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{Bookshelf Recommendation}
Men Without Chests: C.S. Lewis Channels Plato in The Abolition of Man
By Connor Tracy
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| Connor Tracy |
For many of us, the mention of the name C.S. Lewis brings Aslan, the heroic lion from The Chronicles of Narnia, bounding into our imaginations. Others may remember works such as The Screwtape Letters or Mere Christianity–two books that continue to serve as challenges and guides to those seeking to grow in their faith. The modern reader rightfully places Lewis among the ranks of the great children’s authors and Christian apologists, but he was also an important scholar and man of ideas. Today I call your attention to The Abolition of Man, one of his most important contributions to cultural criticism and philosophy.
Lewis begins the book with a surprising discussion of an elementary school textbook. That book, though purportedly to be used to teach language, contains the hidden message that all value statements are subjective and relate only to the mental state of the speaker rather than to the world outside. According to this view, nothing is beautiful or horrific in and of itself but only becomes so because someone thinks it so. Lewis believes that this kind of message seeps into student’s minds and ultimately leads them to rejecting all objective value–including basic judgments of right and wrong.
Lewis described this process as creating men without chests. Lewis reminds us: “We were told it all long ago by Plato.” The head (reason) must rule the belly (appetites) through an “indispensable liaison”–the chest (“emotions organized by trained habit into stable sentiments”). By removing the chest, the intellect is left powerless against the appetites. Lewis sums up the ironic yet terrifying effects of this process by saying, “In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in or midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”
Throughout the rest of this small but very influential book, Lewis mounts a philosophical attack on subjectivism and draws upon a wide range of sources to support the doctrine of objective value, or as he calls it, the Tao. Lewis concludes by giving readers a chilling glimpse of a future in which we reject the Tao, debunk all value judgments, and are left to be conditioned by those in power. He generously provides an appendix containing illustrations of the Tao throughout history and across the world, including Babylonian, Chinese, Christian, Egyptian, Hindu, Jewish, Old Norse, and Roman sources.
Much has changed since 1943, but it’s fair to say that Lewis foresaw some of what would come. Though more than 55 years stand between us and his death, The Abolition of Man remains as relevant as ever. We would be wise to revisit it–and revisit it often.
Connor Tracy is the administrative assistant for the McConnell Center's military education efforts. He oversees logistics and operations for the Center's Strategic Broadening Seminar for the U.S. Army, produces a monthly podcast for Army soldiers and helps support the McConnell Scholars Program. He also assists McConnell Center Director Gary Gregg on research projects relating to C.S. Lewis and the American founding. Views expressed here are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of the McConnell Center.
This recommendation is part of the McConnell Center's Meditations publication series, which features the center's educational resources in a monthly e-newsletter. Content includes a great books podcast series hosted by McConnell Center Director Gary Gregg, book recommendations, student research and writing, and notable lectures available in video format. Subscribe