Genesis and Paradise Lost

Abstract

For C. S. Lewis, the peaceful coexistence of diverse species depicted in biblical myth is a paradise lost. The story of humanity’s fall and expulsion from the Garden of Eden has implications for animal-human relations because those made in the image of God are unable to exercise godly dominion over the earth. Furthermore, nature is ‘red in tooth and claw.’ It is something spoiled, something corrupted by dark spiritual forces long before the arrival of humans. This chapter examines Lewis’s highly speculative ideas about animal suffering and humanity’s priestly role in creation.