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| Natalie Smith Class of 2016 |
Anyone who knows me well knows that I am an Anglophile. Every month, I read the latest copy of British Heritage so that I can pretend I’m a citizen of the UK, able to frequent the “Top ten tea shops of the West End” (as a recent article informed me). Though I joke about my love of the royal family and fish and chips, England is so much more than the stereotypical images that immediately jump to mind. England is Shakespeare, Lewis, Tolkien, Newman, Churchill, More, and all the other great minds who shaped it and were shaped by it. Their numbers are countless, and most of whose works or stories I have not yet had the pleasure of learning or reading. Though I greatly enjoy learning about the rich politics and history of the United Kingdom, literature is what ultimately holds my heart—and my familiarity with the works of Lewis and Tolkien, as well as other English authors, are part of the main reason why I treasure the opportunity to study and travel in Oxford as part of the McConnell Scholars’ Oxford Society in a few short months.
Though I passed through the wardrobe several years ago, I didn’t have my “Aha!” moment with C.S. Lewis until reading Abolition of Man as a freshman McConnell Scholar in a small group discussion led by Dr. Gregg. Reading Abolition of Man allowed me to not only better appreciate Lewis as a writer and scholar, but also to formulate several personal philosophical convictions that I had not previously been capable of putting into words. Since then, I have read and reread many of his works, including The Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, and The Space Trilogy, among other writings and essays.
My dad, a longtime fan of Tolkien, forced me to read The Hobbit when I was in the fifth grade, and despite my resistance to most books he asked me to read, I whipped through the story, finding it captivating. Though I attempted to read the Lord of the Rings shortly after, I was still too young to appreciate his work, and it was not until this past summer that I began re-familiarizing myself with Middle Earth, reading the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. Reading them now, I find so much beauty and meaning in Tolkien’s deliberate and intricate use of the English language—so much so that I was inspired to add a few linguistics classes to my undergraduate studies and learn more about the history of the English language.
With my growing interest in Lewis and Tolkien, I am eager for the opportunity to visit the prestigious and historic University of Oxford, where both writers held academic positions throughout their lifetimes. Also, I am quite sure that it would be impossible not to be inspired during a visit to the pub, The Eagle and Child, which served as a common informal gathering place for the Inklings, a discussion group for literary enthusiasts of which Tolkien and Lewis were regular members.
The McConnell Center is in large part the reason I have kindled my interest in British culture, and I consider it an honor to be able to read and discuss both familiar and unfamiliar materials with experts and my peers. I’m sure that a visit to the City of Dreaming Spires will be all the more inspiring when visited with people who have helped challenge and shape me both intellectually and personally, and I cannot think of any better way to spend my time.
Natalie Smith, of Elizabethtown, Ky., is a junior McConnell Scholar at the University of Louisville. She studies English, political science, history, and linguistics.