20 Discussion Questions for The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis (With Analysis) | Chapterly Blog
Quick Answer: The richest discussions of The Great Divorce refuse to treat it as a comforting tour of the afterlife and instead press on its hardest claim: that the doors of hell are locked from the inside, and that each damned soul prefers its own grievance to the discomfort of becoming real. Do not let the group settle for "free will is beautiful." Push them on whether every refusal Lewis stages is genuinely a free choice, or whether some ghosts are too damaged to choose. Hold Lewis's elegance and his blind spots in the same hand, and the book opens up. C.S. Lewis's The Great Divorce is one of the most imaginative theological works of the twentieth century. The Great Divorce discussion questions force readers to grapple with Lewis's radical argument: that the doors of hell are locked from the inside, and that people choose separation from God not because they lack opportunity but because they prefer their own version of reality. Whether you are reading this in a church group, a philosophy class, or a book club, these questions will help you engage seriously with Lewis's ideas. Published in 1945, the novel follows an unnamed narrator who boards a...