C. S. Lewis The Inner Ring

“I am going to do something more old-fashioned than you perhaps expected. I am going to give advice.” Declared C.S. Lewis in his “The Inner Ring” speech, and did he ever give advice. Arguably, C.S. Lewis could be considered one of the most controversial and renowned writers in literary history. From “The Chronicles of Narnia” series to “Screwtape Letters”, Lewis changed the face of religion in the written word. He maintained this powerful communication skill throughout his speeches as well. “The Inner Ring” speech, given at the Memorial Lecture at King College, University of London, in 1944 challenges the very grounds of popularity and the human motives and desires behind chasing these goals. Spoken to youth, this speech obviously stands

on heavy grounds and penetrates the age group precisely. His rhetorical situation, use of claims, and his final conviction give him an impenetrable speech to be chewed on by its readers. Lewis’s speech intends to aid in advice and he clearly does just that.
At the time of the speech Lewis calls himself a “middle-aged moralist” along with the idea that the younger crowd may not want to hear what he had to instill in them.

This speech took place during World War II and his first few statements clarify this. “…what part you ought to play in post-war reconstruction…” Lewis takes this speech an entirely different route than expected. He wears the fatherly figure in his speech, initiating advice for the younger generation. He introduces the fact that when advising others, most people use three figureheads: “the World, the Flesh, and the Devil”, but he decides to leave all but one alone. He uses “the World” as his starting grounds for the implication of his speech. He begins by giving examples of human knowledge of hierarchies or as he will refer to, “rings”. He quotes so simply the idea of these rings as, “some people are obviously in and some are obviously out….” This statement alone targets the younger crowd he preaches to. His Tolstoy exampleof a young soldier only aids in his objective audience. Lewis’s purpose for this speech is to encourage the youth to be their own “in” crowd. In being the best they can be, they are ultimately a part of the finest “in” crowd there is. He relates his argument back to the idea that each one of these listeners had felt the force of the Inner ring at this point in their lives - whether at home, work, school, or play. Lewis gets right to the point the audience this speech is intended

for, and uses his purpose to flush out many of points related to the Inner ring idea.
Lewis presents two major claims in this speech.

“I must now make a distinction. I am not going to say that the existence of Inner Rings is an evil. It is certainly unavoidable.” He makes it extremely clear that nobody will be able to dodge the desires to be on the inside. Lewis states that by having these rings, it creates a healthy balance in society in which we involve ourselves in. But the evil evolves when we make becoming the “in” crowd our only goal. In a roundabout way Lewis says that forfeiting your love, desires, passions, and interests to get with the “popular” is when the true evil happens. Lewis’s second claim is as follows: “My main purpose in this address is simply to convince you that this desire is one of the great permanent mainsprings of human action.” Lewis again makes it clear that while these feelings and emotions are to him unavoidable, they are on the contrary quite controllable. He continues to back up this statement, by saying that all of his audience will at some point in their lives be confronted with the opportunity to sacrifice something to join the “it” crowd. “Over a drink or a cup of coffee, disguised as triviality and sandwiched between two jokes, from the lips of a man, or woman, whom you have recently been getting to know…..” It is in these moments that will truly define our future character in life. Lewis makes two powerful claims that allude that Inner rings are unavoidable, but you can control your reaction to these

instituted hierarchies.
Lewis uses definition, induction and values in “The Inner Ring”. His consistent use of the word “inner ring” and his defining keywords along with it help place his word into a definite category. His ample use of examples, quotes, and scenario allow the use and application of an accurate induction. Appealing to human values and emotions is prevalent in the third major structure of his argument. Talking to the crowd about their emotions and their thoughts and how they tie to human nature only develops his argument in appeals to the values of his audience. His application of definition, induction, and values backs and strengthen his argument in tenfold.
“The circle cannot have from within the charm it had from outside. By the very act of admitting you it has lost its magic.” In one of Lewis’s closing statements, he drives the purpose of his speech home. The desire to be inside the inner ring will never be satisfactory. Once on the inside, all originality of the present human is lost. “The quest of the Inner ring will break your hearts unless you break it.” In his final disbandment of the Inner ring, Lewis announces that it will be the pitfall of a human until they can accept who they are instead of accepting the labels of the World. Lewis touches a sensitive subject in a very powerful manner, convincing the listener of the past and the reader of the present that being true to oneself is the best Inner ring there is. In the end, “the true road lies in quite another direction”.