The Abolition of Man

I started reading this book when I started an online class from Hillsdale College. This is a difficult book to read casually - in fact, I don't believe I can read it casually. I found that I needed to isolate myself from distractions, and to mark portions that were particularly pertinent to me. The book itself is short - my volume is 48 pages including the appendix. The matters discussed are weighty and Lewis references many different sources, and this required additional research time for me to understand context. I plan to read this book again in the future.

One of the central treatises of the book is the nature of the Tao, as Lewis calls it. He defines the Tao thus "This thing which I have called for convenience the Tao, and which show more others may call Natural Law or Traditional Morality or the First Principles of Practical Reason or the First Platitudes, is not one among a series of possible systems of value." He says a bit earlier (about the Tao) "You cannot reach them as conclusions: they are premises." He uses these arguments to establish the baseline for informed, moral discussion as opposed to natural discussion.

It is informative of how nature is described by Lewis: "The Natural is the opposite of the Artificial, the Civil, the Human, the Spiritual, and the Supernatural". A reflection on each of these opposing characteristics (excluding artificial, as Lewis does), illustrates to me why I value the general teachings of the Tao, and many of them specifically. Lewis addresses how there can be some disagreement with principles in the Tao: "From within the Tao itself comes the only authority to modify the Tao. This is what Confucius meant when he said 'With those who follow a different Way it is useless to take counsel'."

The appendix is a collection of ancient wisdom, titled "Illustrations of the Tao". It is broken down into different segments, such as "The Law of General Beneficence", "The Law of Special Beneficence", and others. These are taken from a sampling of different cultures including Chinese, Indian, Native American, Roman, Greek, Babylonian, and Egyptian.

I found myself enlightened by reading this short volume and I have much to think about and apply. show less

For me, the mark of a good thinker and writer is one with whom I can meaningfully engage even if I disagree with them. This is most assuredly the case with C.S. Lewis. This highly debated work is quintessential Lewis in its wit (see the opening chapter), its encyclopedic knowledge, and its unapologetic anchor in Christian theology. When I read Lewis it feels like a bit of a dance, except that we very much switch off who leads. I step forward and say, "you are appropriating the Tao" and then he steps forward and says, "but am I wrong about eugenics?" He twirls me around with comments like: "...the modern situation permits and demands a new sexual morality: the old taboos served some real purpose in helping to preserve the species, but show more contraceptives have modified this and we can now abandon many of the taboos" (33) until I realize that he certainly does not agree that women have a choice when it comes to their own bodies.

It is important to realize that these lectures (originally commissioned by the University of Durham) were delivered in 1943, so Lewis's warnings against technological power and creation of an "artificial Tao" are easily understood. Even when he puts aside some of his more fanciful philosophical footwork, he makes statements that resonate profoundly today (and perhaps for evermore): "I am very doubtful whether history shows us one example of a man who, having stepped outside traditional morality and attained power, has used that power benevolently" (66).

It is a potent defense of natural law. I say this not because I agree with him, but because there is a lot here that rings true and has played out in the 80 years since these lectures were published. I wonder what he might think of education today, given his allowance for emotion and and magic as part of his objective truth (or, more accurately, Truth). Certainly if debates that crowd our societal stage today were conducted with the same level of knowledge and thoughtfulness, we'd likely be making more progress (defined broadly). Reading Lewis moves us away from collecting sound bytes and invites us to invest in the true realities of the human condition. show less

It is not my favorite Lewis, and I am a fan. It does seem to be cobbled together and not seamlessly. I do question an approach here. Lewis posits a "tao" a deep order or telos to the universe and to human existence that cannot be proven but must be accepted a a maxim. He then expresses alarm that it will be ignored and we will end up with the loss of all values. I suppose he's striking back at the existentialists and others who deny the idea of a human nature (at least one given from outside of human existence, if not apart from an individual's own moral sovereignty). If this tao exists, and I think I agree with him that it does, he should have a little more confidence in it. It will assert itself and will not be ignored. Mid twentieth show more century did its worse, and yet life goes on and people still cherish their values imperfectly as ever. show less

The utility of The Abolition of Man to you, the reader, is entirely dependent on your belief or lack thereof in the existence of absolute truth and a universal set of ideals. If you're an ardent moral relativist, C.S. Lewis will challenge you. If you're on the fence, Lewis will probably persuade you. If you're already convinced, like I was, you'll just be given a better argument than the one you already have for your position.

I spent most of my reading process nodding along to Lewis' arguments, continually impressed by how well he manages to logic the shit out of everything. His point about the danger of power that exists outside a universal standard of right and wrong is worth taking to heart, and I think that applies on a small scale show more as well as the major one he's referencing. It's not just about leaders controlling us, it's about us controlling our own lives, and if we allow ourselves to be ruled by instinct, caprice, or whatever, we're as good as lost.

Like the rest of Lewis' work, I found The Abolition of Man to be a far smarter way of explaining things I already believed, and I'm all about sounding smarter. show less

Perhaps one of Lewis' most prophetic books. The Abolition of Man absolutely eviscerates the garbage ideas bubbling under the progressivism of his day, and so also the aggressive progressivism which came into force in our own post-modern day.

Lewis begins observing trends in education and literary theory, but moves beyond to illustrate the danger of the ideas in question. His use of the Tao as way to communicate the radical necessity of natural law is clever, and his resolve that rationality remains critical if we're to prevent society from moral collapse, and more, the abolition of man himself.

This book was radical in its day, though it now seems a bit outdated. It basically proposes that moral relativity is illogical, and that there has to be some generally understood life principles. Lewis refers to this, broadly, as the 'Tao', while acknowledging that it encompasses all religions. While writing from his usual Christian perspective, this is not an argument for God's existence, or even theism in general. The writing is good, and quite thought-provoking, but since I didn't agree with all his premises (eg that patriotism is always right) I couldn't always follow the arguments fully.. despite agreeing with most of his conclusions. An interesting read that doesn't take very long as it's only a short book.

C. S. Lewis es conocido principalmente por ser el autor de «Las Crónicas de Narnia». No obstante, también tuvo un paso muy fructífero por el ensayo. Y este título, si bien no el más célebre, era su predilecto dentro de su producción de no-ficción.

Lewis da el puntapié inicial con una crítica a un libro de texto escolar, en el que se declara que no existen las cosas sublimes, sino que los sublimes son los sentimientos que tales cosas producen en una persona. Lo reconozco, hasta aquí no le ponía demasiadas fichas al libro. No es hasta que introduce la idea de que hay cosas objetivamente buenas y verdaderas, más allá de cualquier opinión, que el libro explota. Es el Tao, «el Camino por el que transcurre el universo» y show more «el Camino que todo hombre debe pisar». De esta manera, nos va señalando cómo en toda cultura existen valores universales, como la valentía, el honor o el respeto. Es una ley natural, pero además depende de la transmisión por parte de una generación a otra. Y que siempre habrá “innovadores” que tratarán de socavar estas ideas, de hacer una nueva “moral” (que no será más que una corrupción del Tao), «esperando encontrar valores “reales” cuando han despreciado los tradicionales».

Un libro corto, pero denso. Leí la mitad, lo volví a arrancar desde el comienzo y seguramente necesitaré un par de lecturas más en el futuro. Lewis propone aquí varios puntos interesantes que van más allá de un mero descontento por el “mundo moderno” y tocan la esencia del ser humano. show less