Literature Study GuidesThe Great Divorce

The Great Divorce | Study Guide

C.S. Lewis

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Study Guide
Contents
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MLA

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Course Hero. "The Great Divorce Study Guide." Course Hero. 20 Dec. 2019. Web. 3 Dec. 2021. <https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Great-Divorce/>.

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APA

Bibliography

Course Hero. (2019, December 20). The Great Divorce Study Guide. In Course Hero. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Great-Divorce/

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(Course Hero, 2019)

Chicago

Bibliography

Course Hero. "The Great Divorce Study Guide." December 20, 2019. Accessed December 3, 2021. https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Great-Divorce/.

Footnote

Course Hero, "The Great Divorce Study Guide," December 20, 2019, accessed December 3, 2021, https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Great-Divorce/.

Overview

Author

C.S. Lewis

Year Published

1945

Type

Religious Text

Genre

Allegory

Perspective and Narrator

Although unnamed, the narrator is implied to be C.S. Lewis, who is writing about a dream he had.

About the Title

The book was originally published in serial form in The Guardian over the course of 1944 and 1945. The title The Great Divorce references William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Stage productions have used the title The Great Divorce.

Diagrams

Narrator Dreaming; unidentified Ikey Ghost; aspiring businessman The Poet Ghost; died by suicide Michael Spirit Writer Reginald Spirit The Driver Spirit; drives the bus Ghost, grieving Pam George MacDonald Driver on bus to afterlife Driver on bus to afterlife Sister Uncle Mother Driver on bus to afterlife Seatmates on bus to afterlife Acquaintances; co-passengers on bus to afterlife Guide to afterlife; mentor Driver on bus to afterlife Co-passengers on bus to afterlife
Character Map
plot-diagram
Plot Diagram

Summary

This study guide for C.S. Lewis's The Great Divorce offers summary and analysis on themes, symbols, and other literary devices found in the text. Explore Course Hero's library of literature materials, including documents and Q&A pairs.

Characters

Narrator

Symbols

The Lizard The Horizon The Pain of Walking The Chessboard

Themes

Heaven and Hell Free Will and Salvation The Nature of Sin Love and the Self
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Context
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