The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is an original children story written by C.S. Lewis and was published in 1950 by Geoffrey Bles. This novel is the first in the series of The Chronicles of Narnia. The novel’s protagonists are four siblings, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie. The four children find themselves shipped off to live with a Professor in an old country house in the English countryside to escape the World War Two war zone back at home. During their stay there they find their way into a wardrobe, which transports them into the magical land of Narnia where the remaining of the story takes place. Lucy, the youngest sister, finds her way into Narnia first and meets a friendly faun named Mr. Tumnus. Mr. Tumnus tells her about the archetypal Boss character, the White Witch who has cast a 100 year winter spell upon Narnia, and is determined to become the queen of Narnia forever. Lucy leaves the faun to return home and tell her siblings about her discovery, but they do not believe her and mock her until Edmund finds Narnia as well. Edmund’s first adventure is a little different as the first person he encounters is the White Witch herself. The White Witch tells Edmund that he must bring his siblings back and if he does he will be able to rule over them. This is an exciting idea for Edmund as his older brother Peter would have to answer and obey Edmund, finally giving Edmund the respect he so desires. Eventually, all four of the children enter Narnia and they encounter Mr. Beaver (who is in fact a beaver), and who graciously invites them to his home to meet his wife. While dining with the beavers the children are informed of the archetypal God character within the story: Aslan the Great Lion and true king of Narnia. They are then informed of the White Witch and all that she has done to Narnia, as well as a prophesy within Narnia that says that when two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve sat upon the four thrones, all of Narnia will be right again. Throughout the dinner the three children and beavers are so engrossed in the conversation that they do not realize that Edmund has actually snuck out to go and see the White Witch herself, and immediately the children’s adventure begins.
The beavers decide to aid the children in their quest to rescue Edmund by means of leading them to find Aslan, who they believe is the only person who can truly save Edmund from the White Witch. To do so the characters must meet Aslan at the Stone Table before the White Witch arrives there. Throughout their travels they encounter Father Christmas who is similar to Santa Clause in “our” world, but is different in Narnia as he is more serious than the usual Santa Clause depicted and he gives the children tools instead of toys. Father Christmas gives peter a sword and shield, Susan a horn and a bow, Lucy a bottle of magical healing liquid and a knife, Mrs. Beaver a sewing machine, and Mr. Beaver is told that his dam is finally finished. As the children continue on their journey with these new tools they begin to notice that the snow is melting and the seasons seem to be changing, meaning the Witch’s spell is beginning to break.
All the while, the White Witch is outraged of the possibility of the return of Aslan and the children as the prophecy stands a chance of coming true. She still has Edmund in captivity and is treating him extremely badly, causing Edmund to understand how bad of a mistake he had made by trusting her. The three children and the beavers finally reach the Stone Table, before the Witch and Edmund, and come face-to-face with Aslan. The children instantly love Aslan and he promises to do all he can to help rescue their brother Edmund. While with Aslan, wolves attack Susan and Peter saves her with the sword given to him by Father Christmas. Aslan orders his followers to follow the pack of wolves, which lead them right to the White Witch who is preparing to kill Edmund. The rescue party arrives just in time to rescue Edmund but not in time to capture the Witch as she disguises herself as part of the landscape.
Ultimately the Witch demands that Edmund be killed as he is a traitor, but instead strikes a deal with Aslan to take his life instead of Edmunds. The final plot event of the book is the archetypal epic battle that takes place between the Witch’s followers and Aslan’s followers, who are now led by Peter and his siblings. Just as the Witch’s army looks to be winning, Aslan, who is presumed dead, appears and quickly kills the witch ending the war as well as the spell on Narnia. As the four children have completed the prophecy and saved Narnia, Aslan returns them to their rightful thrones where they rule Narnia for decades. The entire book appears to take place over many days, and ultimately years, as the characters are adults by the end. However, that is the magic of Narnia because once the kids return back home through the wardrobe not a single second has appeared to have passed since they left.
There is no avoiding the fact that within the original text there are many allusions and symbolism directed towards Christianity. The character of Aslan himself represents Christ, which is evident in many different aspects of the story, especially when he sacrifices his life for Edmund just as the Bible reports that Jesus had done for all mankind. The Stone Table that he is killed upon represents the stone tablets that Moses brought down that contained the Ten Commandments that would punish any infractions against God by death. When Aslan returns to life the Stone Table is shattered which symbolizes the end of such harsh punishments and promotes Justice. The White Witch’s character is similar to Satan, or really any type of archetypal Boss character that the protagonists must overcome. This overall allusion to Christianity is not too overbearing that children reading this book are overwhelmed or distracted from the story, but rather serves as an underlying message of good versus evil.
Aslan also serves as the great teacher or mentor character as he is the most respected and looked up to character within the novel and he helps to protect other characters. Aslan also represents the sacrificial redeemer character, as he is willing to die for his beliefs and for the right morals as he ultimately does at the end. The four children represent an archetypal theme of coming of age as each child is able to learn new things about themselves and each other and grow as human beings by the end. The overall adventure for the children is an archetypal quest as they are venturing across Narnia to rescue their brother and ultimately save Narnia. The novel deals most specifically with the inner workings of the characters and through that developed an engaging and unique plot for children.
Sources:
"The Chronicles of Narnia." WikiNarnia: The Chronicles of Narnia Wiki. Wikipedia.com, n.d. Web. <http://narnia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Lion,_the_Witch_and_the_Wardrobe_(book)>.
"The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/lion/summary.html>.
