The Novels of Charles Williams

The Novels of Charles Williams PDF Author: Thomas Howard
Publisher: Ignatius Press
ISBN: 1681495260
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
The fanciful novels of Charles Williams have long fascinated a rather elite reading public—T.S. Eliot, W.H. Auden and C.S. Lewis for example, were among his great admirers. But those books—which include The Place of the Lion, Descent into Hell, and All Hallow’s Eve—are also dense and perplexing, and even the writer’s fondest devotees have found the meanings of his fiction elusive. Here at last is a clear and informed guide to the complexities and rich rewards of Charles William’s novels. As Thomas Howard notes, William’s tales might best be described as “metaphysical thrillers.” In which Williams used occult “machinery” in much the same way that Conrad used exotic locales and Joyce used the subconscious: to vivify human experience and awaken readers to its range and possibilities. One tale might feature a chase for the Holy Grail across Hertfordshire fields, while in another “the picture may switch with no apology at all from a policeman at a crossroad to the Byzantine Emperor.” As Howard lucidly demonstrates, the controlling factor behind William’s work is an essentially Christian worldview in which “heaven and hell seem to lurk under every bush” and the constant theme is order versus disintegration. Concentrating on William’s novels, Howard brilliantly illuminates the major concerns that informed all of William’s thinking. Howard also considers William’s work in the context of modern fictional practice and assesses its place in the tradition of the English language novel.

The Novels of Charles Williams

The Novels of Charles Williams PDF Author: Thomas Howard
Publisher: Ignatius Press
ISBN: 1681495260
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 267

Get Book

Book Description
The fanciful novels of Charles Williams have long fascinated a rather elite reading public—T.S. Eliot, W.H. Auden and C.S. Lewis for example, were among his great admirers. But those books—which include The Place of the Lion, Descent into Hell, and All Hallow’s Eve—are also dense and perplexing, and even the writer’s fondest devotees have found the meanings of his fiction elusive. Here at last is a clear and informed guide to the complexities and rich rewards of Charles William’s novels. As Thomas Howard notes, William’s tales might best be described as “metaphysical thrillers.” In which Williams used occult “machinery” in much the same way that Conrad used exotic locales and Joyce used the subconscious: to vivify human experience and awaken readers to its range and possibilities. One tale might feature a chase for the Holy Grail across Hertfordshire fields, while in another “the picture may switch with no apology at all from a policeman at a crossroad to the Byzantine Emperor.” As Howard lucidly demonstrates, the controlling factor behind William’s work is an essentially Christian worldview in which “heaven and hell seem to lurk under every bush” and the constant theme is order versus disintegration. Concentrating on William’s novels, Howard brilliantly illuminates the major concerns that informed all of William’s thinking. Howard also considers William’s work in the context of modern fictional practice and assesses its place in the tradition of the English language novel.

The Novels of Charles Williams

The Novels of Charles Williams PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Benediction Classics
ISBN: 9781789432220
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 1090

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Book Description
"The Novels of Charles Williams" is a collection of seven gripping novels. They have inspired C. S. Lewis and numerous other writers of fantasy.

Charles Williams

Charles Williams PDF Author: Grevel Lindop
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0191063126
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 516

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Book Description
This is the first full biography of Charles Williams (1886-1945), an extraordinary and controversial figure who was a central member of the Inklings—the group of Oxford writers that included C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Charles Williams—novelist, poet, theologian, magician and guru—was the strangest, most multi-talented, and most controversial member of the group. He was a pioneering fantasy writer, who still has a cult following. C.S. Lewis thought his poems on King Arthur and the Holy Grail were among the best poetry of the twentieth century for 'the soaring and gorgeous novelty of their technique, and their profound wisdom'. But Williams was full of contradictions. An influential theologian, Williams was also deeply involved in the occult, experimenting extensively with magic, practising erotically-tinged rituals, and acquiring a following of devoted disciples. Membership of the Inklings, whom he joined at the outbreak of the Second World War, was only the final phase in a remarkable career. From a poor background in working-class London, Charles Williams rose to become an influential publisher, a successful dramatist, and an innovative literary critic. His friends and admirers included T.S. Eliot, W.H. Auden, Dylan Thomas, and the young Philip Larkin. A charismatic personality, he held left-wing political views, and believed that the Christian churches had dangerously undervalued sexuality. To redress the balance, he developed a 'Romantic Theology', aiming at an approach to God through sexual love. He became the most admired lecturer in wartime Oxford, influencing a generation of young writers before dying suddenly at the height of his powers. This biography draws on a wealth of documents, letters and private papers, many never before opened to researchers, and on more than twenty interviews with people who knew Williams. It vividly recreates the bizarre and dramatic life of this strange, uneasy genius, of whom Eliot wrote, 'For him there was no frontier between the material and the spiritual world.'

The Greater Trumps

The Greater Trumps PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Read Books Ltd
ISBN: 1528786769
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 207

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Book Description
First published in 1932, “The Greater Trumps” is a novel by British writer Charles W. S. Williams. At its heart, it is a story of how to use the original Tarot cards to divine the meaning of all cosmic processes, illustrated throughout with beautiful images of a deck of Tarot cards originally designed by the French engraver and map-maker Claude Bardel in 1751. Charles Walter Stansby Williams (1886 – 1945) was a British theologian, novelist, poet, playwright, and literary critic. He was also a member of the “The Inklings”, a literary discussion group connected to the University of Oxford, England. They were exclusively literary enthusiasts who championed the merit of narrative in fiction and concentrated on writing fantasy. He was given an scholarship to University College London, but was forced to leave in 1904 because he couldn't afford the tuition fees. Other notable works by this author include: “The Greater Trumps” (1932), “War in Heaven” (1930), and “The Place of the Lion” (1931). This volume is highly recommended for lovers of fantasy fiction, and it would make for a fantastic addition to any collection. Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. It is with this in mind that we are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with the original text and artwork.

All Hallows' Eve

All Hallows' Eve PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781676296003
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
Charles Williams had a genius for choosing strange and exciting themes for his novels and making them believable and profoundly suggestive of spiritual truths. All Hallows' Eve is the story of a man and woman whose love was so great it could bridge the gap of death; of evil so terrible as to be unmentionable, of a vision so beautiful it must be true.

War in Heaven

War in Heaven PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781774641323
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 190

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Book Description
Williams gives a contemporary setting to the traditional story of the Search for the Holy Grail. Examining the distinction between magic and religion, War in Heaven is an eerily disturbing book, one that graphically portrays a metaphysical journey filled with marvels and black magic, God and the Devil. "The telephone was ringing wildly," begins War in Heaven, "but without result, since there was no-one in the room but the corpse." From this abrupt - and darkly humorous - start, Williams takes us on a 20th-century version of the Grail quest, with an Archdeacon, a Duke, and an editor playing the old Arthurian roles. Throughout, Williams reminds us that these legends were above all about divine, not just human, romance.

War In Heaven

War In Heaven PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
ISBN: 1787200469
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Book Description
In War in Heaven Williams gives a contemporary setting to the traditional story of the Search for the Holy Grail. Examining the distinction between magic and religion, this eerily disturbing book graphically portrays a metaphysical journey through the shadowy crevices of the human mind. “Reading Charles Williams is an unforgettable experience.”—SATURDAY REVIEW “...one of the most gifted and influential Christian writers England has produced this century.”—TIME “Charles Williams’s firm conviction that the spiritual world is not simply a reality parallel with that of the material one, but is rather its source and its abiding infrastructure, is explicit in both the manner and matter of all he wrote. Hence the unique contribution offered by his novels to the materialistic age in which these characters live and behave and their plots unfold.”—OWEN BARFIELD “Charles Williams took the form of the thriller and used it to create an extraordinary genre that has sometimes been called ‘spiritual shockers.’ His books are immensely worth reading, even if you consider yourself unspiritual and immune to shock.”—HUMPHREY CARPENTER “...satire, romance, thriller, morality, and glimpses of eternity all rolled into one.”—THE NEW YORK TIMES

A Touch of Death

A Touch of Death PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Overamstel Uitgevers
ISBN: 9049983758
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 227

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Book Description
The score would be an easy one—if it weren’t for the women involved Out of work and dead broke, Lee Scarborough is a long way from his days as a football hero when he meets the sunbathing Diana James—an innocent-looking creature with a plan to make a fortune. A few months’ back, her lover embezzled $120,000 from a bank, but disappeared before she could get her hands on the cash. The police think he’s fled the state, but Diana is sure he’s dead, and knows who killed him: his wife, Madelon Butler, a sadistic drunk who is capable of anything. The cash is inside Madelon’s house, waiting to be stolen a third time, and all Diana needs is a patsy. Scarborough fits the bill. The plan sails along smoothly until Scarborough meets Mrs. Butler. By the time his luck runs out, he’d rather face a dozen hulking linebackers than these two beauties, who have been driven to a frenzy by jealousy, greed, and lust.

The Hot Spot

The Hot Spot PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Overamstel Uitgevers
ISBN: 9049983715
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 227

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Book Description
For Madox, a dull town, a beautiful woman, and an easy bank heist spell doom In a town so small that Main Street is only three blocks long, there isn’t a lot to do—other than work, ogle women, and think about fast ways to get rich. After a year of aimless wandering, Madox has landed here, nearly broke and with no prospects but a dead-end job selling cars to yokels. Until one afternoon a fire at the burger joint draws the attention of everyone in town—including the men who are supposed to be guarding the bank. It’s almost too good to be true, but there it is—$15,000 lying around, watched by no one. Now all Madox needs is a little nerve and a second distraction. And while one woman will give him the nerve, another will make him ready to kill.

Many Dimensions

Many Dimensions PDF Author: Charles Williams
Publisher: Open Road Media
ISBN: 150400664X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
An ancient stone possessing awesome and terrifying powers wreaks havoc in this intelligent and provocative literary excursion into the supernatural A remarkable object has fallen into the hands of the abominable scientist Sir Giles Tumulty. Once positioned at the center of the crown of King Solomon, it is a stone of astonishing and terrifying power, capable of good and evil alike. Anyone who touches it can move through time and space, perform miracles, and heal or kill. The stone can replicate itself, and does so during the course of Sir Giles’s inhuman experiments, subsequently falling into numerous unworthy hands throughout England. There are those who will attempt to use the stone for personal gain, only to discover that it is they themselves being used by a power beyond their comprehension; some will find themselves trapped in eternally repeating nightmares from which there is no escape; still others will be freed from their earthly burdens. And so begins the battle between the forces of darkness and light for control of the most dangerous object in existence. A gripping metaphysical thriller by Charles Williams, who along with C. S. Lewis, Owen Barfield, and J. R. R. Tolkien was one of Oxford’s famed Inklings, Many Dimensions is at once a gripping supernatural adventure and a thought-provoking exploration of the good and evil that dwell in the heart of every human being.