The "Great Dance" Of Cosmos:C.S.Lewis's Medieval Model And His Critique Of Modernity In The Space Trilogy

Clive Staples Lewis is a famous and prolific British novelist,Christian apologist,and literary critic in the twentieth century.From Lewis's own times to the present,he himself and his works have been of great interest in literary academia.However,among all his career roles,his real professional role as a distinguished scholar of medieval and Renaissance literature is usually neglected.Considering that Lewis's career roles never stand alone,and that his academic studies,theological ideas and literary creation always interrelate,it is worthwhile and necessary to look into his scholarly works.This thesis is going to interpret his series of scientific fantasy,the Space Trilogy(consisting of Out of the Silent,Perelandra,and That Hideous Strength),from the perspective of the Medieval Model,which is Lewis's brilliant summary of the medieval worldview.In the Trilogy,Lewis constructs his cosmic world according to the Medieval Model,and through his re-enaction of the discarded Medieval Model Lewis expresses his critique of the modernity and introduces his theological pattern,"the Great Dance",as a possible solution to the ills of modernity.The introduction of the thesis reviews the related studies in the last decades and points out the niche for this thesis.The body is then divided into three parts:the first part focuses on Lewis's reproduction of the Medieval Model in the Trilogy,focusing on the protagonists' experience of medieval images,and also introduces the association between the Medieval Model and the Great Dance of cosmos.The second part looks into Lewis's concerns about modernity:first is his main target in the novels,scientism,and second is Jane Studdock's marriage.The marriage in the novel means not only the marital relationship,but also a metaphor of the human situation which leads to Lewis's solution to the modern predicament,the pattern of the Great Dance.The third demonstrates Lewis's proposed solution for the modern flaws with the Medieval Model functioning as an intermediary agent to the Great Dance of cosmos.Finally,the conclusion illuminates the current significance of Lewis 's advocation of the Medieval Model and his critique of modernity in the Space Trilogy.