The Great Divorce

[npmennonite]

Hello all. Newbie U2-admirer here (wouldnt presume to call myself 'fan' in present company)

I was looking at C.S.Lewis' book The Great Divorce and wondered if it may have inspired the title for U2's latest album? The video for Hold me, Thrill me, Kiss me, Kill me shows Bono with a copy of his book The Screwtape Letters so he's probably read The Great Divorce too.

Here's some text from the preface to The Great Divorce:

You cannot take all luggage with you on all journeys; on one journey even your right hand and your right eye may be among the things you have to leave behind.

The icon for the CD is a suitcase full of love. The lyrics in Walk On continue the luggage/baggage metaphore of a spirtual journey saying:

You're packing a suitcase for a place none of us has been.
A place that has to be believed to be seen.

The lyrics go on to list the things you'll need to leave behind as (I think) various roadblocks to spirituality, similar to C.S.Lewis's references to scriptures that say you may need to pluck out an eye or a hand.

Leave it behind
You've got to leave it behind
All that you fashion
All that you make
All that you build
All that you break
All that you measure
All that you steal
All this you can leave behind

I'm a C.S. Lewis-admirer as well as a U2-admirer so I thought this connection was pretty cool.

Do you hard-core fans have any thoughts?

 

[bonosloveslave]

Very possible. Bono does admire C.S. Lewis - I didn't know about this book, definitely could have been an inspiration.

Welcome to Interference

 

[celia]

You cannot take all luggage with you on all journeys; on one journey even your right hand and your right eye may be among the things you have to leave behind.

^ I like that line.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

That is so interesting - I never heard that before

Thanks so much for posting npmennonite Excellent first post!

 

[u2sangel]

I think there may be a connection there!!!!!!

 

[oliveu2cm]

thanks for your post. I hadn't heard of this connection before (never read The Great Divorce) and it is very interesting. I would bet you are on to something there.

 

[jick]

For U2, "The Great Divorce" is the divorce that Edge went through in the Achtung Baby period. It energized the Edge creatively and it was the backbone for one of the greatest, most innovative albums of all time in Achtung Baby. All of U2's success with that album can be directly linked to Edge's divorce. If Edge's marriage was smooth sailing that time, the album wouldn't have been the way it turned out to be.

Maybe Edge is due for another divorce with Morleigh, perhaps it can energize him and push him more for the upcoming album.

Cheers,

J

 

[BVS]

Once again another great and compassionate post Jick. Yeah let's encourage someone's divorce for your sake. Doesn't it ever get old?

 

[bonosloveslave]

Wow, wishing for a divorce so they can make a better album. And I thought *I* was a psycho u2 fan

Did you even READ npmennonite's post?