The Childlike and Biblical Connotations in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Throughout his writing career, CS Lewis has been known for writing many books with a hint of biblical connotations in them. As Kathryn Lindskoog states, "CS Lewis is known for opposing the spirit of modern thought with the unpopular Christian doctrines of sin and evil" (2083). Lewis himself has said, "You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life or death to you" (Freaks 60). Although his belief in God has not yet presented itself in that manner, he continues to devote his time to the artful presentation of what he believes to be true about God and man, as observed by Dr. Bruce
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When the Aslan goes to meet his certain death at the hand of the Witch, the narrator refuses to give a description of some of the creatures present for fear "the grownups would probably not let [children] read this book..." (165). This technique establishes a friendly connection with reader. The narrator shows a sense of concern for the well being of the readers, assuring them that he is on their side. Yet another connection is the associative connection. Lewis uses words that a child can associate with. Every child knows, loves and anticipates the idea of Father Christmas, and so when Lewis explains that the White Witch has kept Father Christmas out of Narnia, he instills an idea in the reader's mind that the Witch must be a terrible person. At another point in the book, Aslan warns the children, "if the witch is to be finally defeated before bedtime we must find the battle at once" (191). Here, Lewis uses a word, bedtime, which every child has heard and is familiar with, allowing the child to better understand the story. Again, when Aslan (the symbol of Christ) dies, a child may be able to better sympathize with the death of an animal rather than that of a great figure who lived two thousand years ago. Even the fact that Lewis credits the resurrection of Aslan to the Deep Magic provides a medium that explicates the much harder theological implications found in the Bible (Brennan).
Just as Lewis
Memory is the quality that allows the readers to personally connect with a work of art. Relatable works tend to have more of an emotional impact on the reader. Symbols are used to connect the tangible to something intangible. Through this connection, readers will associate the aspects of the thing being symbolized to the symbol. For example, if a character is used to symbolize the devil in a work of art, the audience will associate the aspects of the devil to the character. Patterns allow readers to parallel one work of art to another work of art.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is well known for its strong parallels with the Christian religion. C. S. Lewis seemed to make the entire meaning of the book correlate with Christianity as a whole. Every aspect within this novel has a connection with the bible in some way or another. These connections could even be pointed out by someone who is not a part of Christianity. The truth is that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is not simply just a story, but a novel that subtly instills the Christian beliefs within the reader. With parallels such as the characters, faith, and the story itself shows the strong ties this novel has with the Christian religion.
The books have Christian themes and describe the adventures of a group of children who visit a magical land called Narnia. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was the first published and the most popular book of the series. Lewis is said to have stated that he wrote the novels when he wondered what it would be like if Jesus Christ was incarnated on another planet or world to save the souls of those inhabitants”.
The plots and settings of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe only further prove that Narnia is an allegory. Edmund betraying Aslan is the same as us betraying God, yet Aslan as does God, rescues Edmund and is prepared to give his life for him. Aslan knowing he has to die to give Edmund life makes a treaty with the White Witch to sacrifice his life over Edmund’s and naturally, the White Witch is overjoyed and readily agrees, forgetting the “deep magic”. Christ was who died on the cross in payment for our sins and Aslan died for Edmund. On the way to Calvary, Jesus remained silent, as did Aslan. It is said that Aslan could have killed them all with one swipe of his paws and it was said that Jesus could have killed
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
Later on, one child’s disloyalty to his siblings becomes a huge problem. Aslan decides to risk his own life for the boy. All in all, good overthrows evil, and the children become kings and queens of Narnia in the end (Langford). Aslan proclaims: “Once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen. Bear it well, Sons of Adam! Bear it well, Daughters of Eve!” (Lewis 182). The point for Lewis to write these books was as an effort to tell children the Christian stories. He makes examples in chronological order starting with the beginning of time, moves to the death and life of Christ, and finally the end of the world. For most people in this time, when they heard about God or Christianity, they did not want to listen. Instead of giving children ordinary Bible stories, he wrote adventures. He wanted them to learn and believe, as he did, that Christianity would always be there. He filled the books with fictional animals, and
While attending Oxford University, C.S. Lewis went from being an atheist to a renowned Christian. Lewis touched a vast audience with his numerous books (around thirty or more) including The Screwtape Letters, Mere Christianity, and The Four Loves. He brought fantasy and entertainment into his writing along with slight to thunderous bits of theology woven through his stories and books. This made Lewis one of the most influential Christian writers of the 20th century.
C.S. Lewis often includes various religious allegories in many of novels but especially in The Chronicles of Narnia series. Throughout The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe we see many situations in which Aslan is representative of Jesus Christ. From the other characters’ descriptions of him, to the Pevensie children’s first encounter with him, to his torture, death and resurrection, Aslan is clearly meant to serve as the Jesus Christ of an alternate universe. He is the one who saves Narnia from the cold tyranny of Jadis and brings together the Pevensie children as the new kings and queens of Narnia.
Lucy, the main character in "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", was trying to prove to her siblings that she was speaking the truth while Tris, the main character in the novel "Divergent", did the opposite. Tris’ goal was to keep her secret from everyone to save her life and the lives of a few of her friends. Buck, an intrepid and mighty sled dog, was also working to persevere without being killed by his absurd owners or other rabid dogs. However, they were all either fighting for their lives or seeking acceptance from their loved ones.
Aslan represents Christ. The children learn that Aslan is the king of Narnia, a magical place, visited through the wardrobe. All the children except Edmund immediately love Aslan and are awed by him. The differing reactions illustrate the idea of faith. Aslan’s purpose in life is to serve others and to obey the will
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
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is the first of several novels in the C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia. These books tell stories of another universe that is called Narnia. Here there are many unearthly things from talking animals and evil witches. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is the story of four young siblings who discover this new world by entering a wardrobe. Little did they know, they were destined to become the new royalty of Narnia but only after going through many battles. In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis analyzes the character Lucy, the theme of good versus evil, and the parallels of Narnia to other literature and Lewis’s life.
When having to reflect upon the movies I have seen and trying and pinpoint a few that have made a spiritual impact on me without me even noticing, was very difficult. So, I took to Google and realized that one of my favorite series, The Chronicles of Narnia, is almost based on Christianity itself. One movie, in particular, probably the most well known is The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. The movie is found to have Christian themes. The writer of the novels the films are based on has religious views in almost all the books. This film adaption of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is filled with hidden religious content. For instance, Aslan is seen to be Jesus Christ, Jadis is Satan, and the plot of the movie follows the resurrection
The book begins when these four kids are sent to live with a professor to escape the air raids of ww2. On a rainy day, at the professor's house the the kids decide to explore the house, Lucy the youngest of the four goes into a wardrobe to discover a snowy land. In this snowy land she runs into a faun that is half human named Tumnus. Tumnus tricks Lucy into going to his house in hopes of giving her to the White Witch. Tumnus later feels guilty and he takes her back to the lamp post where she runs into the wardrobe. Later the kids start playing hide and seek and Edmund followed Lucy into Narnia. Instead of finding his sister he meets the White Witch, who puts a spell on Edmund with Turkish Delights. Since Edmund was under this spell he tells things about his brother and sisters that he shouldn’t have. On Edmund and Lucy's return, Lucy is excited that Edmund came to Narnia so now everyone would believe her. However Edmund betrays her and lies about going to Narnia, this makes the two oldest seek help from the Professor.