Oxford Literarium - Sneak Peak

 

Greetings!

I hope you are doing well and enjoying this lovely seasonal shift into Autumn when all things books and cosy spaces abound. Pull up a comfortable spot and make a cup of tea. 

Here's another little snippet of my forthcoming book - Oxford Literarium: Oxford Writers in Time and Place

This is from my chapter on C.S. Lewis:

In Lewis’s time at Oxford, there was plenty of debate in society, and he seemed to not shy away from it but welcome it as a way to engage with other opinions. He encouraged differing opinions to defend their position; while he listened to their defense, he would be able to determine if it was well thought out, or not.  A lot was changing in the inter-war years, and some student spaces for debate were needed for them to grapple with the big questions. Just as we need that space today, Lewis was supportive of debate, whether in a tutorial or out in public for philosophical discussions with students and colleagues.

He was the president of the Socratic Club, a popular club open to debating the difficult, philosophical questions. The club provided a setting where the big questions could be explored by non-Christians and Christians together in dialogue and debate. Lewis would typically open the meetings and serve as the overseer figure as debates would ensue across the spectrum of differing opinions. 

Austen Farrer records his experiences coming to the Socratic Club meetings. He would come in fear and trembling; afraid he’d be called out in a debate and let them down. But he noted that Lewis was there “snuffing the imminent battle and saying ‘Aha!’ at the sound of the trumpet. My anxieties rolled away. Whatever ineptitudes I might commit, he would maintain the cause; and nobody could put Lewis down.”

 Nevill Coghill was a student with Lewis and a long-time friend and Inkling. He called Lewis “formidable” explaining that he was certain, but not arrogant. Coghill explained that he could diminish you to dust in an argument, but he enjoyed debates too much to do that. Per Coghill: “Genius is formidable and so is goodness; he had both.” The more that I pondered this description of Lewis, the more it made sense. 

Lewis had immense talent in communication - he would adjust himself in any situation, rapidly shifting as if from one foot to the other, the correct amount of weight on one thing, versus another. Behind all of that was the scholarly mind, a fabulous memory, and a deep sense of truth. He would quote almost perfectly accurately from his photographic memory.

Slices of "almost" Autumn

 

I anticipate the coming of Autumn like the buds of flowers anticipate their time to open into bloom. We are still in the waiting period before we see any sense of "sweater weather", however after around six months of summer heat I am so eager to enter into the gradual change of season. These are some favourite snippets of a proto-Autumn as I hold onto the hope that some cooler air will venture this way soon.

Tea, of course, is a staple every day, but when the evening temperature is a few degrees cooler it feel all that more comforting to make a tiny pot of loose leaf tea to enjoy with a book. My book (I just finished it) is A Little Learning by Evelyn Waugh.

I built out my own personal curriculum. I plan out for each week of the month different topics and/or authors I want to research and read more about. I select articles and books to read, and I take notes in this pretty notebook I picked up in Oxford earlier this year. Then I write an essay about what I've been learning so I can comprehend and retain it better. I am loving this habit; it's something I've wanted to implement for years, and never have. It just takes some time for planning the month ahead and using some way to track your progress (as accountability).

Autumn gives me the inspiration to write a lot more. Maybe it's the start of a new school year that I still love coupled with the cosier vibes of the season when cooler air comes sweaters are needed along with hot drinks, and books go along with that to me. You need a stack of books to read when Autumn comes around, right? I just picked up this book about C.S. Lewis and his writing life. 

I liked this note from the author:

"The classic works, reading, the life of escaping into great fictive worlds defined Lewis's most formative years. But Lewis didn't merely long to read great literature, as his many letters to his father show; he wanted people to talk to about them."

A I mentioned, tea is essential. I drink it each morning with some breakfast, and herbal tea each evening after dinner at a minimum. Sometimes I will drink tea other times of day if I have time to enjoy it. My hands-down choice for breakfast is the Bird & Blend Chocolate Digestives tea (from the UK). It's black tea that perfectly pairs with breakfast, or anytime later. It's cosy, warm, and perfectly flavored. I'm totally obsessed.

In quiet anticipation of the coming cooler air, I found this fair isle cardigan that I can't wait to wear. I've been looking for a fair isle sweater for years and never found one that I liked, until now. It's invoking all the Autumn colours and darker tones that will go into the winter season, plus it gives off a little sense of the bookish nature, to be worn with jeans or skirts. Now I am really eager for that cooler weather to come!

I have lots of different notebooks for all kinds of different ways I write. The softcover Moleskine pocket notebooks are perfect for taking with me everywhere I go, for jotting poems, thoughts, notes, ideas. This is my new one to replace my now full little spiral pocket notebook that I got in Oxford. I usually lean toward lined pages, but I went with dotted pages for this time to see how I like it. I think I will enjoy it, and I am not super particular about the pages (blank, lined, dotted), though maybe I will be a dotted fan now, other than I never want a wide ruled notebook (no wide ruled!).