The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis have been a children’s classic for decades and have sold more than 120 million copies, but it wasn’t until they hit the big screen that the word Narnia began cropping up in everyday speech and status updates. But the word doesn’t mean the same to everyone.

It’s freaking Narnia out there!

The most common use of Narnia, especially during winter, refers to a snowy landscape. Whether it’s gently falling flakes, a blizzard, or huge drifts, people seem to assume that Narnia=snow. They have the “always winter, never Christmas” down pat, but the majority of the books have much warmer temperatures.

It must be in Narnia!

Saying lost items are in other dimensions is a frequent response to the hopelessness of not finding what you’re looking for, and Narnia is just the latest in the line of the blamed. Since Narnia is reached through portals in the books, it’s not much of a stretch to imagine that items, not just people, get pulled through.

You might not be aware, however, of Narnia’s long history of lost items – and people. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Susan loses her horn and all four Pevensies leave their fur coats in Narnia. In Prince Caspian, Edmund loses his torch (flashlight). The Voyage of the Dawn Treader centers across the seven missing lords, and The Silver Chair is about a missing prince.

So go ahead, use the word Narnia in your normal conversations. You might get a few raised eyebrows and questioning looks, but you also might find some friends who love Narnia as much as you do. That’s something you’ll not want to lose, no matter what the weather.

Puddleglum is unique among a cast of humans, talking animals, and mythological characters. He is so pessimistic it’s humorous, even to a pessimist like me (my family has called me a marshwiggle at times). But his gloomy outlook only partially masks his loyalty and bravery.

The Children

Ten children dominate the series. Out of the girls, I like Aravis the most. She’s plucky, arrogant, and endearing all at once.

Lucy seems almost too perfect, and as an oldest child I identified freely with her siblings’ disbelief. She’s the one I strive to be like.

Polly is a bit of a coward, but mostly compared to Digory. She’s also a writer (remember her story in the Smuggler’s Cave?), witty, and a great companion.

Jill cries a lot in The Silver Chair, but I love her role in The Last Battle.

And my heart weeps over Susan. To be a queen of Narnia and forsake it in the end seems the ultimate tragedy. But “once a queen in Narnia, always a queen in Narnia.” Maybe the loss of her entire family woke her up. And the rings might have been recovered from the wreckage.

Peter is the oldest child, in charge, and someone you can depend on. He seems a little distant, but I admire the way he sticks up for Lucy.

Edmund and Eustace both are “perfect beasts” until circumstances force them to grow. I like the way Lewis lets them suffer the consequences of their actions before they meet Aslan - no rapid-fire conversions here. Sin causes pain, and the price is high.

Digory is adventuresome, and the only character you get a close look at both as a child and an adult. He is also the only child with deep sorrow in his life - a sorrow that mirrors Lewis’ own.

Shasta has a rags-to-riches tale, but his character growth on the journey north removes the triteness of his story.

The Animals

Talking animals have been around since Balaam’s donkey, and they peopled Lewis’ early stories as well. Aslan is in a league by Himself. Lewis does an excellent job of making Him truly a lion and truly God.

Reepicheep is one of my favorite animal characters. His valor mixed with his tinyness make him humorous and unforgettable. Jewel is also a favorite.

I love cats, so it was disappointing to have Ginger as one of the bad guys. But with Lewis’ love of mice, what can you expect? At least Aslan as a cat comforts Shasta among the Tombs of the Ancient Kings.

Strange and Not So Strange

I don’t read mythology, so Narnia is my only connection with many of the strange creatures Lewis introduces.

Some are not so strange. Father Christmas adds just the right blend of familiar legend and historical figure to keep Narnia real but magical. And dwarves and giants exist, though Lewis develops them to an extreme not found in our world.

Somehow, Lewis gets all the strangeness and familiar to come together into a unified whole. Dancing fauns, dryads and dragons fit in perfectly with living stars, turbaned Calormenes, and talking squirrels. I believe this comes from Lewis allowing the creatures he wrote about to stay true to themselves - talking dogs are still quite doggy, unicorns are noble and graceful, dryads look and act like trees.

Although a feeling of strangeness is important in fantasy and science fiction (especially the latter), readers need words on a page to form pictures in their minds. All a reader knows is what is this world. To make them see another world, some connections need to be made. The same is true with other fiction, though the connections can be more overt.

Caspian

It’s one of my favorite names in the Chronicles. Melodious but manly. A strange flavor but taken straight from our world. Regal but not unreachable. No annoying nicknames or whiny way of saying it. A perfect name.

Caspian is unique among Narnians. He’s the only character with his first name in a book title (though Prince Caspian when he’s fighting for his rightful throne seems a bit out of place, but King Caspian would never work). He appears in four books and plays a major part in two, more than any Narnian except Aslan himself. He is the only Narnian to enter our world (Jadis does before Narnia was created, but she’s from Charn). We know more about his family and personal history than any other Narnian (though Shasta/Cor comes close). All of the children from our world meet him before The Last Battle, except for Polly and Digory.

Not Really the End

As I conclude our look at Lewis’ characters, I want to discuss his end of the Narnia saga - The Last Battle. In this book, Lewis ends the story of nearly every single character he wrote about, yet they live on in the minds of millions of Narnia fans. Why? Because they are us. Unique, flawed, speaking truth yet not believed, betraying others and struggling for redemption, acting brave but shaking inside.

And the final magic touch is the character of Narnia itself. Not one fan of the Chronicles has been there, but I don’t know of one who would hesitate a heartbeat if given the opportunity to visit. We enter Narnia how we can - through the books and the movies.

Take a journey into one of the Chronicles today! And if you pass a wardrobe, be sure to have a look inside.

Katie Hart loves the written word. She’s published several articles, poems, and nearly 200 reviews in magazines and websites such as Christian Communicator, Church Libraries, Infuze Magazine, Christian Library Journal, and ChristianBookPreviews.com. She’s written two novels and is working on her third, a fantasy. Also a Christian music fan, she helps out regularly with concerts at her church and strives to promote the artists and bands she enjoys. Visit her online at her blog.

The bulk of this article was written more than four years ago, and it was recently published on Title Trakk.

“If you died in Narnia, what would happen to you in the real world?”

The person stated that of course Narnia was not real, but within the world created by the books (and C.S. Lewis’ mind), what would happen?

I gave this answer:

“Jill and Eustace have a discussion about this in The Last Battle and come to no conclusion. But in Prince Caspian, during the short timeout in the duel with Miraz, Peter says to Edmund, “Give my love to–to everyone at home, Ed, if he gets me.” So according to the high king, you aren’t alive in our world. If you die in Narnia you do really die. Why would there be so much anguish over the possibility of Edmund being killed by the White Witch if he would just be sent back to our world? As far as the bodies, I believe they would remain in Narnia. When King Frank and Queen Helen died in Narnia, did two corpses appear in England? I highly doubt it.”

Into the Wardrobe

Downing begins his book rather unimaginatively with a brief biography of C. S. Lewis, but soon turns to explore the conception of each of the Chronicles in the order Lewis wrote them. The next chapter discusses the books’ spiritual vision, focusing on the various aspects of Aslan: creator, redeemer, judge, etc. In “Moral Psychology,” Downing points out how Lewis portrayed qualities both positive and negative, with Edmund and Eustace as examples. In “Classical and Medieval Elements”, the author demonstrates how Lewis used include hierarchy and chivalry within his series.

The heart of Downing’s book delves into the names Lewis gave to characters and places, and researches possible origins. Lucy and Jill were young girls Lewis knew, Aslan means “lion” in Turkish, and an Italian village was once called Narnia. The book ends with a chapter on Lewis’s literary abilities, an appendix of terms and allusions used in the Chronicles, extensive notes, bibliography, and index.

While Into the Wardrobe proves Downing’s claim of C. S. Lewis expert, one mistake jarred throughout the book. He seemed not to realize Jadis from The Magician’s Nephew and the White Witch of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe are the same person. He entertains the possibility due to a letter Lewis wrote, but completely ignores the White Witch being called Jadis in the report of Tumnus’ arrest.

Apart from this minor point, this book is an excellent resource for all Narnia fans. It offers insight for everyone who loves Narnia - from curious children to literary scholars - although its aim lies more toward the latter.

Beginning with a short biography of Lewis’ life, Duriez continues with the books from various periods that influenced Narnia’s unique attributes. He points out the parallels between the Chronicles and Christianity, followed by concepts borrowed from other worldviews. The chapter titled “Literary Features of the Chronicles” discusses genre, perception, and the books’ sometimes visible but never intruding narrator. The first section of the book ends by further expounding on the themes, concepts, and images found in Lewis’ books.

Part Two is an encyclopedia for the Chronicles, giving a brief overview of each book, a history of Narnia (complete with a timeline), and a chapter on its geography. Then Duriez shows Lewis’ other writings in the context of Narnia, and the people who influenced Lewis’ life and works. Part Three, a dictionary, covers Narnia from Adam to Zardeenah. Extensive notes, a chronology of Lewis, and a detailed bibliography end the book.

Though repetitive in places, A Field Guide to Narnia adds depth to the Chronicles without reducing them to theological tomes or classics merely to be analyzed. Without a hint of overt suggestion, Duriez makes you long to read the Chronicles once more.

Nonfiction

* The Allegory of Love: A Study in Medieval Tradition (1936)
* Rehabilitations and other essays (1939) — with two essays not included in Essay Collection (2000)
* The Personal Heresy: A Controversy (with E. M. W. Tillyard, 1939)
* The Problem of Pain (1940)
* A Preface to Paradise Lost (1942)
* The Abolition of Man (1943)
* Beyond Personality (1944)
* Miracles: A Preliminary Study (1947, revised 1960)
* Arthurian Torso (1948; on Charles Williams’s poetry)
* Mere Christianity (1952; based on radio talks of 1941 – 1944)
* English Literature in the Sixteenth Century Excluding Drama (1954); 1975 reprint ISBN 0198812981;
* Major British Writers, Vol I (1954), Contribution on Edmund Spenser
* Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life (1955; autobiography)
* Reflections on the Psalms (1958)
* The Four Loves (1960)
* Studies in Words (1960)
* An Experiment in Criticism (1961)
* A Grief Observed (1961; first published under the pseudonym «N. W. Clerk»)
* They Asked for a Paper: Papers and Addresses(1962) (All essays found in Essay Collection (2000)
* Selections from Layamon’s Brut (ed. G L Brook, 1963 Oxford University Press) introduction
* The Discarded Image: An Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance Literature (1964)
* Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Literature (1966) — not included in Essay Collection (2000)
* Spenser’s Images of Life (ed. Alastair Fowler, 1967)
* Letters to an American Lady (1967)
* Christian Reflections (1967; essays and papers)(All essays found in Essay Collection (2000)
* Selected Literary Essays (1969) — not included in Essay Collection (2000)
* God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics (1970), = Undeceptions (1971) — with one essay not included in Essay Collection (2000)
* Of Other Worlds (1982; essays) — with one essay not included in Essay Collection
* Present Concerns (1986; essays)(All essays found in Essay Collection (2000)
* All My Road Before Me: The Diary of C. S. Lewis 1922 – 27 (1993)
* Compelling Reason: Essays on Ethics and Theology (1998) [34]
* Essay Collection: Literature, Philosophy and Short Stories (2000)
* Essay Collection: Faith, Christianity and the Church (2000)
* Collected Letters, Vol. I: Family Letters 1905 – 1931 (2000)
* Collected Letters, Vol. II: Books, Broadcasts and War 1931 – 1949 (2004)
* Collected Letters, Vol. III: Narnia, Cambridge and Joy 1950 – 1963 (2007)
* The Business Of Heaven:Daily Readings From C. S. Lewis ed. Walter Hooper, 1984, Harvest Book, Harcourt, Inc.

Fiction

* The Pilgrim’s Regress (1933)
* Space Trilogy
o Out of the Silent Planet (1938)
o Perelandra (aka Voyage to Venus) (1943)
o That Hideous Strength (1946)
* The Screwtape Letters (1942)
* The Great Divorce (1945)
* The Chronicles of Narnia
o The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
o Prince Caspian (1951)
o The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
o The Silver Chair (1953)
o The Horse and His Boy (1954)
o The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
o The Last Battle (1956)
* Till We Have Faces (1956)
* Screwtape Proposes a Toast (1961) (an addition to The Screwtape Letters)
* Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer (1964)
* The Dark Tower (1977)
* Boxen: The Imaginary World of the Young C. S. Lewis (ed. Walter Hooper, 1985)

Poetry

* Spirits in Bondage (1919; published under pseudonym Clive Hamilton)
* Dymer (1926; published under pseudonym Clive Hamilton)
* Narrative Poems (ed. Walter Hooper, 1969; includes Dymer)
* The Collected Poems of C. S. Lewis (ed. Walter Hooper, 1994; includes Spirits in Bondage)

As editor

* George MacDonald: An Anthology (1947)
* Essays Presented to Charles Williams (1947)

Which of these have you read?