Asbury Grad Publishes Article from SEARCH 2019

February 20, 2020

When Allison Irvin ’19 Hall participated in the 2019 SEARCH competition, she had hopes that after graduation she might one day publish the article she had submitted. What she did not realize was that her first scholarly publication would come so soon.

Hall’s article, “Psyche Of The Sea, Psyche Of The Mountain: C.S. Lewis’s Idea of Myth in His Retelling of the Cupid and Psyche Myth in Till We Have Faces,” appears in the latest issue of The Lamp-Post, a special edition that features articles from emerging scholars.

Hall’s essay had its origins in 2018, when she participated in Asbury’s Best Semester Program in Oxford. “I became interested in C.S. Lewis during my freshman year at Asbury,” Hall noted. “Then while in Oxford I had the privilege of studying Lewis for my primary tutorial. It was truly one of the most formative and transformational experiences of my life.”

What was it that drew her to devote so much time to Lewis? “I loved the simplicity and clarity of his style that explained deep theological truths in a way I could understand and engage with, while still giving full justice to the ideas presented,” Hall says. “For me, Lewis is a deep well from which there is always more to be drawn.”

Dr. Devin Brown, who served as Hall’s SEARCH Faculty Sponsor, explains what happened next. “After the competition Allison asked if I could recommend a place for her to submit her essay. I suggested The Lamp-Post because while it is a serious journal, it is also one that welcomes new voices. I am particularly proud of Allison’s accomplishment because years ago when I was first starting out, this is where I published my first article.”

Asbury’s Vice Provost, Dr. Tim Campbell, comments, “SEARCH is an annual event that showcases outstanding student work. We launched SEARCH a number of years ago to demonstrate how our students can become part of the greater conversation and to remind them they can shape the debate with both their intellect and pen.”

Hall currently lives with her husband in Cincinnati where she works as an editor.