The Nebulous Binaries Of C.S. Lewis' Till We Have Faces

Author

Amantia MenallaFollow

Keywords

C.S. Lewis; identity; liminality; gender; mythology

Abstract

Much of C.S. Lewis’ novel Till We Have Faces can be examined through one of two binaries. The tension between rationality, or reason, and spirituality, or religion, is one of the core facets of both the text and its main character, Orual. Orual feels the pull of both ideas and thus spends most of the novel in a nebulous space between them. This tension is further complicated by the space between the feminine and the masculine which she also inhabits. By covering her face and body, Orual de-emphasizes her feminine identity and takes on a masculine role, dressing as a man and taking a political role relegated to men. She steps into a liminal, genderless state, both socially and in her own identity. My research explores gender in Lewis' Till We Have Faces by focusing on its intersection with the ideas of rationality and spirituality, thus examining how the discussion of gender contributes to the novel as a whole.

Thesis Completion Year

2024

Thesis Completion Semester

Fall

Thesis Chair

Hohenleitner, Kathleen

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

English

Thesis Discipline

English Literature

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus Access

None

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

STARS Citation

Menalla, Amantia, "The Nebulous Binaries Of C.S. Lewis' Till We Have Faces" (2024). Honors Undergraduate Theses. 205.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/hut2024/205