That hideous strength
a modern fairy-tale for grown-ups
by C. S. Lewis · first published 1945
30% recommend64% neutral6% critical
Why HN recommends it
An early dystopian novel that depicts a nation's slide into totalitarian institutions, with sharp satire of bureaucracy and science gone wrong. It suits readers who enjoy dystopian fiction and the Space Trilogy.
Common criticism: Critics find its portrayal of opponents caricatured and its allegory heavy-handed.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
2. That hideous strength : a modern fairy-tale for grown-ups Add to My List by Lewis, C. S. (Clive Staples), 1898-1963. ... That hideous strength : a modern fairy-tale for grown-ups / C.S. Lewis. ... Publisher, Date: New York : Scribner Classics, 1996. http://www.loc.gov/catdir/bios/simon051/96020722.html - Contributor biographical information Description: 380 p. ; 25 cm. Local Availability 0 (of 1) System Availability 0 (of 1) Call Number: F Lew 1996 Summary Table of Contents Large Cover Image Book Discussion Guides More titles li
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If you like this, you may also be interested in reading Orwell's book review of C.S. Lewis, _That Hideous Strength_, which appeared well before the publication of _1984_. The review itself is titled "The Scientists Take Over" and may give some insight into the mindset of the day. A copy is here: http://www.lewisiana.nl/orwell/…
on “Letter from Orwell to his publisher regarding 1984” ↗That Hideous Strength is a good book, but it's just bizarre compared to the previous two books in the trilogy (and admittedly Perelandra gets pretty bizarre in the final 20% or so of the book). But my favorite lesson is from…
on “Inner Ring – CS Lewis” ↗People interested in Orwell's 1984 might also be interested in C. S. Lewis's' That Hideous Strength, a pre-Atomic treatment of the dystopian sci-fi future from an unexpected author that actually predates 1984. Here's a review... by Orwell. http://www.lewisiana.nl/orwell/ > His book describes the struggle…
on “1984: The masterpiece that killed George Orwell” ↗That Hideous Strength is anything but "thinly-disguised Christian propaganda targeted towards children." First, as a novel, it's openly Christian (which, combined with the sci-fi dystopia, makes it a pretty unique entity -…
on “1984: The masterpiece that killed George Orwell” ↗One of my favorites is the portrayal of N.I.C.E. director John Wither in "That Hideous Strength" by C. S. Lewis. (especially Chapter 3, "Belbury and St. Anne’s-on-the-Hill") http://fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20141232
on “Bartholomew L. Bartholomew” ↗That Hideous Strength is, to me, the most challenging of his space trilogy. I liked Perelandra best, but only after reading it a second time when a friend pointed out that it was a reimagining of the garden of Eden (I was…
on “The Scientists Take Over: George Orwell Reviews “That Hideous Strength” (1945)” ↗Essay - C.S. Lewis - The weight of glory. Caused me to see all beauty in a different light. Novel - C.S Lewis - That hideous strength. Caused me to stop thinking of conspiracy theories as people huddled in a room like the Illuminati. Runner ups - Les Mis - helped me love the less fortunate 1984 - the importance of language.
on “Ask HN: Which book/essay changed your life?” ↗As long as we're throwing out reading recommendations, if you're into the dystopian-future sci-fi genre I'll point out C. S. Lewis's That Hideous Strength as an early prototype of that genre. It documents the fall of a nation into dystopia, specifically; George Orwell himself was fascinated by this, as evidenced by the book review he published. (However,…
on “Civ II game a decade old” ↗For further historical perspective, general edification, and an ounce of insight into the motivation and fears of the people who might oppose your goals, read the science-fiction novel _That Hideous Strength_ by C. S. Lewis. In presenting the rise of a dystopia it provides a meaningful illustration of public perceptions of technology and progress, and historical anti-technology sentiment. Moreover, if you…
on “The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture” ↗Replying to the article's illustration here... 1984 was not the instruction manual. It mostly deals with the ongoing operations and consequences of the police state and its surveillance. _That Hideous Strength_, its spiritual prequel (written by C. S. Lewis and published shortly before the atomic bomb, later reviewed and then ripped off by Orwell) is the instruction manual. :) (In Orwell's defense, he did…
on “PRISM? Come to Israel to study our surveillance state” ↗As long as we're adding books to a dystopian-novel reading list, consider That Hideous Strength - a sort of spiritual prequel to 1984 describing the gradual rise of such a regime. It also might be the last major work in the genre before the atomic bomb, and predates 1984. It's a transitional work,…
on “Obama Sides with Cameron in Encryption Fight” ↗Fun article! Interesting titles. Of the post-Radium-Age list, I'd like to point out C. S. Lewis' That Hideous Strength for special attention, just because everyone and their dog has some experience with Narnia and usually has some preconceptions of what Lewis is all about based on those -- but this story is likely to…
on “Stories from Radium Age sci-fi, which ruled the early 20th century” ↗…makes it possible to know them pretty well. If you haven't tried it, I strongly suggest it :) Since you called out Lewis -- one of my favorites is his The Abolition of Man and its narrative counterpart That Hideous Strength. They describe in exquisite, arguably prophetic detail many of the evils of the modern left, particularly how it has ushered in a progressive downfall of society through institutionalized lies.
on “Federal Government's letter to Harvard demanding changes [pdf]” ↗Books have already been written on this, some as early as 1945 (That Hideous Strength, C.S. Lewis). Otherwise I can recommend basically everything by Curtis Yarvin and Kevin Dolan (https://substack.com/@exitgroup, https://substack.com/@exitgroup). There is a wide and rich ocean of deep…
on “UK Defence Startups Are Being Denied Banking Services Under ESG Rules” ↗The only one who got it spot on was C.S. Lewis (in 'That Hideous Strength').
on “97% of American adults own a cellphone or smartphone” ↗