An Intimate Autobiography - Review of C. S. Lewis's A Grief Observed

C. S. Lewis’s A Grief Observed is the kind of book that some will value for the personal expression of grief, and relate to it, in the same way those in love appreciate expressions of love. Apart from that, I think the interest will be for those who study Lewis to know more about the author. While he observes his own grief with language that at times is detached [example], perhaps reflecting his consideration of God as one conducting experiments on humans [quote], the book is an intimate autobiography, albeit of a brief time.

The intimacy develops in several ways. The writing is not typical of Lewis, as it is about himself, about his feelings, at times unchecked by reason. For instance, in one journal entry Lewis writes, “Time after time, when He seemed most gracious, He was really preparing the next torture.” Lewis admits, in the next journal entry, “I wrote that last night. It was a yell rather than a thought.”

There is intimacy in the form of journal entries. Journaling was a form of writing Lewis had practiced many years before, at the behest of Mrs. Moore, and eventually quit for its self-indulgence. Lewis realizes this again when he writes in one entry late in this account, “The notes have been about myself, and about H. [Joy], and about God. In that order. The order and the proportions exactly what they ought not to have been.” Later entries show the proportions do not remain this way. It may be that with some resolution of the grief he quits the journal again, as it seems the resolution has only begun when the book ends.