Many Great Divorces

In the previous lesson, we discussed the "great divorce" between Heaven and Hell. According to Lewis, good must separate from evil in the end. Each person must make an ultimate choice to divorce themselves from either Heaven or Hell.

Multiple conversations between the solid people and ghosts in The Great Divorce dramatize this choice.

Assignment Details

For this assignment, you will write an original conversation between a solid person and a ghost of your own invention in the style of The Great Divorce. The ghost should be clinging to some "remnant" of Hell that they cannot bring to Heaven. This remnant could be an evil thing or a good thing turned evil (like the possessive love of the ghost in chapter 11).

Remember, each encounter in the story follows the same pattern:

1. A "ghost" meets a "solid/bright person" or an angel.

2. Through conversation, the ghost reveals which remnant of Hell that they cling to: pride, intellectualism, self-pity, etc.

3. The solid person/angel tries to convince them to divorce this remnant and move on into Heaven.

4. The ghost makes an ultimate choice that divorces them from either Heaven or Hell. Most deliberately choose to return to Hell.

Follow this same pattern for your original conversation. The entire conversation should take up 2–4 pages total (Times New Roman, 12-pt font, double-spaced).