The Friendship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien: From the Trenches of WWI to the Publication of The Lord of the Rings
Few friendships in literary history have been as influential as that between C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Their shared experiences as soldiers in World War I, their scholarly careers at Oxford, and their mutual love for myth and storytelling helped shape two of the most iconic works of fantasy literature: The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings. Let’s explore the journey of their friendship, from the trenches of war to the creation of Middle-earth and Narnia.
Aftermath of WWI
Both Lewis and Tolkien’s experiences in World War I profoundly impacted their view of life, death, and, ultimately, faith. For J.R.R. Tolkien, faith was a lifelong anchor, and his Catholicism only deepened during the war. He saw the horrors of the battlefield as part of a greater cosmic struggle between good and evil—a theme that permeates The Lord of the Rings. For him, Middle-earth was a deeply Catholic work, though not in a preachy sense. Instead, his belief in providence, free will, sacrifice, and the corrupting nature of power is embedded in the story's fabric.
C.S. Lewis had a very different trajectory. As a young man, Lewis was an atheist, largely due to the suffering he witnessed in the war. He couldn’t reconcile a loving God with the violence and death around him. His loss of faith was intensified by the death of his mother at a young age. Lewis emerged from World War I skeptical of religion and consumed by philosophical and existential questions. Unlike Tolkien, who was more rooted in his belief system, Lewis’s spiritual journey took much longer and was fraught with doubt.
Meeting at Oxford
When Lewis and Tolkien first met at Oxford in the mid-1920s, faith wasn’t a major topic of conversation. Instead, their bond formed around a shared love of literature, mythology, and language. Both men were professors—Tolkien of Anglo-Saxon and Lewis of English literature—and they quickly found common ground in discussing ancient myths, Norse legends, and linguistic intricacies.
However, it wasn’t long before Tolkien’s faith became a crucial aspect of their friendship. Tolkien was dismayed by Lewis’s atheism and saw it as an intellectual and spiritual challenge. As their friendship deepened, Tolkien became instrumental in Lewis’s return to Christianity, though the road was long and complex.
A Conversation Changed Everything
One of the pivotal moments in both Lewis and Tolkien’s lives came in September 1931, during a late-night conversation that would later become legendary. Along with their friend Hugo Dyson, the three men took a long walk around Oxford’s Addison’s Walk, discussing mythology, literature, and theology.
Tolkien, passionate about the power of myth, argued that Christianity was the true myth. He suggested that, just as myths and legends conveyed profound truths through symbolic stories, Christianity was the “myth become fact.” The story of Christ, he argued, had all the narrative power and beauty of ancient myths, but unlike them, it had actually happened in history. This idea struck a chord with Lewis, who had long admired the power of myth but had been skeptical of Christianity’s claims.
This conversation was a turning point for Lewis. Shortly after, he experienced a profound spiritual awakening and accepted the Christian faith, though he chose Anglicanism over Tolkien’s Roman Catholicism. This conversion would shape the rest of Lewis’s life and work, particularly in his writings on Christian apologetics like Mere Christianity and in The Chronicles of Narnia, where Christian themes are unmistakable.
Faith and Story-Telling
Faith became a deeply embedded aspect of both men’s creative work, though in very different ways. Tolkien, ever the subtle storyteller, wove his Catholic faith into The Lord of the Rings through its themes rather than through explicit symbolism. He once said that The Lord of the Rings is “a fundamentally religious and Catholic work, unconsciously so at first, but consciously in the revision.” Themes of redemption, grace, the power of free will, and the ultimate triumph of good over evil are central to the story. Characters like Frodo and Aragorn embody Christ-like self-sacrifice, while the corrupting influence of the One Ring echoes the concept of sin.
Tolkien’s depiction of evil is also rooted in his faith. Sauron, the Dark Lord, and the Ring itself represent more than just physical threats—they embody the corrupting nature of absolute power and the spiritual danger of succumbing to evil, much like the Christian concept of original sin.
Lewis, on the other hand, was more overt with his Christian allegory, especially in The Chronicles of Narnia. Aslan, the great lion, is an unmistakable Christ figure, sacrificing himself for Edmund’s betrayal and rising again to save Narnia. While Tolkien disliked allegory, preferring to let the underlying truths speak through the narrative, Lewis embraced it, using the magical land of Narnia to explore themes of resurrection, salvation, and the battle between good and evil in a way that was accessible to both children and adults.
Faith and Friendship
Faith, while it deepened their friendship in some respects, also introduced some strain. Tolkien was never entirely comfortable with Lewis’s Anglicanism and found his friend’s theological writings—particularly Mere Christianity—too simplistic and reductive. He also disliked the overt allegory in The Chronicles of Narnia, feeling that Lewis’s mixing of mythological figures (fauns, centaurs, and Santa Claus, for example) alongside Christian themes was too jarring.
For his part, Lewis always remained appreciative of Tolkien’s role in his conversion, acknowledging that without Tolkien’s influence, he might never have come to faith. However, Lewis’s rising fame as a Christian apologist and his more public embrace of faith through radio talks and theological books made Tolkien uneasy. Tolkien, a more private man, valued faith as something personal and profound, while Lewis became a public figure in the Christian world.
Their differences in how they expressed their faith and their literary styles led to some distancing in later years, but the bond they shared over decades of friendship remained strong, especially in their mutual respect for one another’s intellect and creative genius.
The Lasting Impact
Faith was an essential pillar of both Tolkien and Lewis’s lives, deeply informing their works, their friendship, and their worldview. Without Tolkien’s steadfast Catholicism, The Lord of the Rings would lack much of its depth and moral complexity. Without Lewis’s eventual embrace of Christianity, The Chronicles of Narnia would never have been written, and the world would be without some of the most compelling Christian apologetic works of the 20th century.
Though their spiritual journeys took different paths—Tolkien’s steady and lifelong, Lewis’s dramatic and intellectual—their faith shaped not only their writings but also the nature of their friendship. Together, they built worlds that reflected their belief in the eternal struggle between good and evil, the power of redemption, and the hope that lies at the heart of the Christian narrative.
Their works continue to inspire readers today, offering not only escapism into fantastical worlds but also deep spiritual truths that resonate across generations. And at the heart of these stories lies the enduring friendship of two men whose faith was central to their lives and legacies.