Discovering God through Paganism

C. S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces

Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss,
Antonio Canova

Despite my enthusiasm for C. S. Lewis, I had never heard of his final novel, Till We Have Faces, until it was recommended to me by a friend, who then loaned me her copy. I have been meaning to add more Greek mythology (both retellings and originals) to my library. However, though I am familiar with the original myth of Psyche and Cupid, I was extremely curious as to how Lewis had managed to tell the story from the perspective of Psyche's sister, who is traditionally the story's villain. 

This book focuses heavily on the moral development of Orual, who is the eldest princess and eventual Queen of Glome. Lewis utilizes settings, side characters, and cultural references to craft what I believe is a critique of ancient polytheism, the folly of human nature, and defining love. 

"I wonder do the gods know what it feels like to be a man?"

Woven throughout the entirety of the book are mentions of the goddess Ungit, who is Glome's equivalent to Aphrodite. However, while the Greeks decorated her temples with flowers and marble, crafting white stone images of her beauty, the temple in Glome turns "holy" into a dark word. The temple is stained with blood and death, spices and smoke, and Ungit's image is nothing more than a large, dark stone. On the one hand, this helps to emphasize the cultural disconnect between Orual and the Fox, a Greek slave and philosopher. Glome's barbaric nature is further proven through their dark worship stemming from fear of a dark entity. 

By placing Orual into such a darkened and barbaric community setting, Lewis frames her as a narrator from an unfamiliar culture. This is emphasized further by the fact that she refers to the reader as a Greek multiple times, and in the context of the book, this is another way of placing her in a position more desolate than the reader. Lewis does this with the intent to separate Orual from the reader. The separation is a necessary component to crafting Orual as an unreliable narrator, which isn't completely revealed until Part Two begins. Being disconnected from Orual allows the reader to see the contrast between her perspective and the reality of the situation. 

"Are the gods not just?"
"Oh no, child. What would become of us if they were?"

This uncomfortable contradiction between perspective and truth really comes into play surrounding the gods. While Ungit (Aphrodite) is categorized as dark and disturbing due to the nature of her worship, her son (Eros) has a little more ambiguity. Even the priest does not have a set definition for who he is, saying at times that he is Ungit's son and at others that he is her husband. This allows more interpretation for the reader, since we never actually see Ungit's son. Instead, we are given two personas for him. His first persona is the Shadowbrute, who takes on the same animalistic, ravenous characteristics as Ungit and is said to devour his sacrifices. His second persona is "the god" who is left unnamed and is presented by Psyche. She claims he is kind and generous, and has her best interests in mind. However, he refuses to show his face. Orual is exposed to both of these personas, and when she meshes them together her perspective tells us that Psyche's husband is something evil, whether he is mortal or god. On the other hand, the reader already knows the truth of why he does not show his face since we are familiar with the myth. This presents some extreme dramatic irony as our knowledge of truth allows us to see the degree to which Orual's perspective and beliefs are skewed. 

Throughout the whole work, the gods are presented as being evil and toying with humanity for no reason other than their own entertainment. They are framed as enacting punishment and reward with no logical reasoning, and as teasing and taunting pawns in the narrative. Just like everything else, there is ambiguity surrounding the extent to which this is true, and while much of it does seem to be Orual's opinion, I believe this is where the book ties into Lewis's other work. While much of his work is heavily Christian, this novel has no references to the Hebrew God. However, what gods it does portray are mockeries of traditional Greek pantheism, presented as fickle and immature beings with no compassion for others. I believe this is because through this work whose plot is so driven by these gods, Lewis is crafting a critique of classical polytheism. He is pointing a finger at their imperfect gods made in the image of man and saying, "Look, see how unreal and artificial this is?" Further, by suggesting that Orual is Ungit in Part Two of the book, he is presenting an even stronger image of manmade gods. The entire book is just a critique and satire of the Greek pantheon. 

"Do you know what it is? There's one part love in your heart, and five parts anger, and seven parts pride."

However, Lewis is not just critiquing his immortal characters. Orual's flaws are also critiqued. She is ugly and selfish and intelligent and craving to prove herself, and Lewis presents those characteristics very clearly in the arc of the story. More so, he presents and questions her love for those around her, and furthermore what we as humans define as love overall. All of Lewis's human characters are deeply flawed in different ways, together presenting the contradiction and folly of human nature. Orual's love is rooted in selfishness and pride. The Fox's philosophical wisdom is accompanied by a prideful and condescending nature, and stemming from distrust. Bardia's bravery on the battlefield is countered by his fear of imperfection and unwillingness to step away from his reputation. All of these characters are deeply flawed, but Orual is presented most obviously. 

"Did I hate him then? Indeed, I believe so. A love like that can grow to be nine-tenths hatred and still call itself love."

This is because Orual's deepest flaw is in her love. Because of this, she is able to play as the face of human nature, since all human emotions stem from love. What Orual claims is love towards those around her ultimately ends up dooming her sister to an eternity of suffering, forcing the Fox to remain in a country not his own, and working Bardia until he dies. Why? Orual's love is rooted in selfish desires that stem from a fear of being alone. Her "love" is harmful and sharp. She wants Psyche to return to her, she wants the Fox to stay with her, and she wants Bardia to remain loyal to her. For none of these people does she want the things that would make them most happy: a husband, a homeland, and a wife, respectively. Instead, she desires for them to remain at her side always. This is not a true expression of love. This is selfishness and a need for others' approval labeled as love to protect her from the realization that she is not kind to those around her. Through this selfish love, Lewis presents another dynamic of the foolishness of humanity. Beyond falsely crafted religion, he suggests falsely crafted love.

Overall, this book is excellently written and paced, and delightfully unpredictable. It connects the reader so deeply to the character that her growth and change are visible, while also providing enough separation to make the truth obvious. A wonderful novel that encapsulates such deep story and characters, Lewis truly outdid himself with his final work, and I sincerely hope that as time passes it gains more popularity. 

"How can they meet us face to face till we have faces?"