LEWIS, C.S. (1898-1963). C.S. Lewis died on the same day as the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy, Nov. 22, 1963. Clive Staples Lewis was born in Belfast, Ireland, on Nov. 29, 1898. He was educated by private tutor and then at Malvern College in England for a year before attending University College, Oxford, in 1916. His education was interrupted by service in World War I. In 1918, he returned to Oxford where he did outstanding work as a classical scholar. He taught at Magdalen College, Oxford, from 1925 to 1954 and from 1954 until his death in Oxford. He was professor of medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge University in Cambridge. He was highly respected in his field of study, as a both teacher and writer. His book ‘The Allegory of Love: a Study in Medieval Tradition’, published in 1936, is considered by many to be his best work.

Lewis is most known for his attempt at formulating a core of Christian understanding. Lewis wrote a number of highly readable books intelligent, imaginative, and often witty. Among these were: ‘The Pilgrim’s Regress’, published in 1933, ‘The Problem of Pain’ (1940), ‘Miracles’ (1947), and ‘The Screwtape Letters’ (1942), probably his most popular work. He also wrote a trilogy of religious science fiction novels: ‘Out of the Silent Planet’ (1938), ‘Perelandra’ (1943), and ‘That Hideous Strength’ (1945). For children he wrote a series of seven allegorical tales, beginning with ‘The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe’ in 1950. His autobiography, ‘Surprised by Joy’, was published in 1955.