Till We Have Faces

C. S. Lewis’ retelling of the myth of a beautiful girl sacrificed to a monster who ends up being a god is considered by many to be his best work of fiction. Like other ancient tales its appeals to the situation we humans find ourselves in on a very deep level. 

The story begins with a king and his three daughters, the youngest (of course) is beautiful beyond measure. When the kingdom falls on hard times the high priest prophesies that the only way out is to offer the princess to a monster as his bride.  

So far, Lewis sticks pretty much to the mythic version except in his use of the eldest, ugly daughter as a narrator.  This is where it gets interesting. As a teen, I related to the narrator’s complicated relationship with her sister which can switch from love to jealousy in an instant. Psyche, the beautiful sister, calls out to her sister from across a wide river to tell her that she’s alive and well and married to a most kind and gentle husband who has made only one demand, that she’s not to behold him in the light since witnessing his glory would blind her.  But her sister plants doubt in Psyche’s mind causing her to disobey her true love and suffer the consequences. 

Few stories I’ve read in my life have cut to the depths of my woman’s heart like this one. Not a light read, for sure, but a genuine classic in every sense of the word. 

If you’ve read it, I love to hear your opinion. Take a minute to comment below, and make sure to subscribe.