C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication

Steven Beebe

C. S. Lewis, based on the popularity of his books and essays, is one of the best communicators of the twentieth century. During his lifetime he was hailed for his talents as author, speaker, educator, and broadcaster; he continues to be a best-selling author more than a half-century after his death.

C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication analyzes Lewis’s communication skill. A comprehensive review of Lewis’s work reveals five communication principles that explain his success as a communicator. Based on Lewis’s own advice about communication in his books, essays, and letters, as well as his communication practice, being a skilled communicator is to be holistic, intentional, transpositional, evocative, and audience-centered. These five principles are memorably summarized by the acronym HI TEA. Dr. Steven Beebe, past president of the National Communication Association and an internationally-recognized communication author and educator, uses Lewis’s own words to examine these five principles in a most engaging style.

Cover
Title
Copyright
About the author
About the book
This eBook can be cited
Contents
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgements
1 The Case for C. S. Lewis as Master Communicator
- A Popular Communicator
- A Professional Communicator
- A Professor of Communication
- HI TEA: A Preview of Lewis’s Communication Lessons
  - Effective Communicators Are Holistic
  - Effective Communicators Are Intentional
  - Effective Communicators Are Transpositional
  - Effective Communicators Are Evocative
  - Effective Communicators Are Audience Centered
2 The Making of a Master Communicator
- His Family: Flora, Albert, and Warnie
- The Education of a Master Communicator
  - Boarding Schools
  - Arthur Greeves: First Friend and Intimate Confidant
  - The Great Knock
  - Oxford and the Dreaming Spires
- The Great War
- Mrs. Moore and Lewis’s Audience
- J. R. R. Tolkien: Oxford Friend and Colleague
- A Most Reluctant Conversion
- Surprised by Marriage: Finding Joy and Observing Grief
- A Well-Read Mind Awake
3 C. S. Lewis’s Big Ideas
- Longing: The Quest to Find Home
- The Tao: Universal Truth
- Christianity: Lewis’s Primary Sense-Making Lens
- Language: Metaphorical Shaper of Thought and Meaning
- Summary: Lewis’s Big Ideas
  - Longing
  - The Tao
  - Christianity
  - Language
4 Holistic
- Principle One: Effective Communicators Are Holistic
- One Style: Communicating for Both the Eye and the Ear
- Two Lewises: The Integration of Reason and Imagination
- Three Methods: The Integration of Rhetoric, Dialectic, and the Poetic
  - Rhetoric
  - Dialectic
  - Poetic
- Summary: The “H” of HI TEA: The Principle of Being Holistic
5 Intentional
- Principle Two: Effective Communicators Are Intentional
- The Meaning of Meaning
  - Evidential Meaning
  - Psychological Meaning
  - Empirical (Symbolic) Meaning
- Master of Invention
- Clarity
- Style
- Summary: The “I” of “HI TEA”: The Principle of Being Intentional
6 Transpositional
- Principle Three: Effective Communicators Are Transpositional
- Translation: A Prelude to Transposition
- Transposition: Communicating from Higher to Lower, Richer to Poorer
- Visual Metaphor: The Technique of Transposition
- Summary: The “T” of “HI TEA”: The Principle of Transposition
7 Evocative
- Principle Four: Effective Communicators Evoke Emotions
- Evoke by Selecting the Right Word
- Evoke by Using Comparison
- Evoke by Placing Us in the Middle of Things
- Evoke by Telling Stories
- Evoke by Using Myth
- Summary: The “E” of “HI TEA”: The Principle of Evoking Emotions
8 Audience Centered
- Principle Five: Effective Communicators Are Audience Centered
- Misanalysing His Audience: Learning from Communication Failures
- Editing for the Audience
- Relating to the Audience
- Speaking to an Audience
- Being a Good Audience Member
- Summary: The “A” of “HI TEA”: The Principle of Being Audience Centered
9 How to Communicate Like C. S. Lewis
- How to Be Holistic
  - Communicate for the Eye and the Ear
  - Use Interesting and Varied Supporting Material
  - Communicate to the Whole Mind
- How to Be Intentional
  - Have Something to Say
  - Develop a Clear Communication Objective
  - Use Language Precisely
- How to Be Transpositional
  - Use Comparisons Skillfully
  - Communicate for the “Mind’s Eye”
  - Craft Effective Visual Metaphors
- How to Be Evocative
  - Tell Stories
  - Get Messages Out of People
  - Master Nonverbal Communication Skills
  - Maximize Eye Contact
  - Use Appropriate Gestures and Movement
  - Maintain Effective Posture
  - Use Appropriate Facial Expressions
- How to Be an Audience-Centered Communicator
  - Enhance Your Credibility
  - Select the Appropriate Communication Channel
  - Analyze and Adapt to Your Audience
  - For Receptive Audiences,
  - For Neutral or Apathetic Audiences,
  - For an Unreceptive Audience,
- Remember HI TEA
  - Be a Holistic Communicator
  - Be an Intentional Communicator
  - Be a Transpositional Communicator
  - Be an Evocative Communicator
  - Be an Audience-Centered Communicator
Index

Pages:

XXXII, 304

Year:

2020

ISBN (HARDBACK):

9781433172335 (Active)

ISBN (PAPERBACK):

9781433172342 (Active)

ISBN (EPUB):

9781433172366 (Active)

ISBN (PDF):

9781433172359 (Active)

DOI:

10.3726/b15950

Language:

English

Published:

New York, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Oxford, Wien, 2020. XXXII, 304 pp.

Steven A. Beebe (Ph.D., University of Missouri-Columbia) is Regents’ and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Communication Studies at Texas State University. He is an internationally recognized communication educator and prolific author and co-author of best-selling communication books used at universities throughout the world. He served as president of the National Communication Association and was named Outstanding Communication Professor in America by the National Speaker’s Association.

“If you have long loved C. S. Lewis—Christian apologist, children’s book author, Oxford and Cambridge scholar—viewing Lewis through the lens of what he can teach us about human communication is likely a new experience. Beebe’s decades of Lewis scholarship and teaching from a communication standpoint has led to this singular contribution that expands our understanding of and appreciation for Lewis. For those who aspire to teach students about Lewis’s power to move people through his written and oral communication, we now have the perfect primer.”—Diana K. Ivy, Professor of Communication Studies, Texas A & M University—Corpus Christi

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C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication

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