Category Archives: Reflections

Why is Tolkien Scholarship Stronger than Lewis Scholarship? Part 2: Literary Breadth and Depth

Posted on April 13, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

For the last couple of weeks I have been looking at questions of C.S. Lewis scholarship, beginning with my own journey. As I am deep in a scholarly study, I decided to design a thought experiment. By creating a sort … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Ransom Cycle, The Hobbit, The Last Battle, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, Till We Have Faces | 6 Comments

Near-Inkling Martyn Skinner’s Near-Future Pandemic Poem: A Reading by Dale Nelson

Posted on April 8, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Old Rectory or The Interview by Martyn Skinner. Wilton, Salisbury, Wiltshire: Michael Russell Ltd., 1984. 107 pages. Luke, known as Old Rectory, took up the hermit’s life many years ago, even before the time of the pandemic that sprang from … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Bede Griffiths, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, COVID-19, Dale Nelson, Inklings, Martyn Skinner, Old Rectory or The Interview, pandemic, The Golden String | 3 Comments

Why is Tolkien Scholarship Stronger than Lewis Scholarship? Part 1: Creative Breaks that Inspired Tolkien Readers

Posted on April 6, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

It is a question that has been nagging me for some time: Why is Tolkien Scholarship Stronger than Lewis Scholarship? By this, I do not mean any particular insult to Lewis scholars. I am one, in fact. As I note … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Garth, Narnia, Splintered Light, Stephanie Derrick, The Fame of C.S. Lewis, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, Tolkien and the Great War, Verlyn Flieger | 42 Comments

Wounds that Never Fully Heal: An Easter Reflection on Frodo Baggins — by Laura Schmidt

Posted on April 2, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Originally posted on Off the Shelf:
Image: CHUTTERSNAP, https://unsplash.com/photos/Odc4dcsjUBw Stories hold a special ability to deeply impact their readers. Those who enjoy reading imaginative fiction like The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings by the Wade Center’s…

Posted in Reflections | 8 Comments

“Small” and “Little”, a Literary Experiment on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit with Sparrow Alden

Posted on April 1, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Originally posted on words that you were saying:
Finally! Thanks to the Rev. Dr. Dickieson over at A Pilgrim in Narnia, I have gotten un-stuck from the word which has held me in thrall since October. I hope this is…

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Digital Humanities, J.R.R. Tolkien, Northwind Seminary, Sparrow Alden, The Hobbit, theology, theology and literature, Theology of Culture | 3 Comments

The Other Reasons I Became a C.S. Lewis Scholar

Posted on March 30, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

An intriguing, fun, and occasionally perverse part of being a scholar in areas where there is a lively fandom is that I am often asked to tell my “encounter” story. This can be a bit strange in that in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged academic writing, C.S. Lewis, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, culture, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, L.M. Montgomery, literature, Mere Christianity, Miroslav Volf, N.T. Wright, PhD Research, Rosemary Radford Ruether, Sallie McFague, theology, Ursula K. Le Guin | 5 Comments

“The Science Fiction Makers” Documentary–and I am In It!

Posted on March 19, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

As I am a perennially awkward person, I don’t mind admitting that I have always wanted to be on one of those History Channel-type documentaries. True, I hardly ever watch them as it seems when I am in the mood … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Andrew Wall, C.S. Lewis, Diana Pavlac Glyer, documentary, Emily Strand, Madeleine L'Engle, Refuge 31 Films, The Science Fiction Makers, Victor Rousseau | 11 Comments

The Thieves of Time and Waking Wonder: Writing as Discovery and the Stone-Carver’s Art

Posted on March 13, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

After weeks of too little sleep, I have had two terrible half-nights awake. These torturous midnight hours of hazy, half-insomniac puzzles and quandaries and obsessions, the darkness that infuses weariness into the bone-soul of life… I would purchase a single … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged academic writing, C.S. Lewis, CBC, Dymer, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, JP Saxe, L.M. Montgomery, Q, The Screwtape Letters, Till We Have Faces, writing | 8 Comments

Canadian Authors the Prime Minister Forgot to Read (a #canadareads post)

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Narcity did this little piece last week: “Justin Trudeau Wants Everyone To Read More Canadian Books & Here Are Some Options.” The Prime Minister mentions: Margaret Atwood L.M. Montgomery Douglas Coupland Robertson Davies Heather O’Neill This is all in celebration … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Afrofuturism, apocalyptic literature, Canada Reads, CBC, dystopia, Emily St. John Mandel, Guy Gavriel Kay, L.M. Montgomery, Louise Bernice Halfe, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Margaret Atwood, Mark Sampson, Michael Crummey, Miriam Toews, Nalo Hopkins, The Fionavar Tapestry, Trudeau, Yann Martel | 16 Comments

On the Nobody Somebody Has Inside: C.S. Lewis and a Post About Bullying For Pink Shirt Day #pinkshirt

Posted on February 24, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

By all accounts, the famous children’s author C.S. Lewis was bullied badly in the English private school that he was subjected to as a child. His first school, Wynyard, had a bully as a headmaster. Robert Capron–nicknamed “Oldie” by Lewis … Continue reading →