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Dr. Ransom and Lewis

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Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Christy » April 15th, 2005, 2:11 am

It seems to me that Lewis based Ransom's character off of himself somewhat. This thought came to me a few weeks ago when I was doing an English project. Since then, I began reading That Hideous Strength and the similarities between the two seem even greater.
One line that jumped out at me was from Mother Dimble: "My dear, the Director is a very wise man. But he is a man, after all, and an unmarried man at that."
It also seems to me that Ransom's spiritual journey is akin to Lewis' own.
Am I way off base here, or do you agree that Lewis wrote these similarities intentionally?
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Re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Sven » April 15th, 2005, 8:06 pm

Rat! he found breath to whisper, shaking. Are you afraid?
Afraid? murmured the Rat, his eyes shining with unutterable love.
Afraid! Of Him? O, never, never! And yet -- and yet -- O, Mole, I am afraid!
Then the two animals, crouching to the earth, bowed their heads and did worship.
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Re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Bill » April 15th, 2005, 8:46 pm

Time is the fire in which we burn!

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re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby TarwathieI » August 8th, 2006, 5:06 pm

This makes me think of the passage in perelandra, when maleldil's voice is talking to ransom. he says "It is not for nothing that you are named Ransom" however, lewis does not say what this reason is, he only hints that ransom himself also realized the reason. ransom then comes to the conclusion that his name is derived from "Ranolf's son"

im not sure what the significance of all this is, thought i ponder it whenever i read perelandra.
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re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby VixenMage » August 8th, 2006, 7:37 pm

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Re: re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby TarwathieI » August 8th, 2006, 9:45 pm

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Re: re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Biff » August 9th, 2006, 12:49 am

"With hindsight perhaps it wasn't a good idea, oh well must be my hind cataracts..." Prof H.J. Farnsworth

"It was not for nothing that you are called Ransom" said the Voice..
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re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Theo » August 9th, 2006, 12:58 pm

The whole bit about the significance of Ransom's name is even weirder when you remember that, according to the epilogue of OOSP, his name isn't actually Ransom. :smile:
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Re: re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby TarwathieI » August 9th, 2006, 5:13 pm

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re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Stanley Anderson » August 9th, 2006, 6:04 pm

…on a night of rain Frodo smelled a sweet fragrance on the air and heard the sound of singing that came over the water. And then it seemed to him that as in his dream in the house of Bombadil, the grey rain-curtain turned all to silver glass and was rolled back, and he beheld white shores and beyond them a fair green country under a swift sunrise.
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Postby alliebath » January 22nd, 2007, 1:25 pm

I think the accepted understanding among some Lewis scholars is tha the Ransom of Out of the Silent Planet is indeed based on Tolkien, but that the Ransom/Fisherking of That Hideous Strength is much more based on Charles Williams—whose great interest in Arthurian legend certainly influenced that book (although there is the mention of Numinor [sic] in the unabridged version).

As to the Ransom of Perelandra? And the Ransom of ‘The Dark Tower’ presents us with a mystery as to how he would develop within the story.
Gott würfelt nicht.
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Re: re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Messenger_of_Eden » January 27th, 2007, 3:31 am

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Postby VixenMage » January 27th, 2007, 6:30 pm

I thought Numenor was kind of like Atlantis, really... the island, advanced, brought a lineage of high kings... and then sunk into the Sea, never to be seen again.

But didn't Tolkien make the geography of Middle-Earth kind of similar to ours, just so it would be feasible that Gondor & Co could -be- the basis for Camelot?
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Re: re: Dr. Ransom and Lewis

Postby Stanley Anderson » January 28th, 2007, 4:25 am

…on a night of rain Frodo smelled a sweet fragrance on the air and heard the sound of singing that came over the water. And then it seemed to him that as in his dream in the house of Bombadil, the grey rain-curtain turned all to silver glass and was rolled back, and he beheld white shores and beyond them a fair green country under a swift sunrise.
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Ransom & Lewis

Postby rofe408 » April 15th, 2008, 1:07 am

"It is not for nothing that your name is Ransom,"said the Voice. "My name is also Ransom" Jesus was called our "ransom for sin." His life was payment for mens' freedom. And, he, Ransom, "suffered and strove and (Tor and Tinidril) have a world for (their) reward." I'm new to the forum and admittedly late in this string, but I'm enjoying the trilogy for the 6th or 7th time & enjoying the forums. This view might be too obvious to be considered, but I didn't see it suggested. And it's my personal #1 favorite.
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