A Grief Observed: Writing Prompts

Due Monday, Jan. 29 (typed and printed)

Please be prepared to share the ideas from at least one of your choices with the class.

Length should ideally be 2-4 pages (MLA style).


Write a well-thought response to one or two of the following questions. Make sure you cite textual references from the book to explain your ideas. 

A. Psychological: After reading the experience from Lewis' perspective, how would you encourage a person experiencing grief?

B. Reader Response: What passages/quotes from the text did you find most interesting or relatable? Explain the significance.

C. Psychological/Theological: Can hard questions serve to strengthen faith and/or one's mental health? In what ways did Lewis' questions bring his own healing?

D. Intertextual: How did Lewis' interaction with Scripture serve as a source of strength for him?

E. Biographical: Considering that this is one of Lewis' last works, can you see any changes (growth or digression) in his ideas? Possibly the ideas of theology, love, gender, vulnerability, or another area that comes to mind for you. Some texts that might be particularly relevant include Spirits in Bondage, Screwtape Letters, The Abolition of Man, Mere Christianity, The Four Loves or the fictional works. If you want to jump ahead to The Problem with Pain you are welcome to.

F. Psychological: Read through some psychology articles about the grieving process (These two are pretty good for starters). Then evaluate Lewis' process from a psychological perspective. Was his process healthy? Does it seem like there may be another area he needs to address?

G. Theological/Reader Response: “Poi si torno all’ eternal fontana” ends the book. It is a quote from Dante, when Beatrice turns away from him toward the eternal fountain. This quote suggests that Lewis doesn’t dismiss his grief or feel free of it, but he is more at peace with God, like Joy in her last words to the chaplain (76). How can we find peace, with God and with our situation, in times of grief? Think of a difficult time you’ve walked through or are perhaps still experiencing. Were you able to find peace? Why or why not?

H. Formalism: The end of the book is like the beginning, if only in the questions it doesn’t answer and the doubts that are still raised by the horrible occurrences of this world. How comfortable are you with the uncertainties that Lewis still has? Do you wish he had wrapped it up neatly, or do you take comfort in where he lands at the end?

I. Theological: In Chapter IV, Lewis mentions that both the way God intends or allows pain as well as the possibility of reunion with Joy are both "blank checks" that cannot be cashed. He must find his resolve on things that can be proven. Take your pick of these two issues.
Option 1: How can God be both loving and allow such pain?
Option 2: What is the evidence for weather we see the dead in the afterlife or not (and if we do, what will be left of our earthly relationships)?