In the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, the Christology of Christ, which is the personality/nature of Christ, is made clear throughout the film and book through the character, Aslan. We first find out that the book is mentioning Christological ideas when Aslan mentions a presence that judges right and wrong, who is greater than all people. He is referring to God in Heaven who will judge us at the end of time. The Paschal Mystery of Christ, which the Passion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus, is how Aslan’s actions and life is represented. If one were to compare Aslan and Jesus, they would find many similar characteristics including forgiveness, peace, teachings, etc… First, The Passion of Christ is one of the main elements embedded in the …show more content…
First, Aslan is resurrected from the Stone Table from the morning light as he says, “one who is killed on the table and has not committed a sin will cause the stone to break and reverse everything including death.” This is a parallel event of the Resurrection of Christ and how he died an innocent man and was resurrected from the grave on the third day. Second, Aslan crowns the four children queens and kings of Narnia and tells them that they shall protect everyone in Narnia, which is identical to when he called out to his disciples to spread the message to all nations of the world. Lastly, Aslan leaves, and Mr. Tumnus tells the children that he will one day return when needed and that they shall be on their own until then. This is depicting the Ascension of Christ, and how he tells his disciples that he will return one day, which is known as the second coming of Christ. The Resurrection and Ascension of Christ are easy to perceive in the film/book with many instances given such as the resurrection, the last message, and
Within The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lewis exemplifies the lion, Aslan, as Jesus Christ. The lion’s unconditional love for anyone that comes to him for help is exemplary of Jesus’ for all his sheep. “Aslan gave himself so Edmund could be saved. Likewise, Jesus sacrificed his own life so that mankind could receive salvation” (Rize 1). With Aslan representing Jesus, he is willing to do anything for the love of his people, even those that have strayed. Within humanity there are many sinners, but Jesus died so everyone, including the wrongdoers, could eventually go to heaven. His followers found this to be a conflicting because they did not understand why the criminals deserved the same love from him they received. Edmund and the Witch thought the same thing of Aslan when he volunteered to die in Edmund’s place. This shows the profoundness of Christ and Aslan’s behavior that may never be understood in its entirety. “Aslan is a simultaneously a frightening and benevolent lion… [The Pevensie children] are [not] horrified so much
In C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lewis emphasizes the three points of philosophy, themes, and symbolism throughout his writing. Lewis was a strong Christian man, and wanted to make children see and understand all the stories of the Bible. Therefore, he put Christian elements through his books, but with fantasy characters as well. Especially in this story, Lewis conveys the differences between good and evil. Aslan is represented as Christ just as the White Witch represents the sense of evil. Lewis wrote several books in this Narnia series, but The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe became the most famous and recognized of his novels.
Thesis Statement: The characters and events of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe have symbolic similarities to events described in the Bible.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fiction in which one of the main characters, the sturdy lion Aslan, has the most power and authority. There are tons of images of Aslan from the book and the movie that relate to Jesus in Bible. The most outstanding images are the death of Aslan on top of the stone table which represents the crucifixion of Jesus, Aslan’s rebirth which is similar to the Resurrection of Jesus, and Aslan’s offering the stone statues life just as the figure of God made everything. Shortly, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe includes a number of biblical images that are the details from the Bible which were reflected by the book and the movie.
Aslan is portrayed as an all-knowing, perfect, and above all else, brave lion, but when when he decides to forfeit his life in order to deliver Edmund from death, the grief is crushing. He is overcome with sorrow even though he knows he will rise again; one could even compare his suffering to the death of the historical figure Jesus Christ who is depicted weeping about his sacrifice. “Presently he stumbled and gave a low moan…’I am sad and lonely”’( ) After his death and Edmund’s and everyone else’s crimes were atoned for, he was reborn with more strength than before, and he was so elated that he was literally jumping for joy. Aslan was so jubilant, so vital, that he led the girls in a game of chase before saving Narnia from the Witch. “There shining in the sunrise, larger than they had seen them before, shaking his mane, stood Aslan himself… ‘Oh, children,’ said the Lion, ‘I feel my strength coming back to me, Oh, children, catch me if you can!’”(162-163) the fore loaning and
The Witch demands Edmund’s life, saying he is a traitor. According to the Deep Magic of Narnia, a traitor’s life is forfeited to her. Aslan can’t go against the Deep Magic. Aslan volunteers to sacrifice his own life in place of Edmund’s life. The Stories of the Passion of Christ and the Resurrection of Christ are reflected in the character of Aslan. Both Christ and Aslan walk to their deaths filled with a deep sadness. Probably the most important difference between the two stories is that Christ died to redeem all of mankind, while Aslan died to save one life. However, the Christian message is clear: In God’s eyes, one human life is as significant as all human lives. While Christ was nailed to a cross, Aslan was tied to the Stone Table and killed with a knife. Aslan rises the very next morning, whereas Christ lay in the tomb for three days. Both Christ and Aslan had females witness the Crucifixion. Aslan jumps into action immediately after talking to Lucy and Susan and then enters into battle with the Witch. Aslan defeats the Witch. This battle could be a symbol of our own struggle to
In the book The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, many things are similar to the Bible. Many of the characters in the book are used represent characters from the Bible. In C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, the story of Christianity is paralleled using the characters in the book.
Aslan has the ability to breathe on and revive statues the witch had turned to stone; “For a second after Aslan had breathed upon him the stone lion looked just the same. Then a tiny streak of gold began to run along his white marble back…” (Lewis 184). Many presume Jesus has the ability to perform miracles and save sinners. Lewis created Aslan to save the animals and the people of Narnia as Jesus saved the people in the bible.
The C.S. Lewis novel, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe takes the crucifixion of Christ and adapts it in a fantasy novel. He cleverly weaves together both entertainment and religious themes into a classic children's book. He uses the New Testament's account of the event in order to tell a story of redemption through the character Edmund, who betrayed and caused Aslan, his savior, to suffer the
The act of resurrecting from the dead, breathing life in those that were recently trapped in the eternal imprisonment of death, and expressing redemptive love through giving up one?s life to save another are only some of the similarities that are present between characters in ?The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe? and religious figures such as Jesus Christ, the Son of Man. In the book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, written by C.S. Lewis, four kids - Lucy, Edmund, Peter, and Susan ? enter into a magical wardrobe and find themselves in a new world, the Land of Narnia. The four children, with the help of Aslan, suppress the power of the Witch and restore Narnia?s former state of
C.S. Lewis wrote The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe because he wanted to write a children’s book “as a gift for his godchild” (Palmer). It began for him with a series of pictures that came into his mind. “Lewis stated, ‘Everything began with images; a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen on a sledge, a magnificent lion” (Kennedy). A fairy tale was forming in his mind and “‘At first there wasn't anything Christian about them; that element pushed itself in of its own accord’” (Kennedy), As the story progresses and Lewis’s characters and storyline begin to develop a seemingly clear relationship formed between The Bible and this novel. “Given Lewis’s strong Christian faith, that is not surprising. In fact, once the story was established, Lewis said he ‘...saw how stories of this kind could steal past a certain inhibition which had paralysed much of my own religion in childhood’” (Kennedy.) Even though C.S. Lewis started off writing a children's novel, many people perceive it to be a novel written in parallel to the Bible. Lewis has used Biblical references and a classic storyline to prove that good will alway triumph over evil. Aslan is labeled as a divine figure in the novel; he is also known as the son of the Emperor-Beyond-the-Sea. Aslan’s death and resurrection is like that of Christ. The four children are all considered important to in the world of Narnia, but in the real world they are
Aslan represents the hero archetype in the novel just as Jesus does in the Bible. His willingness to die for sinners and others who are unworthy beings imitates Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and that is the big reveal of his character
C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of books that contain a countless amount of biblical allusions. In each of the seven total books of the series, there are references to both characters and major themes in the Bible. For example, in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, there are many allusions to the Bible such as when Edmund betrays not only his brother, Peter, and two sisters, Susan and Lucy, but also Aslan in order to stay with the Wicked Witch in her palace. This is similar to the story of Judas and the way that he leaves the disciples and betrays Jesus. Furthermore, in the same book, Aslan is killed by the Wicked Witch for the sake of Narnia similar to how Jesus is crucified for the sins of his people. Additionally, both
This paper will focus on the theological nature of CS Lewis’ book based film, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. This will include a number of noticeable parallelisms, allusions and symbolisms found in
C.S. Lewis uses a secondary world, Narnia, to convey complex, thought-provoking messages to readers of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. This paper examines the way a selection of Narnia's key characteristics prompt debates over logic and faith, comment on the nature of spiritual and metaphysical journeys, allow readers to broaden their conception of their own capabilities, encourage new reflection on the story of Christ and help to clarify conceptions of good and evil.