Book Review: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobeby C.S. Lewis

The point of view is omniscient with an interesting twist: "There was a jug of creamy milk for the children (Mr. Beaver stuck to beer) and a great big lump of deep yellow butter in the middle of the table from which everyone took as much as he wanted to go with the potatoes, and all the children thought- and I agree with them- that There's nothing to beat good freshwater fish" (Lewis 74). While the point of view may be omniscient, the narrator has become personally involved in telling the story, the actual voice of the storyteller. While juvenile for adult literature, this narrative technique is very engrossing for children.

The narrator goes on to say "I hope no one who reads this book has to be quite as miserable as Susan and Lucy were that night; but if you have been- if you've been up all night and cried till you have no more tear left in you - you will know that here comes in the end a sort if quietness" (158) The narrator has come to the level of the reader. They are occupying the same space, sharing and experiencing the same emotion: "I mean, in Narnia - in our world they usually don't talk at all" (107). The storyteller is from this world, not Narnia. Lewis uses this technique several times throughout the story, emphasizing a particular point or dramatizing a certain event.

Adding to the fantasy, is the actual setting. The book begins with the evacuation of four siblings from London at the begging of World War II. The children are sent to the county home of a bachelor professor. Lucy finds a way through a wardrobe into a snowbound country, Narnia, where talking animals and mythological creatures are real. During this first excursion, Lucy meets the fawn holding an umbrella. Fearing that she has gone too long, Lucy returns through the wardrobe only to find herself in the same moment of time as when she left. The time spent in Narnia is outside of London time.

Soon, all four siblings find their way into the wardrobe and wandering into the world of Narnia where the wicked witch makes it "always winter and never Christmas" (72). The majority of the story takes place in this magical setting where everything out of the ordinary is actually quite ordinary.

Once inside the enchanting world of Narnia, the four siblings are soon separated. While listening to Mrs. Beaver tell the story of Narnia's somewhat hopeless situation under the rule of the White Witch, Edmund sneaks out to find the witch's castle. He has already fallen under the influence if the White Witch due to his pride, greed, and gluttony. The conflict arises as the protagonists: Peter, Susan, and Lucy, seek to save their brother from the antagonist's clutches for all four siblings must sit on the thrones of Narnia as prophesized long ago. They will receive help from Aslan the lion, ling of true leader of Narnia. The plot reaches its crisis when the White Witch, in accordance with the "Deep Magic", demands a price for Edmund's release: "You know that every traitor belongs to me as my lawful prey and that for every treachery I have a right to kill" (142). Aslan scarification's himself, and the Witch believes she has won. Alsn comes back to life more powerful than before. According to the deeper magic, "when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitors' stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backward" (163). The resolution sees the Witch's defeat in the great battle between good and evil, the saving of Edmund, and the four siblings taking their rightful places on the thrones of Narnia. In the end "all that was foul brood was stamped out."

C.S. Lewis masterfully enhances the passage off time in Narnia by changing the children's diction. At the beginning of their journey they speak like any other children their age in London. After several years in Narnia "they talked in quite a different style, having been Kings and Queens for so long" (185). They speed is littered with "sir" and "madam" and structured closely to the proper old English. Their dialog changes as well, losing the playful familiarity of childhood. They address each other with formality an air prestige. "Then in the name of Aslan, if ye will all have it so, let us go on and take the adventure that shall fall to us" (187). In other words, "Let's go!" Lewis creates a mounting feeling of suspense, and the young readers finds himself/herself wondering what will happen next. Perhaps the speed in which they turn the pages increases with their desire to know what kind of evil is "hanging" over the characters.

There are several themes in this story. Deciding on the prevalent theme depends on the school in which this book is being read. In a secular school, the foundational theme would be consequences of choices. Decisions based on jealousy and self-fulfillment will lead you down the path of destruction; victory can only be achieved when you act on the benefit of other. In a Christian school, the theme would be Christ's redemptive work on the cross. Regardless of the school settings, this story is both entertaining and resourceful. The ideals that are taught would be appropriate for the earliest primary grades, the the levels of reading difficulty may be more appropriate for fourth grade. The fullness of it's symbolism can only be taught in a private school setting, but this should not discourage the public school teachers from sharing this story with his or her students.