Charles Williams (UK writer)
Encyclopedia
Charles Walter Stansby Williams (20 September 1886 – 15 May 1945) was a British poet, novelist, theologian, literary critic, and member of the Inklings
.
, Hertfordshire
, Williams was awarded a scholarship to University College London
, but was forced to leave in 1904 without taking a degree because his family lacked the financial resources to support him. In the same year he began work in a Methodist Bookroom. Williams was hired by Oxford University Press
as a proofreading assistant in 1908 before quickly climbing to the position of editor. He continued to work at OUP in various positions of increasing responsibility until his death in 1945. One of his greatest editorial achievements was the publication of the first major English-language edition of the works of Søren Kierkegaard
.
Although chiefly remembered as a novelist, Williams also published poetry, works of literary criticism, theology, drama, history, biography, and a voluminous number of book reviews. Some of his best known novels are War in Heaven (1930), Descent into Hell
(1937), and All Hallows' Eve (1945). T. S. Eliot
, who wrote an introduction for the last of these, described Williams’s novels as "supernatural thrillers" because they explore the sacramental intersection of the physical with the spiritual while also examining the ways in which power, even spiritual power, can corrupt as well as sanctify. All of Williams’ fantasies, unlike those of J. R. R. Tolkien
and most of those of C. S. Lewis
, are set in the contemporary world. More recent writers of fantasy novels with contemporary settings, notably Tim Powers
, cite Williams as a model and inspiration. W. H. Auden
, one of Williams’ greatest admirers, reportedly re-read Williams’s extraordinary and highly unconventional history of the church, Descent of the Dove (1939), every year. Williams’s study of Dante entitled The Figure of Beatrice (1944) was very highly regarded at its time of publication and continues to be consulted by Dante
scholars today. Williams, however, regarded his most important work to be his extremely dense and complex Arthurian
poetry, of which two books were published, Taliessin through Logres (1938) and The Region of the Summer Stars (1944), and more remained unfinished at his death. Some of Williams’ best essays were collected and published in Anne Ridler
's Image of the City and Other Essays in 1958.
Williams gathered many followers and disciples during his lifetime. He was, for a period, a member of the Salvator Mundi Temple of the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. He met fellow Anglican Evelyn Underhill
(who was affiliated with a similar group, the Order of the Golden Dawn) in 1937 and was later to write the introduction to her published Letters in 1943. Williams also formed master-disciple relationships with young women throughout his lifetime. The best known (though probably not the most significant) of these occurred in the early 1940s with Lois Lang Sims. Lang Sims, whom Williams referred to as Lalage, published a series of letters that Williams wrote to her during this period in a volume entitled Letters to Lalage (1989). Though Williams married his first sweetheart, Florence Conway, in 1917, he continually struggled to reconcile a lifelong (though probably unconsummated) love affair with Phyllis Jones (who joined the Oxford University Press
in 1924 as librarian) with his Christian faith (he was an unswerving and devoted member of the Church of England
, reputedly with a tolerance of the scepticism of others and a firm belief in the necessity of a "doubting Thomas" in any apostolic body).
Although Williams attracted the attention and admiration of some of the most notable writers of his day, including T. S. Eliot
and W. H. Auden
, his greatest admirer was probably C. S. Lewis
, whose novel That Hideous Strength
was at the time regarded as entirely inspired by Williams's novels. Williams came to know Lewis after reading Lewis’s recently published study The Allegory of Love
; he was so impressed he jotted down a letter of congratulations and dropped it in the mail. Coincidentally, Lewis had just finished reading Williams’s novel The Place of the Lion
and had written a similar note of congratulations. The letters crossed in the mail and led to an enduring and fruitful friendship. When World War II
broke out in 1939, Oxford University Press
moved its offices from London
to Oxford
. Although Williams was reluctant to leave his beloved city, this move did allow him to participate regularly in Lewis’s literary society known as the Inklings
. In this setting Williams was able to read (and improve) his final published novel, All Hallows' Eve, as well as to hear J. R. R. Tolkien
read some of his early drafts of The Lord of the Rings
aloud to the group. In addition to meeting in Lewis’ rooms at Oxford, they also regularly met at The Eagle and Child
pub in Oxford (better known by its nickname "The Bird and Baby"). During this time Williams also gave lectures at Oxford
on John Milton
and received an honorary M.A. degree. Williams is buried in Holywell Cemetery
, Oxford: his headstone bears the word "poet".
Inklings
The Inklings was an informal literary discussion group associated with the University of Oxford, England, for nearly two decades between the early 1930s and late 1949. The Inklings were literary enthusiasts who praised the value of narrative in fiction, and encouraged the writing of fantasy...
.
Biography
Williams was born in London in 1886, the only son of Richard and Mary Williams of Islington. He had one sister, Edith, born in 1889. Educated at St Albans SchoolSt Albans School (Hertfordshire)
St Albans School is an independent school in the city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, in the East of England. Entry before Sixth Form is for boys only, and co-educational thereafter. Founded in 948 by Wulsin , St Albans School is not only the oldest school in Hertfordshire but also one of the oldest...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, Williams was awarded a scholarship to University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
, but was forced to leave in 1904 without taking a degree because his family lacked the financial resources to support him. In the same year he began work in a Methodist Bookroom. Williams was hired by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
as a proofreading assistant in 1908 before quickly climbing to the position of editor. He continued to work at OUP in various positions of increasing responsibility until his death in 1945. One of his greatest editorial achievements was the publication of the first major English-language edition of the works of Søren Kierkegaard
Søren Kierkegaard
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish Christian philosopher, theologian and religious author. He was a critic of idealist intellectuals and philosophers of his time, such as Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel...
.
Although chiefly remembered as a novelist, Williams also published poetry, works of literary criticism, theology, drama, history, biography, and a voluminous number of book reviews. Some of his best known novels are War in Heaven (1930), Descent into Hell
Descent into Hell
Descent Into Hell is a novel written by Charles Williams, first published in 1937.-Overview:Williams is less well known than his fellow Inklings, such as C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien. Like some of them, however, he wrote a series of novels which combine elements of fantasy fiction and Christian...
(1937), and All Hallows' Eve (1945). T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
, who wrote an introduction for the last of these, described Williams’s novels as "supernatural thrillers" because they explore the sacramental intersection of the physical with the spiritual while also examining the ways in which power, even spiritual power, can corrupt as well as sanctify. All of Williams’ fantasies, unlike those of J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
and most of those of C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
, are set in the contemporary world. More recent writers of fantasy novels with contemporary settings, notably Tim Powers
Tim Powers
Timothy Thomas "Tim" Powers is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels Last Call and Declare...
, cite Williams as a model and inspiration. W. H. Auden
W. H. Auden
Wystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
, one of Williams’ greatest admirers, reportedly re-read Williams’s extraordinary and highly unconventional history of the church, Descent of the Dove (1939), every year. Williams’s study of Dante entitled The Figure of Beatrice (1944) was very highly regarded at its time of publication and continues to be consulted by Dante
DANTE
Delivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe is a not-for-profit organisation that plans, builds and operates the international networks that interconnect the various national research and education networks in Europe and surrounding regions...
scholars today. Williams, however, regarded his most important work to be his extremely dense and complex Arthurian
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
poetry, of which two books were published, Taliessin through Logres (1938) and The Region of the Summer Stars (1944), and more remained unfinished at his death. Some of Williams’ best essays were collected and published in Anne Ridler
Anne Ridler
Anne Barbara Ridler OBE was a British poet, and Faber and Faber editor, selecting the Faber A Little Book of Modern Verse with T. S. Eliot . Her Collected Poems were published in 1994...
's Image of the City and Other Essays in 1958.
Williams gathered many followers and disciples during his lifetime. He was, for a period, a member of the Salvator Mundi Temple of the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. He met fellow Anglican Evelyn Underhill
Evelyn Underhill
Evelyn Underhill was an English Anglo-Catholic writer and pacifist known for her numerous works on religion and spiritual practice, in particular Christian mysticism....
(who was affiliated with a similar group, the Order of the Golden Dawn) in 1937 and was later to write the introduction to her published Letters in 1943. Williams also formed master-disciple relationships with young women throughout his lifetime. The best known (though probably not the most significant) of these occurred in the early 1940s with Lois Lang Sims. Lang Sims, whom Williams referred to as Lalage, published a series of letters that Williams wrote to her during this period in a volume entitled Letters to Lalage (1989). Though Williams married his first sweetheart, Florence Conway, in 1917, he continually struggled to reconcile a lifelong (though probably unconsummated) love affair with Phyllis Jones (who joined the Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
in 1924 as librarian) with his Christian faith (he was an unswerving and devoted member of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, reputedly with a tolerance of the scepticism of others and a firm belief in the necessity of a "doubting Thomas" in any apostolic body).
Although Williams attracted the attention and admiration of some of the most notable writers of his day, including T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
and W. H. Auden
W. H. Auden
Wystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
, his greatest admirer was probably C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
, whose novel That Hideous Strength
That Hideous Strength
That Hideous Strength is a 1945 novel by C. S. Lewis, the final book in Lewis's theological science fiction Space Trilogy. The events of this novel follow those of Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra and once again feature the philologist Elwin Ransom...
was at the time regarded as entirely inspired by Williams's novels. Williams came to know Lewis after reading Lewis’s recently published study The Allegory of Love
The Allegory of Love
The Allegory of Love: A Study in Medieval Tradition , by C. S. Lewis , is an influential exploration of the allegorical treatment of love in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance....
; he was so impressed he jotted down a letter of congratulations and dropped it in the mail. Coincidentally, Lewis had just finished reading Williams’s novel The Place of the Lion
The Place of the Lion
The Place of the Lion is a fantasy novel written by Charles Williams. The novel was first published in 1931.Platonic archetypes begin to appear throughout England, wreaking havoc and drawing to the surface the spiritual strengths and flaws of individual characters.-Critical reception:Boucher and...
and had written a similar note of congratulations. The letters crossed in the mail and led to an enduring and fruitful friendship. When World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out in 1939, Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
moved its offices from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. Although Williams was reluctant to leave his beloved city, this move did allow him to participate regularly in Lewis’s literary society known as the Inklings
Inklings
The Inklings was an informal literary discussion group associated with the University of Oxford, England, for nearly two decades between the early 1930s and late 1949. The Inklings were literary enthusiasts who praised the value of narrative in fiction, and encouraged the writing of fantasy...
. In this setting Williams was able to read (and improve) his final published novel, All Hallows' Eve, as well as to hear J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
read some of his early drafts of The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
aloud to the group. In addition to meeting in Lewis’ rooms at Oxford, they also regularly met at The Eagle and Child
The Eagle and Child
The Eagle and Child is a pub in St Giles', Oxford, England which is owned by St. John's College, Oxford. The pub had been part of an endowment belonging to University College since the 17th century. It has associations with the Inklings writers' group which included J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S...
pub in Oxford (better known by its nickname "The Bird and Baby"). During this time Williams also gave lectures at Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
on John Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
and received an honorary M.A. degree. Williams is buried in Holywell Cemetery
Holywell Cemetery
Holywell Cemetery is next to St Cross Church in Oxford, England. The cemetery is behind the church in St Cross Road, north of Longwall Street.-History:...
, Oxford: his headstone bears the word "poet".
Williams’s novels
- War in Heaven (1930) — The Holy GrailHoly GrailThe Holy Grail is a sacred object figuring in literature and certain Christian traditions, most often identified with the dish, plate, or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper and said to possess miraculous powers...
surfaces in an obscure country parish and becomes variously a sacramental object to protect or a vessel of power to exploit. - Many Dimensions (1931) — An evil antiquarian illegally purchases the fabled Stone of Suleiman (Williams uses this Muslim form rather than the more familiar King Solomon) from its Islamic guardian in BaghdadBaghdadBaghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
and returns to England to discover not only that the Stone can multiply itself infinitely without diminishing the original, but that it also allows its possessor to transcend the barriers of space and time. - The Place of the LionThe Place of the LionThe Place of the Lion is a fantasy novel written by Charles Williams. The novel was first published in 1931.Platonic archetypes begin to appear throughout England, wreaking havoc and drawing to the surface the spiritual strengths and flaws of individual characters.-Critical reception:Boucher and...
(1931) — PlatonicPlatonismPlatonism is the philosophy of Plato or the name of other philosophical systems considered closely derived from it. In a narrower sense the term might indicate the doctrine of Platonic realism...
archetypes begin to appear around an English country town, wreaking havoc and drawing to the surface the spiritual strengths and flaws of individual characters. - Shadows of Ecstasy (1931) — A humanistic adept has discovered that by focusing his energies inward he can extend his life almost indefinitely. He undertakes an experiment using African lore to die and resurrect his own body thereby assuring his immortality. His followers begin a revolutionary movement to destroy European civilization.
- The Greater Trumps (1932) — The original TarotTarotThe tarot |trionfi]] and later as tarocchi, tarock, and others) is a pack of cards , used from the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play a group of card games such as Italian tarocchini and French tarot...
is used to unlock enormous metaphysical powers by allowing the possessors to see across space and time, create matter, and raise powerful natural storms. - Descent into HellDescent into HellDescent Into Hell is a novel written by Charles Williams, first published in 1937.-Overview:Williams is less well known than his fellow Inklings, such as C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien. Like some of them, however, he wrote a series of novels which combine elements of fantasy fiction and Christian...
(1937) — Generally thought to be Williams’s best novel, Descent deals with various forms of selfishness, and how the cycle of sin brings about the necessity for redemptive acts. In it, an academic becomes so far removed from the world that he fetishizes a woman to the extent that his perversion takes the form of a succubusSuccubusIn folklore traced back to medieval legend, a succubus is a female demon appearing in dreams who takes the form of a human woman in order to seduce men, usually through sexual intercourse. The male counterpart is the incubus...
. Characters include a doppelgängerDoppelgängerIn fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger is a paranormal double of a living person, typically representing evil or misfortune...
and the ghost of a suicidal VictorianVictorian eraThe Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
labourer. It is illustrative of Williams’s belief in the replacement of sin and substitutional love. - All Hallows' Eve (1945) — Opens with a discussion between the ghosts of two dead women wandering about London. Ultimately explores the meaning of human suffering and empathy by dissolving the barrier between the living and the dead through both black magic and divine love.
Works
Chronological list of Williams’s publications:- The Silver Stair (1912) poems
- Poems of Conformity (1917) poems
- Divorce (1920) poems
- Windows of Night (1924) poems
- The Masque of the Manuscript (1927) play
- A Book of Victorian Narrative Verse (1927) edited collection
- A Myth of Shakespeare (1928) play
- The Masque of Perusal (1929) play
- War in Heaven (1930) novel ISBN 978-0-8028-1219-3
- Poetry At Present (1930) criticism
- The Place of the Lion (1931) novel ISBN 978-1-57383-108-6
- Three Plays (1931) plays
- Many Dimensions (1931) novel ISBN 0-8028-1221-X
- Shadows Of Ecstasy (1931) novel (first written in 1925) ISBN 1-57383-109-3
- The English Poetic Mind (1932) criticism
- The Greater Trumps (1932) novel ISBN 1-57383-111-5
- "Bacon" (1933) biography
- A Short Life of Shakespeare: with the Sources (1933) abridgment of Chamber's 'William Shakespeare: A study of Facts & Problems'
- James I (1934) biography
- Rochester (1935) biography
- The Descent of the Dove (1935) A Short History of the Holy Spirit in the Church, Longmans Green & Company
- The New Book of English Verse (1935), editor, with Lord David CecilLord David CecilEdward Christian David Gascoyne-Cecil, CH , was a British biographer, historian and academic. He held the style of 'Lord' by courtesy, as a younger son of a marquess.-Early life and studies:...
, Ernest de SelincourtErnest de SélincourtErnest de Sélincourt was a British literary scholar and critic. He is best known as an editor of William Wordsworth and Dorothy Wordsworth. He was Oxford Professor of Poetry from 1928 to 1933 and a Fellow of University College, Oxford...
, E. M. W. TillyardE. M. W. TillyardEustace Mandeville Wetenhall Tillyard was a British classical scholar and literary scholar. He was a Fellow in English at Jesus College and later Master of Jesus College , Cambridge. He is known mainly for his book The Elizabethan World Picture, as background to Elizabethan Literature,...
; collection - Thomas Cranmer of Canterbury (1936) Canterbury Festival Play
- Queen Elizabeth (1936) biography
- Descent Into Hell (1937) novel ISBN 978-0-8028-1220-9
- He Came Down From Heaven (1938) theology
- Taliessin through Logres (1938) poems
- The Descent of the Dove: a short history of the Holy Spirit in the Church (1939) theology
- Judgement at Chelmsford (1939) play
- Witchcraft (1941) history/theology
- The Forgiveness of Sins (1942) theology
- Outlines of Romantic Theology: Religion and Love in Dante (c. 1930, pub. 1989) theology
- The Figure of Beatrice: A Study in Dante (1943) criticism
- The Region of the Summer Stars (1944) poems
- All Hallows' Eve (1945) novel ISBN 1-57383-110-7
- The House of the Octopus (1945) play
- Flecker of Dean Close (1946) biography of William Herman Flecker, 1859–1941
- Arthurian Torso Containing the Posthumous Fragment of The Figure of Arthur (1948) with C. S. LewisC. S. LewisClive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
poetry - Seed of Adam and other plays (1948) plays
- The Image of the City and Other Essays (1958) edited by Anne RidlerAnne RidlerAnne Barbara Ridler OBE was a British poet, and Faber and Faber editor, selecting the Faber A Little Book of Modern Verse with T. S. Eliot . Her Collected Poems were published in 1994...
- Collected Plays (1963) ISBN 978-1-57383-366-0
- Charles Williams (Arthurian Poets) (1991) edited by David Llewellyn Dodds
- Charles Williams: Essential Writings in Spirituality and Theology (1993) edited by Charles Hefling
- Outlines of romantic theology; with which is reprinted Religion & love in Dante: the theology of romantic love (1990) edited by Alice Mary Hadfield
- The Masques of Amen House (2000), which contains The Masque of the Manuscript, The Masque of Perusal, and the previously unpublished The Masque of the Termination of Copyright (1930), together with related poems and some of Hubert J. FossHubert J. FossHubert James Foss was an English pianist, composer, and first Musical Editor for Oxford University Press at Amen House in London. His work at the Press was a major factor in promoting music and musicians in England between the world wars, most notably Ralph Vaughan Williams, through publishing...
' musical settings for the masques; edited by David Bratman ISBN 9781887726061
Secondary Literature
- Ashenden, Gavin. CHARLES WILLIAMS: Alchemy and Integration. Kent State University Press, 2007.
- Carpenter, Humphrey. The Inklings. London: Allen and Unwin, 1978.
- Cavaliero, Glen. Charles Williams: Poet of Theology. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1983.
- Dunning Stephen M.. The Crisis and the Quest — A Kierkegaardian Reading of Charles Williams. Paternoster Biblical and Theological Monographs, 2000.
- Glyer, Diana Pavlac. The Company They Keep: C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien as Writers in Community. Kent State University Press. Kent Ohio. 2007. ISBN 978-0-87338-890-0
- Hadfield, Alice Mary. Charles Williams: An Exploration of His Life and Work. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1983.
- Heath-Stubbs, John. "Charles Williams" in the British council series of pamphlets Writers & their work (Longmans, London 1955)
- Hefling, Charles. "Charles Williams: Words, Images, and (the) Incarnation." In David Hein and Edward Henderson, eds., C. S. Lewis and Friends: Faith and the Power of Imagination, pp. 73–90. London: SPCK, 2011.
- Howard, Thomas. The Novels of Charles Williams. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1991.
- Huttar, Charles A., and Peter J. Schakel, eds. The Rhetoric of Vision: Essays on Charles Williams. Lewisburg: Bucknell University Press/London: Associated University Presses, 1996.
- Lindop, Grevel. Charles Williams: The Last Magician. Oxford University Press. (forthcoming, 2009)
- Shideler, Mary McDermott. Charles Williams: A Critical Essay. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1966.
- Sibley, Agnes. Charles Williams. Boston: Twayne, 1982.
- Walsh, Chad. "Charles Williams’ Novels and the Contemporary Mutation of Consciousness," in Myth, Allegory and Gospel: An Interpretation of J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, Charles Williams. John Warwick Montgomery, ed. Minneapolis: Bethany Fellowship, 1974, pp. 53–77.
- Owen, James A. "Here There Be Dragons" and its sequels, "The Search for the Red Dragon", "The Indigo King", and "The Shadow Dragons" feature Charles Williams, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R Tolkien as the main characters.
External links
- The Charles Williams Society
- The Novels of Charles Williams
- Journal of Inklings Studies peer-reviewed academic journal on Williams and his literary circle
- A Charles Williams Biography (Includes a photograph of CW with W.B. Yeats)
- Several photos of Williams
- Charles Williams Biography
- A Charles Williams Bibliography
- Project Gutenberg of Australia ("W") (Scroll down to download copies of The Greater Trumps, Shadows of Ecstasy, The Place of the Lion, War in Heaven, Descent into Hell, Many Dimensions, and All Hallows' Eve)
- (About) Many Dimensions
- The New Christian Year (1941) and The Passion of Christ (1939), two devotionals compiled by Charles Williams
- Charles Williams: Alchemy and Integration by Gavin Ashenden link to book's page on publisher's website