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Encyclopedia > The Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Prince Caspian The Voyage of the Dawn Treader The Silver Chair The Horse and His Boy The Magician's Nephew The Last Battle
Seven books in the order of publication
Author Clive Staples Lewis
Language English
Genre(s) Fantasy,
Children's Literature
Publisher HarperTrophy
Publication date 1950–1956
Media type Print
(Hardback and paperback)

The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels for children written by C. S. Lewis. It is considered a classic of children's literature and is the author's best-known work, having sold over 100 million copies in 41 languages. Written by Lewis between 1949 and 1954 and illustrated by Pauline Baynes, The Chronicles of Narnia have been adapted several times, complete or in part, for radio, television, stage, and cinema. In addition to numerous traditional Christian themes, the series borrows characters and ideas from Greek and Roman mythology, as well as from traditional British and Irish fairy tales. Narnia may refer to: The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of fantasy novels by C. S. Lewis Narnia (world), the fantasy world within that series The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the 2005 Disney film adaptation of the second book in that series The Chronicles... Image File history File links Narnia_books. ... Clive Staples Jack Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Childrens books redirects here. ... A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ... HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. ... For other uses, see Print. ... Hardcover books A hardcover (or hardback or hardbound) is a book bound with rigid protective covers (typically of cardboard covered with cloth, heavy paper, or sometimes leather). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... For other uses, see Fantasy (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Novel (disambiguation). ... Clive Staples Jack Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... Childrens books redirects here. ... Pauline Baynes (born 1922, in Hove, Sussex) is an English book illustrator, whose work encompasses more than 100 books. ... Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ... Topics in Christianity Preaching Prayer Ecumenism Relation to other religions Movements Music Liturgy Calendar Symbols Art Criticism Christianity Portal This box:      Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... A head of Minerva found in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath Roman mythology, the mythological beliefs of the people of Ancient Rome, can be considered as having two parts. ... A fairy tale is a story, either told to children or as if told to children, concerning the adventures of mythical characters such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, giants, and others. ...


The Chronicles of Narnia present the adventures of children who play central roles in the unfolding history of the fictional realm of Narnia, a place where animals talk, magic is common, and good battles evil. Each of the books (with the exception of The Horse and His Boy) features as its protagonists children from our world who are magically transported to Narnia, where they are called upon to help the lion Aslan handle a crisis in the world of Narnia . A fictional universe is an imaginary world that serves as the setting or backdrop for one or (more commonly) multiple works of fiction or translatable non-fiction. ... For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ... WPA poster by Kenneth Whitley, 1939 The talking animal or speaking animal term, in general, refers to any form of animal which can speak human languages. ... The Sorceress by John William Waterhouse Magic, sometimes known as sorcery, is a conceptual system that asserts human ability to control the natural world (including events, objects, people, and physical phenomena) through mystical, paranormal or supernatural means. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... For other uses, see Evil (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Book (disambiguation). ... Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... A protagonist is the main figure of a piece of literature or drama and has the main part or role. ... Teleport redirects here. ... For other uses, see Lion (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Aslan (disambiguation). ...

Contents

The seven books

The Chronicles of Narnia have been in continuous publication since 1954 and have sold over 100 million copies in 41 languages (Kelly 2006) (Guthmann 2005). Lewis was awarded the 1956 Carnegie Medal for The Last Battle, the final book in the Narnia series. The books were written by Lewis between 1949 and 1954 but were written in neither the order they were originally published nor in the chronological order in which they are currently presented (Ford 2005). The original illustrator was Pauline Baynes and her simple pen and ink drawings are still used in publication today. The seven books that make up The Chronicles of Narnia are presented here in the order in which they were originally published (see reading order below). Completion dates for the novels are English (Northern Hemisphere) seasons. Look up publication in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Carnegie Medal in Literature was established in the UK in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. ... An illustrator is a graphic artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text. ... Pauline Baynes (born 1922, in Hove, Sussex) is an English book illustrator, whose work encompasses more than 100 books. ... Narnia redirects here. ... Northern hemisphere highlighted in yellow. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...


The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, completed in the spring of 1949 (Ford 2005) and published in 1950, tells the story of four ordinary children: Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie. They discover that the wardrobe in a certain Digory Kirke's (an old professor) house leads to the magical land of Narnia, currently under the spell of a witch. The children fulfill an ancient, mysterious prophecy as they help Aslan save Narnia from the evil White Witch who has reigned over the kingdom of Narnia for a hundred years. This article is about the novel. ... Peter Pevensie is one of the major characters in the childrens fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. ... Susan Pevensie is one of the major characters in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Edmund Pevensie (1930 - 1949) is a major character in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia. ... Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe the 2005 film Lucy Pevensie is one of the major characters from C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Look up Wardrobe in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Witch redirects here. ... For other uses, see Prophecy (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Aslan (disambiguation). ... Jadis, the White Witch is the key villain of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published book in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series, and the second chronologically. ... For the documentary series, see Monarchy (TV series). ...


Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia (1951)

Main article: Prince Caspian

Completed in the autumn of 1949 and published in 1951, Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia tells the story of the Pevensie children's second trip to Narnia (after 1300 years in Narnian timeline), during which they discover that Miraz, uncle of Prince Caspian, had forced him to flee into the woods and usurped the throne, declaring himself a king. Once again, the children set out to save Narnia, aided by the Narnians and ultimately by Aslan to return the throne to the rightful ruler, Prince Caspian. For the film adaptation of the novel, see The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. ... Caspian X, King of Narnia, Lord of Cair Paravel, and Emperor of the Lone Islands, also called Caspian the Seafarer and Caspian the Navigator (born 2290–died 2356, Narnian Time) is a fictional character in the Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis. ...


The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)

Completed in the winter of 1950 and published in 1952, The Voyage of the ‘Dawn Treader’ returns Edmund and Lucy Pevensie, along with their priggish cousin, Eustace Scrubb, to Narnia. Once there, they join Caspian's voyage to find the seven lords who were banished when Miraz took over the throne. This perilous journey brings them face to face with many wonders and dangers as they sail toward Aslan's country at the end of the world. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. ... Eustace Clarence Scrubb (1933 - 1949) is a character in C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia. ... Miraz is a fictional character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ...


The Silver Chair (1953)

Main article: The Silver Chair

Completed in the spring of 1951 and published in 1953, The Silver Chair is the first book without the Pevensie children. In their place, Aslan calls Eustace back to Narnia together with his classmate Jill Pole. There they are given four clues to find Prince Rilian, Caspian's son, who had been kidnapped ten years earlier. Eustace and Jill, with the help of Puddleglum the Marsh-wiggle and many others, face great danger before finding Rilian. The Silver Chair is part of The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels written by C.S. Lewis. ... The Silver Chair is part of The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels written by C.S. Lewis. ... Jill Pole (1933 - 1949) is a major character from C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia series. ... In C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia fictional series, Rilian (2325-?) is the son of King Caspian and the daughter of Ramandu the star. ... Puddleglum is a Marshwiggle in C. S. Lewiss novel The Silver Chair, part of The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Narnian creatures are any non-human inhabitants of Narnia, the fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as a setting for his The Chronicles of Narnia. ...


The Horse and His Boy (1954)

Main article: The Horse and His Boy

Completed in the spring of 1950 and published in 1954, The Horse and His Boy is the first of the books that does not follow the previous one sequentially. The novel takes place during the reign of the Pevensies in Narnia, an era which begins and ends in the last chapter of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The story is about Bree, a talking horse, and a young boy named Shasta. Both of the main characters have been held in bondage in Calormen, a country to the south of Narnia. By chance, they meet each other and plan their return to Narnia and freedom. On their journey they discover that the Calormenes are about to invade Archenland, and they plan to arrive there first to alert the King. Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... Bree (short for Breehy-hinny-brinny-hoohy-hah) is a fictional character in C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Shasta is a fictional character in C.S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia. ... In C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series of novels, Calormen (pron. ... For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ...


The Magician’s Nephew (1955)

Main article: The Magician's Nephew

Completed in the winter of 1954 and published in 1955, the prequel The Magician's Nephew brings the reader back to the very beginning of Narnia where we learn how Aslan created the world and how evil first entered it. The professor Digory Kirke (mentioned in "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe") and his friend Polly stumble into Narnia via an entirely different route. Many long-standing questions about Narnia are answered, such as how inter-world travel was made possible, how a lamppost came to be in a woodland and where the wardrobe came from. The Magicians Nephew is a fantasy novel for children written by C. S. Lewis. ... A prequel is a work that portrays events which include the structure, conventions, and/or characters of a previously completed narrative, but occur at an earlier time. ... A high pressure sodium vapor street lamp from Australia. ... Limber Pine woodland, Toiyabe Range, central Nevada Biologically, a woodland is a treed area differentiated from a forest. ...


The Last Battle (1956)

Main article: The Last Battle

Completed in the spring of 1953 and published in 1956, The Last Battle chronicles the end of the world of Narnia. Jill and Eustace return to save Narnia from Shift, an ape, who tricks Puzzle, a donkey, into impersonating the lion Aslan. This article is about the novel by C. S. Lewis. ... Shift is a fictional character in the childrens fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. ... This article is about a fictional character, for other uses of Puzzle see Puzzle (disambiguation) Puzzle is a fictional character in The Last Battle, the seventh and final book of C. S. Lewis The Chronicles of Narnia. ...


Reading order

Fans of the series often have strong opinions over the correct ordering of the books. When the books were originally published, they were not numbered. The first American publisher, Macmillan, put numbers on the books in the order in which they were published. When HarperCollins took over the series in 1994, the books were renumbered using the internal chronological order, as suggested by Lewis' stepson, Douglas Gresham. Macmillan is a global publishing firm founded in 1843 by Daniel and Alexander Macmillan, two brothers from the Isle of Arran, Scotland. ... HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. ... Douglas Gresham (born November, 1945) is a British biographer and film producer. ...

Publication order Chronological order
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe    The Magician's Nephew
Prince Caspian The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe   
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader The Horse and His Boy
The Silver Chair Prince Caspian
The Horse and His Boy The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Magician's Nephew The Silver Chair
The Last Battle The Last Battle

To make the case for his suggested order, Gresham quoted Lewis' reply to a letter from an American fan in 1957 who was having an argument with his mother about the order: This article is about the novel. ... The Magicians Nephew is a fantasy novel for children written by C. S. Lewis. ... For the film adaptation of the novel, see The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. ... This article is about the novel. ... The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. ... Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... The Silver Chair is part of The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels written by C.S. Lewis. ... For the film adaptation of the novel, see The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. ... Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. ... The Magicians Nephew is a fantasy novel for children written by C. S. Lewis. ... The Silver Chair is part of The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels written by C.S. Lewis. ... This article is about the novel by C. S. Lewis. ... This article is about the novel by C. S. Lewis. ...

“I think I agree with your order [i.e. chronological] for reading the books more than with your mother’s. The series was not planned beforehand as she thinks. When I wrote The Lion I did not know I was going to write any more. Then I wrote P. Caspian as a sequel and still didn't think there would be any more, and when I had done The Voyage I felt quite sure it would be the last, but I found I was wrong. So perhaps it does not matter very much in which order anyone read them. I’m not even sure that all the others were written in the same order in which they were published.” (Dorsett & Mead 1996)

In the HarperCollins adult editions of the books (2005), the publisher asserts Lewis' preference for the numbering they adopted in a notice on the copyright page:

Although The Magician's Nephew was written several years after C.S. Lewis first began The Chronicles of Narnia, he wanted it to be read as the first book in the series. HarperCollins is happy to present these books in the order which Professor Lewis preferred. Clive Staples Lewis (November 29, 1898 – November 22, 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an author and scholar. ...

Some fans of the series who appreciate the original order believe that Lewis was only being polite to a child, and that he could have changed the order in his lifetime had he so desired (Brady 2005). They maintain that much of the magic of Narnia comes from the way in which the world is gradually presented in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. They believe that the mystery of the wardrobe is narratively a much better introduction than in The Magician's Nephew — where the word "Narnia" is the fortieth word in the book. Moreover, they say that it is clear from the texts themselves that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was intended to be the first book read, and that The Magician's Nephew was not. For instance, in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, when Aslan is first mentioned, the narrator states, "None of the children knew who Aslan was, any more than you do." Fans of the original order say that that statement is nonsensical if one has already read The Magician's Nephew, which assumes, on the contrary, that readers do have prior knowledge of him. (Schakel 1979) Other similar textual examples are also cited. This argument hinges partly on the claim that Chronology is not equivalent to Narrative (Rilstone 2004). For other uses, see Aslan (disambiguation). ...


Christian parallels

Specific Christian parallels may be found in the entries for individual books and characters.

Although he did not set out to do so, in the process of writing his fantasy works, Lewis (an adult convert to Christianity) found himself incorporating Christian theological concepts into his stories. As he wrote in Of Other Worlds: Christian doctrine redirects here. ...

Some people seem to think that I began by asking myself how I could say something about Christianity to children; then fixed on the fairy tale as an instrument, then collected information about child psychology and decided what age group I’d write for; then drew up a list of basic Christian truths and hammered out ‘allegories’ to embody them. This is all pure moonshine. I couldn’t write in that way. It all began with images; a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen on a sledge, a magnificent lion. At first there wasn’t anything Christian about them; that element pushed itself in of its own accord.

Lewis, an expert on the subject of allegory (Collins 1980, pp. 305) and the author of The Allegory of Love, maintained that the books were not allegory, and preferred to call the Christian aspects of them "suppositional". This indicates Lewis' view of Narnia as a fictional parallel universes. As Lewis wrote in a letter to a Mrs Hook in December of 1958: Allegory of Music by Filippino Lippi. ... Written in 1936 by C. S. Lewis, The Allegory of Love is an exploration of the Medieval conventions of courtly love. ... Parallel universe or alternate reality in science fiction and fantasy is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with our own. ...

“If Aslan represented the immaterial Deity in the same way in which Giant Despair [a character in The Pilgrim's Progress] represents despair, he would be an allegorical figure. In reality, however, he is an invention giving an imaginary answer to the question, ‘What might Christ become like if there really were a world like Narnia, and He chose to be incarnate and die and rise again in that world as He actually has done in ours?’ This is not allegory at all” (Martindale & Root 1990). The Pilgrims Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come by John Bunyan (published, February, 1678) is a Christian allegory. ...

With the release of the 2005 Disney film there has been renewed interest in the Christian parallels found in the books. Some find them distasteful, while noting that they are easy to miss if you are not familiar with Christianity (Toynbee 2005). Alan Jacobs, author of The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C.S. Lewis, implies that through these Christian aspects, Lewis becomes a "a pawn in America's culture wars" (Jacobs 2005). Some Christians see the Chronicles as excellent tools for Christian evangelism (Kent 2005),and the subject of Christianity in the novels has become the focal point of many books (see Further Reading below). Look up evangelist in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Narnia redirects here. ...


Influences on Narnia

Lewis' life

Lewis's early life has echoes within the Chronicles of Narnia. Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1898, Lewis moved with his family to a large house on the edge of the city when he was seven. The house contained long hallways and empty rooms, and Lewis and his brother invented make-believe worlds while exploring their home[citation needed]. Like Caspian and Rilian, Lewis lost his mother at an early age. Lewis also spent much of his youth in English boarding schools which also correlates with the education of the Pevensies. During World War II, many children were evacuated from London because of air raids. During this time, some of these children, including one named Lucy, stayed with Lewis at his home in Oxford, just as the Pevensies stayed with the professor (Wilson 2005). Clive Staples Jack Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... This article is about the capital city of Northern Ireland. ... Northern Ireland (Irish: , Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a constituent country of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II began prior to the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the city of Oxford in England. ...


Inklings

Lewis was the chief member of the Inklings, an informal literary discussion group in Oxford which at various times included the writers J. R. R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, Lewis's brother W. H. Lewis, and Roger Lancelyn Green. Readings and discussions of the members' unfinished works were one of the main activities of the group when they met, usually on Thursday evenings, in C. S. Lewis's college rooms at Magdalen College. Some of the Narnia stories are thought to have been read to the Inklings for their appreciation and comment. The Eagle and Child pub (commonly known as the Bird and Baby) in Oxford where the Inklings met on Thursday nights in 1939. ... This article is about (usually written) works. ... This article is about the city of Oxford in England. ... Tolkien redirects here. ... Charles Walter Stansby Williams (September 20, 1886 – May 15, 1945) was a British poet, novelist, theologian, and literary critic. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Roger (Gilbert) Lancelyn Green (2 November 1918 – 8 October 1987) was a British biographer and childrens writer. ... College name Magdalen College Latin name Collegium Beatae Mariae Magdalenae Named after Mary Magdalene Established 1458 Sister college Magdalene College, Cambridge President Professor David Clary FRS JCR President Jessica Jones Undergraduates 395 MCR President Eloise Scotford Graduates 230 Location of Magdalen College within central Oxford , Homepage Boatclub Magdalen College (pronounced...


Influences from mythology

The fauna of the series borrows from both Greek mythology and Norse mythology. For example, centaurs originated in Greek myth, and dwarfs have origins in Norse myth. The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian peoples, including those who settled on Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... See also centaur (planetoid), Centaur (rocket stage) Guido Reni, Abduction of Deianira, 1620-21 In Greek mythology, the centaurs (Greek: Κένταυροι) are a race part human and part horse, with a horses body and a human head and torso (illustration, right). ... This page is about a mythological race. ...


Drew Trotter, president of the Center for Christian Study, noted that the producers of the film version of The Chronicles of Narnia felt that The Chronicles of Narnia closely follows the archetypal pattern of the monomyth as detailed in Joseph Campbell's The Hero With a Thousand Faces (Trotter 2005). There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... The monomyth (often referred to as the heros journey) is a description of a basic pattern found in many narratives from around the world. ... For other uses, see Joseph Campbell (disambiguation). ... The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949) is a non-fiction book, and seminal work of comparative mythology by Joseph Campbell. ...


A recent argument states that each Chronicle corresponds to one of the seven planets of medieval cosmology (as in the Ptolemaic model), as does Aslan's presentation in each story. This idea is similar to the influence of astrology on medieval language and literature. The theory, advanced by Michael Ward, has quickly gained acceptance from Lewis scholars such as Walter Hooper, Alan Jacobs, and Derek Brewer (Ward 2008). This article is about the historical term. ... During its long history astrology has had a profound impact on cultures throughout the world, especially in art, literature and popular customs. ...


Name

The origin of the name Narnia is uncertain. According to Paul Ford's Companion to Narnia, there is no indication that Lewis was alluding to the ancient Umbrian city Nequinium, renamed Narnia by the conquering Romans in 299 BC after the river Nar, a tributary of the Tiber. However, since Lewis studied classics at Oxford, it is possible that he came across at least some of the seven or so references to Narnia in Latin literature (Ford 2005). There is also the possibility (but no solid evidence) that Lewis, who studied medieval and Renaissance literature, was aware of a reference to Lucia von Narnia ("Lucy of Narnia") in a 1501 German text, Wunderliche Geschichten von geistlichen Weybbildern ("Wondrous stories of monastic women") (Ercole d’Este 1501) (Green 2007). There is no evidence of a link with Tolkien's Elvish (Sindarin) word narn, meaning a lay or poetic narrative, as in his posthumously published Narn i Chîn Húrin, though Lewis may have read or heard parts of this at meetings of the Inklings. Umbria is a region of central Italy, bordered by Tuscany to the west, the Marche to the east and Lazio to the south. ... Bridge of Narni over the Nera River, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, 1826. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... The River Nar is a river in England, and tributary of the River Great Ouse. ... Tiber River in Rome The River Tiber (Italian Tevere), the third longest river in Italy (disputed — see talk page) at 406 km (252 miles) after the Po and the Adige, flows through the Campagna and Rome in its course from Mount Fumaiolo to the Tyrrhenian Sea, which it reaches in... For other uses, see Classics (disambiguation). ... Latin literature, the body of written works in the Latin language, remains an enduring legacy of the culture of ancient Rome. ... Elvish languages are constructed languages used typically by elves in a fantasy setting. ... Sindarin is an artificial language (or conlang) developed by J. R. R. Tolkien. ... ... The Narn i Hîn Húrin or Lay of the Children of Húrin is a part of the Unfinished Tales by J. R. R. Tolkien. ... The Eagle and Child pub (commonly known as the Bird and Baby) in Oxford where the Inklings met on Thursday nights in 1939. ...


Narnia's influence on others

Influence on authors

A more recent British series of novels, Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials, has been seen as a response to the Narnian books. Pullman's series favours scientific materialism over religion, wholly rejecting the spiritual themes which permeate the Narnian series, but has many of the same issues, subject matter, and types of characters (including talking animals) as the Chronicles of Narnia. Philip Pullman CBE (born October 19, 1946) is a British writer. ... The trilogy (U.K versions), in order of succession from left to right. ... This article primarily focuses on the general concepts of matter and existence. ...


Fantasy author Neil Gaiman wrote the 2004 short story "The Problem of Susan", in which an elderly woman, Professor Hastings, is depicted dealing with the grief and trauma of her entire family dying in a train crash. The woman's first name is not revealed, but she mentions her brother "Ed", and it is strongly implied that this is Susan Pevensie as an elderly woman. In the story Gaiman presents, in fictional form, a critique of Lewis' treatment of Susan. The story can be found in Flights: Extreme Visions of Fantasy Volume II (edited by Al Sarrantonio) and in the Gaiman collection Fragile Things. "The Problem of Susan" is written for an adult audience and deals with sexuality and violence (Gaiman 2004, pp. 151ff). Additionally, Gaiman's Sandman graphic novel series features a Narnia-like "dream island" in its story arc entitled A Game of You. Neil Richard Gaiman (IPA: ) (born November 10, 1960[2]) is an English author of science fiction and fantasy short stories and novels, graphic novels, comics, and films. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Susan Pevensie is one of the major characters in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Al Sarrantonios Hallows Eve Al Sarrantonio (born May 25, 1952, in New York City, New York) is an American horror and science fiction author who has published, over the past twenty-five years, more than forty books and sixty short stories. ... Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders is a collection of short stories and poetry by English author, Neil Gaiman. ... The Sandman was a comic book series written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics for 75 issues from 1988 until 1996. ... A Game of You (1993) is the fifth collection of issues in the DC Comics series, The Sandman. ...


In Katherine Paterson's book Bridge to Terabithia, one of the main characters, Leslie, tells the other main character, Jesse, of her love of C. S. Lewis' books, and mentions Narnia. Some people have accused her of plagiarism, because of a Narnian island named Terebinthia, but Paterson has said that the reference was not deliberate (Paterson 2003, pp. 1). Katherine Paterson Katherine Paterson is an award-winning American author of books for children. ... For the 1985 film, see Bridge to Terabithia (1985 film). ...


Science-fiction author Greg Egan's short story "Oracle" depicts a parallel universe with an author nicknamed "Jack" who has written novels about the fictional Kingdom of Nesica, and whose wife is dying of cancer. The story uses several Narnian allegories to explore issues of religion and faith versus science and knowledge. Greg Egan (August 20, 1961, Perth, Western Australia) is an Australian computer programmer and science fiction author. ...


Influence on popular culture

As one would expect with any popular, long-lived work, references to The Chronicles of Narnia are relatively common in pop culture. References to the lion Aslan, travelling via wardrobe, and direct references to The Chronicles of Narnia occur in books, television, songs, games and graphic novels. For example:

  • The American rock band Phish's song Prince Caspian from the album Billy Breathes features what may be "the sound of horse's hooves galloping under water" and the repeated lyric, "Oh to be Prince Caspian, afloat upon the waves... with nothing to return to but the demons in their caves."
  • In Roald Dahl's book Matilda, the title character Matilda says that she loves the book The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
  • The computer adventure game Simon the Sorcerer contains a scene in which the main character finds a stone table and says, "perfect for troll meals and shaved lions".
  • In the graphic novel The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (vol. 2, num. 1), reference is made in a text fragment to the apple tree from The Magician's Nephew. In the next comic in the series, a text piece refers to the possibility of making a wardrobe from the apple tree.

This article is about the band. ... Billy Breathes was the eighth studio album by legendary rock band Phish. ... Roald Dahl (IPA: ]) (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a Welsh novelist, short story writer and screenwriter, who rose to prominence in the 1940s with works for both children and adults, and became one of the worlds bestselling authors. ... For other uses, see Matilda. ... Simon the Sorcerer 2 screenshot Simon the Sorcerer is a series of point-and-click adventure games created by Adventure Soft. ... Trade paperback of Will Eisners A Contract with God (1978), often mistakenly cited as the first graphic novel. ... For the film adaptation, see The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (film). ...

Criticism

Sexism

C. S. Lewis and the Chronicles of Narnia have received various criticisms over the years, much of it by fellow authors. Allegations of sexism centre around the description of Susan Pevensie in The Last Battle where Lewis characterizes Susan as being "no longer a friend of Narnia" and interested "in nothing nowadays except lipstick, nylons and invitations". The sign of the headquarters of the National Association Opposed To Woman Suffrage Sexism is commonly considered to be discrimination and/or hatred towards people based on their sex rather than their individual merits, but can also refer to any and all systemic differentiations based on the sex of the... Susan Pevensie is one of the major characters in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series. ...


J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, has said: Joanne Rowling OBE (born July 31, 1965 in Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire), commonly known as J.K. Rowling (pronunciation: roll-ing; her former students used to joke with her name calling her the Rolling Stone), is a British fiction writer. ... This article is about the Harry Potter series of novels. ...

"There comes a point where Susan, who was the older girl, is lost to Narnia because she becomes interested in lipstick. She's become irreligious basically because she found sex, I have a big problem with that." (Grossman 2005)

Philip Pullman, author of the His Dark Materials trilogy, and so fierce a critic of Lewis' work as to be dubbed "the anti-Lewis"[1][2][3], describes the Narnia stories as "monumentally disparaging of women". (Ezard 2002) He interprets the Susan passages this way: Philip Pullman CBE (born October 19, 1946) is a British writer. ... The trilogy (U.K versions), in order of succession from left to right. ...

"Susan, like Cinderella, is undergoing a transition from one phase of her life to another. Lewis didn't approve of that. He didn't like women in general, or sexuality at all, at least at the stage in his life when he wrote the Narnia books. He was frightened and appalled at the notion of wanting to grow up." (Pullman 1998) For other uses, see Cinderella (disambiguation). ... This article is about human sexual perceptions. ...

But Rilstone, among others, opposes this view, arguing that the "lipsticks, nylons and invitations" quote is taken out of context. They maintain that in The Last Battle, Susan is excluded from Narnia explicitly because she no longer believes in it. At the end of the story Susan is still alive and may end up rejoining her family. Moreover, Susan's adulthood and sexual maturity are portrayed in a positive light in The Horse and His Boy. Why, Lewis supporters ask, would Lewis later use them as the reason for her exclusion from Narnia? Lewis supporters cite the positive roles of women in the series, including Jill Pole in The Silver Chair, Aravis Tarkheena in The Horse and His Boy, Polly Plummer in The Magician's Nephew, and particularly Lucy Pevensie in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Jacobs asserts that Lucy is the most admirable of the human characters, and that in general the girls come off better than the boys through the stories (Anderson 2005), (Rilstone 2005), (Jacobs 2005), (Bowman 2003). Jill Pole (1933 - 1949) is a major character from C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Aravis is a main character in C.S. Lewis The Horse and his Boy. ... Polly Plummer is a human fictional character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe the 2005 film Lucy Pevensie is one of the major characters from C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia. ...


Racism

In addition to the sexism accusation, Pullman has also implicated The Chronicles of Narnia series in fostering racism. (Ezard 2002)(BBC News 2005) Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial quota...

[For Lewis] "Death is better than life; boys are better than girls; light-coloured people are better than dark-coloured people; and so on. There is no shortage of such nauseating drivel in Narnia, if you can face it" (Pullman 1998).

About racism in The Horse and His Boy specifically, newspaper editor Kyrie O'Connor writes: Kyrie OConner is a writer and editor. ...

"It's just too dreadful. While the book's storytelling virtues are enormous, you don't have to be a bluestocking of political correctness to find some of this fantasy anti-Arab, or anti-Eastern, or anti-Ottoman. With all its stereotypes, mostly played for belly laughs, there are moments you'd like to stuff this story back into its closet" (OConnor 2005). Political correctness is the alteration of language to redress real or alleged injustices and discrimination or to avoid offense. ... For other uses, see Arab (disambiguation). ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... The Ottoman Turks were the ethnic subdivision of the Turkish people who dominated the ruling class of the Ottoman Empire. ...

The racism critique is based on a negative representation of other races, particularly the Calormenes. Novelist Philip Hensher and other critics regard the portrayal of Calormene culture as an attack on Islam. (Hensher 1998). The Calormenes are described as oily and dark-skinned people who wear turbans and pointy slippers and are armed with scimitars. This depiction has been cited as a blatant allegorical comparison to the traditional attire of Islam and Sikhism. Turbans are worn by Muslim clerics, and most adult Sikh males. Scimitars originated in the Middle East, and are highly symbolic of Islam. The Calormenes worship the "false god" Tash, who is portrayed as a stereotypical Satanic being requiring evil deeds and sacrifices from his followers. In C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series of novels, Calormen (pron. ... Philip Hensher (born 1965) is an English novelist, critic and journalist. ... For people named Islam, see Islam (name). ... Sikhism (IPA: or ; Punjabi: , , IPA: ), founded on the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev and nine successive gurus in fifteenth century Northern India, is the fifth-largest religion in the world. ... This article is about headwear. ... The term scimitar refers to a sword with a curved blade from western Asia. ... For other uses, see Tash. ...


However, Calormene religion has no resemblance to Islam, as it is polytheistic and worships a plethora of gods. (Lewis 1954, pp. 36ff) The religion of the Calormenes seems more likely to have been based on early Canaanite and Carthaginian religion, which also required human sacrifice, and was portrayed as the ultimate in diabolism in G. K. Chesterton's The Everlasting Man, a book which Lewis admired. (Pearce 2004, pp. 108) Claims of racism are also countered by Lewis' positive portrayal of several Calormenes. In The Horse and His Boy, the female protagonist Aravis is a Calormene noblewoman who is accepted whole-heartedly by the Archenlanders and Narnians and marries Cor, an Archenland prince. In The Last Battle, the Calormene Emeth is deemed a worthy person by Aslan regardless of his skin colour and despite the fact that he was a worshiper of Tash (Nelson 2005, pp. B14). The entire country of Calormen, including its capital city of Tashbaan, is part of Aslan's "heaven" in The Last Battle. Polytheism is belief in or worship of multiple gods or deities. ... Canaanite religion was the group of Ancient Semitic religions, belief systems utilized by the people living in the ancient Levant throughout the Bronze Age and Iron Age. ... See also Religions of the Ancient Near East The foundation of Carthage at the end of the ninth century B.C. encouraged the more permanent establishment in the Western Mediterranean of members of the Phoenician pantheon. ... Human sacrifice is the act of killing a human being for the purposes of making an offering to a deity or other, normally supernatural, power. ... Gilbert Keith Chesterton (May 29, 1874–June 14, 1936) was an influential English writer of the early 20th century. ... The Everlasting Man is a book by G. K. Chesterton, published in 1925. ... Aravis is a main character in C.S. Lewis The Horse and his Boy. ... Emeth The name of a Calormene character from C.S. Lewis The Last Battle (part of the Chronicles of Narnia series). ...


Lewis supporters point to the fact that Lewis writings have a particularly British Victorian era flavour that was much in fashion during his lifetime, but that may be seen as politically incorrect nowadays. O'Connor writes, "In his time, people thought it was amusing to make fun of other cultures. We don't. Read the stories, ask questions, and remember that the person who wrote this story was altogether too human". (OConnor 2005) The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ...


Paganism

Lewis has also received criticism from Christians and Christian organizations who feel that The Chronicles of Narnia promotes "soft-sell paganism and occultism", because of the recurring pagan themes and the supposedly heretical depictions of Christ as an anthropomorphic lion. The Greek god Bacchus and the Maenads are depicted in a positive light, although they are generally considered distinctly pagan motifs. Even an animistic "River god" is portrayed in a positive light (Chattaway 2005), (Berit 2005). According to Josh Hurst of Christianity Today, "not only was Lewis hesitant to call his books Christian allegory, but the stories borrow just as much from pagan mythology as they do the Bible" (Hurst 2005). Heresy, as a blanket term, describes a practice or belief that is labeled as unorthodox. ... Icon of Christ in a Greek Orthodox church This page is about the title, office or what is known in Christian theology as the Divine Person. ... 7th millennium BC anthropomorphized rocks, with slits for eyes, found in modern-day Israel. ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... In Greek mythology, Maenads [MEE-nads] were female worshippers of Dionysus, the Greek god of mystery, wine and intoxication. ... In literature, a motif is any recurring element that has symbolic significance. ... The term Animism is derived from the Latin anima, meaning soul.[1][2] In its most general sense, animism is simply the belief in souls. ... Christianity Today is an Evangelical Christian periodical based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ... For other uses, see Bible (disambiguation). ...


Lewis himself believed that pagan mythology could act as a preparation for Christianity, both in history and in the imaginative life of an individual, and even suggested that modern man was in such a lamentable state that perhaps it was necessary "first to make people good pagans, and after that to make them Christians" (Lewis, Calabria & Moynihan 1998). He also argued that imaginative enjoyment of (as opposed to belief in) classical mythology has been a feature of Christian culture through much of its history, and that European literature has always had three themes: the natural, the supernatural believed to be true (practiced religion) and the supernatural known to be imaginary (mythology).


The Narnian universe

Main article: Narnia (world)

Most of The Chronicles of Narnia take place in Lewis' constructed world of Narnia. The Narnian world itself is one world in a multiverse of countless worlds including our own. Passage between these worlds is possible, though rare, and may be accomplished in various fashions. How visitors to Narnia observe the passage of time while they are away is unpredictable. For example, if one year had passed since one left Narnia, a thousand years or perhaps only a week might have gone by in Narnia. Narnia itself is populated by a wide variety of creatures most of whom would be recognisable to those familiar with European mythologies and British fairy tales. For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ... A rendered conworld, as would be seen from space by an observer. ... For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ... Parallel universe or alternate reality in science fiction and fantasy is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with our own. ...


Inhabitants

See also: Narnia creatures and Narnian characters

Lewis largely populates his stories with two distinct classes of inhabitants: people from our own world and creatures created by the character Aslan and the descendants of these creatures. This is typical of works that involve parallel universes. The majority of characters from our own world serve as the protagonists of the various books, however some are only mentioned in passing. Those inhabitants that Lewis creates through the character Aslan are viewed as either of wonderful variety or a confusing hodgepodge, depending on the reader. Lewis does not limit himself to a single source; instead he borrows from many sources and adds a few more of his own to the mix. Narnian creatures are any non-human inhabitants of Narnia, the fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as a setting for his The Chronicles of Narnia. ... This is a list of characters in the series of fantasy novels by C. S. Lewis called The Chronicles of Narnia. ... A protagonist is the main figure of a piece of literature or drama and has the main part or role. ...


Geography

See also: Narnian places

The Chronicles of Narnia describes the world in which Narnia exists as one major landmass faced by "the Great Eastern Ocean". This ocean contains the Seven Isles, Galma, Terebinthia and the Lone Islands which are visited in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. On the main landmass are the countries of Narnia, Archenland, Calormen, and Telmar, as well as a variety of other areas that play a part in the narrative but are not described as countries: The Western Wild, a mountainous place to the west of Narnia and Wildlands of the North. Lewis also provides glimpses of more fantastic locations that exist in and around the main world of Narnia, like the end of the Narnian world and the bottom of it. This is a list of fictional places in the series of novels by C. S. Lewis collectively known as The Chronicles of Narnia. ... For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ... In C. S. Lewiss fantasy novels the Chronicles of Narnia, Archenland is a nation to the south of Narnia. ... In C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series of novels, Calormen (pron. ... Telmar is a country in the world of Narnia created by the British author C.S. Lewis. ...


Notably, Narnian geography is subject to the ravages of geological processes. In Prince Caspian, the children return after an unknown period of time to discover that a river which they had known during The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe had changed course, creating an island at its mouth, and deep gorges in its upper reaches.


There are several maps of the Narnian universe available, including what many consider the "official" one, a full-colour version published in 1972 by the books' illustrator, Pauline Baynes. This is currently out of print, although smaller copies can be found in the most recent HarperCollins 2006 hardcover edition of The Chronicles of Narnia. Two other maps have recently been produced following the popularity of the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. One, called the "Rose Map of Narnia," is based loosely on Baynes' map and has Narnian trivia printed on the reverse. Another map, done in a monochromatic, archaic style reminiscent of Tolkien's Middle-earth maps, is available in print and in an interactive version on the movie DVD. However, it depicts only Narnia and does not include the other countries in the Narnian universe. A map of the Northwestern part of Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age, courtesy of the Encyclopedia of Arda. ...


Cosmology

A recurring plot device in The Chronicles is the interaction between the various worlds that make up the Narnian multiverse. A variety of devices are used to initiate these cross-overs which generally serve to introduce characters to the land of Narnia. The Cosmology of Narnia is not as internally consistent as that of Lewis contemporary Tolkien's Middle-earth, but works quite well given the more fairy tale atmosphere of the work. During the course of the series we learn, generally in passing, that the world of Narnia is flat, geocentric, has stars with a different makeup than our own, and that the passage of time does not correspond directly to the passage of time in our world. J. R. R. Tolkien in 1916, wearing his British Army uniform in a photograph from the middle years of WW1. ... A map of the Northwestern part of Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age, courtesy of the Encyclopedia of Arda. ... A fairy tale is a story, either told to children or as if told to children, concerning the adventures of mythical characters such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, giants, and others. ... For other uses, see Flat Earth (disambiguation). ... This article is about the historical term. ...


History

See also: Narnian timeline

Lewis takes us through the entire life of the world of Narnia, showing us the process by which it was created, snapshots of life in Narnia as the history of the world unfolds, and how Narnia is ultimately destroyed. Not surprisingly in a children's series, children, usually from our world, play a prominent role as all of these events unfold. The history of Narnia is generally broken up into the following periods: creation and the period shortly afterwards, the rule of the White Witch, the Golden Age, the invasion and rule of the Telmarines, their subsequent defeat by Caspian X, the rule of King Caspian and his descendants, and the destruction of Narnia. Like many stories, the narrative is not necessarily always presented in chronological order. The events of the Narnian timeline, listed side-by-side against relevant Earth events. ...


Narnia in other media

Television

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was first adapted for television in 1967. The ten episodes, each thirty minutes long, were directed by Helen Standage. The screenplay was written by Trevor Preston and unlike subsequent adaptations, it is currently unavailable to purchase for home viewing.


In 1979 The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was again adapted for television, this time as an animated special co-produced by Bill Melendez (known for A Charlie Brown Christmas and other Peanuts specials) and the Children's Television Workshop (known for programs such as Sesame Street and The Electric Company). The screenplay was by David D. Connell. It won the Emmy award for Outstanding Animated Program that year. It was the first feature-length animated film ever made for television. For its release on British television, many of the characters' voices were re-recorded by British actors and actresses (including Leo McKern, Arthur Lowe and Sheila Hancock), but Stephen Thorne was the voice of "Aslan" in both the U.S. and British versions. An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn (or made with computers to look similar to something hand-drawn) film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot (even if it is a very short one). ... Bill Melendez (born José Cuauhtemoc Melendez on November 15, 1916 in Hermosillo, Mexico) is a Mexican-born American character animator, film director, and film producer, known for his cartoons for Warner Brothers and the Charlie Brown series. ... For the album, see A Charlie Brown Christmas (album). ... Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Childrens Television Workshop (or CTW), is a non-profit organization behind the production of several educational childrens programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world (including PBS in the United States), as well as Noggin, a joint venture with Viacom... Sesame Street is an American educational childrens television series for preschoolers and is a pioneer of the contemporary educational television standard, combining both education and entertainment. ... The Electric Company was an educational American childrens television series produced by the Childrens Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop) for PBS in the United States. ... An Emmy Award. ... Image:Number Two. ... Arthur Lowe (22 September 1915 — 15 April 1982) was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. ... Sheila Hancock OBE (born 22 February 1933) is an English actress and comedian. ... Stephen Thorne is a British actor of radio, film, stage and television. ...


Most recently, from 1988–1990, parts of The Chronicles of Narnia were turned into four successful BBC television serials, The Chronicles of Narnia. They were nominated for a total of 14 awards, including an Emmy in the category of "Outstanding Children's Program". Only The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and The Silver Chair were filmed. The four serials were later edited into three feature-length films (combining Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader) and released on VHS and DVD. For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... For other uses of Serial, see Serial (disambiguation). ... The BBC produced a television adaptation of four books of C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988), Prince Caspian (1989), The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1989) and The Silver Chair (1990). ... An Emmy Award. ...


Radio

The critically acclaimed BBC Radio 4 dramatisation was produced in the 1980s. Collectively titled Tales of Narnia it covers the entire series and is approximately 15 hours long. old Radio 4 logo BBC Radio 4 is a UK domestic radio station which broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes including news, drama, comedy, science and history. ... For other uses, see Drama (disambiguation). ...


In 1991, Sir Michael Hordern read abridged versions of the classic tales set to haunting music from Marisa Robles, playing the harp, and Christopher Hyde-Smith, playing the flute. These were re-released in 1997 from Collins Audio. They have also been re-released in 2005 (ISBN : 978-0-00-721153-1). http://www.harpercollinschildrensbooks.co.uk/books/default.aspx?id=33175 Sir Michael Hordern (October 3, 1911-May 2, 1995) was a British actor, knighted in 1983 for his services to the theatre. ... For other uses, see Music (disambiguation). ... Marisa Robles (born April 5, 1937) is one of the worlds best-known harpists. ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Flute (disambiguation). ...


Between 1999 and 2002 Focus on the Family produced radio dramatisations of all 7 books through its Radio Theatre program. The production included a cast of over 100 actors (including Paul Scofield as "The Storyteller" and David Suchet as "Aslan"), an original orchestral score and cinema-quality digital sound design. The total running time is slightly over 22 hours. Douglas Gresham, the stepson of C.S. Lewis, hosts the series. From the Focus on the Family website (Focus 2005): The graphic identity of Focus on the Family is intended to recall old time traditional values. ... David Paul Scofield, CH, CBE (born 21 January 1922) is a British actor who was born in Hurstpierpoint, Sussex, England. ... David Suchet, OBE (born 2 May 1946) is an English actor, known for his work on British television. ... For other uses, see Orchestra (disambiguation). ... Digital audio comprises audio signals stored in a digital format. ...

Between the lamp post and Cair Paravel on the Western Sea lies Narnia, a mystical land where animals hold the power of speech … woodland fauns conspire with men … dark forces, bent on conquest, gather at the world's rim to wage war against the realm's rightful king … and the Great Lion Aslan is the only hope. Into this enchanted world comes a group of unlikely travellers. These ordinary boys and girls, when faced with peril, learn extraordinary lessons in courage, self-sacrifice, friendship and honour. Cair Paravel is the capital of Narnia in The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Narnian creatures are any non-human inhabitants of Narnia, the fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as a setting for his The Chronicles of Narnia. ...

The series was released in Great Britain on both audio cassette and CD by BBC Audiobooks.


Stage

In 1984, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was presented at London's Westminster Theatre, produced by Vanessa Ford Productions. The play, adapted by Glyn Robbins, was directed by Richard Williams and designed by Marty Flood; and was revived at Westminster and The Royalty Theatre and on tour until 1997. Productions of other Narnian tales were also presented, including The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1986), The Magician's Nephew (1988) and The Horse and His Boy (1990). Robbins's adaptations of the Narnian chronicles are available for production in the UK through Samuel French London.


In 1998 the Royal Shakespeare Company premiered The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The novel was adapted for the stage by Adrian Mitchell, with music by Shaun Davey. The musical was originally directed by Adrian Noble and designed by Anthony Ward, with the revival directed by Lucy Pitman-Wallace. The production was well received and ran during the holiday season from 1998 to 2002, at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford. The production also subsequently transferred to play limited engagements in London at the Barbican Theatre, and at Sadler's Wells. The London Evening Standard wrote:

…Lucy Pitman-Wallace's beautiful recreation of Adrian Noble's production evokes all the awe and mystery of this mythically complex tale, while never being too snooty to stoop to bracingly comic touches like outrageously camp reindeer or a beaver with a housework addiction… In our science and technology-dominated age, faith is increasingly insignificant — yet in this otherwise gloriously resonant production, it is possible to understand its allure.

Adrian Mitchell's adaptation later premiered in the US with the Tony award-winning Minneapolis Children's Theatre Company in 2000, and had its west-coast premiere with Seattle Children's Theatre playing the Christmas slot in its 2002–3 season (and was revived for the 2003–4 season). This adaptation is licensed for performance in the UK by Samuel French.


Other notable stage productions of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe have included commercial productions by Malcolm C. Cooke Productions in Australia (directed by Nadia Tass, and described by Douglas Gresham as the best production of the novel he had seen) and by Trumpets Theatre, one of the largest commercial theatres in the Philippines.


A streamlined version of the full-scale musical Narnia (adapted by Jules Tasca, with music by Thomas Tierney and lyrics by Ted Drachman) is currently touring the US with TheatreworksUSA. The full-scale and touring versions of the musical are licensed through Dramatic Publishing; which has also licensed adaptations of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by Joseph Robinette and The Magician's Nephew by Aurand Harris.


A licensed musical stage adaptation of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader made its world premiere in 1983 by Northwestern College (Minnesota) at the Totino Fine Arts Center. Script adaptation by Wayne Olson, with original music score by Kevin Norberg. Northwestern College is located in Roseville, Minnesota, USA. It is a four-year Christian college accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. ...


Theatrical productions of "The Chronicles of Narnia" have become popular with professional, community and youth theatres in recent years. A musical version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe written specifically for performance by youth is available through Josef Weinberger.


Film

A film version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, entitled The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, produced by Walden Media and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures was released in December 2005. It was directed by Andrew Adamson. The screenplay was written by Ann Peacock. Principal photography for the film took place in Poland, the Czech Republic and New Zealand. Major Visual Effects Studios like Rhythm and Hues Studios, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and many more worked on the VFX for the movie. The movie achieved critical and box-office success, reaching the Top 25 of all films released to that time (by revenue). Disney produced a sequel, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, released May 16, 2008. At the time of Caspian's release, Disney was already in pre-production on the next chapter, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Also all of the films are planned to be made[citation needed]. The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of fantasy films from Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media based on the series of novels, The Chronicles of Narnia written by C.S. Lewis in the 1950s. ... This article is about the novel. ... Walden Media is a film production and publishing company best known as the producers of The Chronicles of Narnia film series. ... Old logo from 1985-2006 Walt Disney Pictures refers to several different entities associated with The Walt Disney Company: Walt Disney Pictures, the film banner, was established as a designation in 1983, prior to which Disney films since the death of Walt Disney were released under the name of the... Andrew Adamson is a New Zealand-born film director based mainly in Los Angeles, California, USA, where he made the blockbuster animation films, Shrek and Shrek 2 for which he received an Academy Award nomination. ... Principal Photography refers to the phase of film production during which the movie is actually shot, as distinct from pre-production and post-production. ... Rhythm & Hues Studios is an Academy Award winning visual effects studio, founded in 1987 by six former employees of Robert Abel and Associates. ... Sony Pictures Imageworks Inc. ... Industrial Light & Magic original logo, designed by Drew Struzan Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is a motion picture visual effects company, founded in May 1975 by George Lucas and owned by Lucasfilm Ltd. ... Special effects (also called SPFX or SFX) are used in the film, television, and entertainment industry to realize scenes that cannot be achieved by live action or normal means. ... Jazz Festival box Office, Edmonton A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to a venue. ... The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. ...


Music

A musical retelling of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was released in 1980 by the classic vocal-harmonies pop/rock group 2nd Chapter of Acts entitled, The Roar of Love. 2nd Chapter of Acts was a Jesus Music and an early Contemporary Christian Music group comprised of sisters Annie Herring and Nelly Greisen and brother Matthew Ward. ...


The official soundtrack for the 2005 film was released in December of 2005 on Walt Disney Records featuring Harry Gregson-Williams's inspired score. The recording also includes original songs performed by Alanis Morissette, Imogen Heap, and Tim Finn.


Sparrow Records also released a companion CD to the 2005 film called "Music Inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia" and contains songs from Jars of Clay, Steven Curtis Chapman, Tobymac, Kutless, and other popular Contemporary Christian artists.


A song was sung by Shaan(India) in his album 'Yahi anth ki shuruat hai' for the movie 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe' when it was released in India.


In the movie 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian', Regina Spektor's The Call was played in the end of the movie.


Audio books

The Chronicles of Narnia are all available on audiobook, read by Andrew Sachs. These were published by Chivers Children's' Audio Books. Cassette recording of Patrick OBrians The Mauritius Command done by Patrick Tull An audiobook is a recording that is primarily of the spoken word as opposed to music. ... Andrew Sachs (born Andreas Siegfried Sachs, April 7, 1930) is a British actor. ...


In 1979, Caedmon Records released abridged versions of all seven books on records and cassettes, read by Ian Richardson (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Silver Chair), Claire Bloom (Prince Caspian and The Magician's Nephew), Anthony Quayle {The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Horse and his Boy) and Michael York {The Last Battle). Ian William Richardson CBE (7 April 1934 – 9 February 2007) was a Scottish actor best known for playing the Machiavellian politician Francis Urquhart in the House of Cards trilogy for the BBC. // Born in Edinburgh, Richardson was educated at Balgreen Primary School and Tynecastle High School in the city,[1... Claire Bloom (born Patricia Claire Blume on February 15, 1931) is a British film and stage actress. ... Anthony Quayle Sir John Anthony Quayle (7 September 1913 – 20 October 1989) was an English actor and director. ... Michael York (born March 27, 1942, Fulmer, England) is a prolific actor now resident in California. ...


HarperAudio published the series on audiobook, read by British and Irish actors Michael York (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), Lynn Redgrave (Prince Caspian), Derek Jacobi (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader), Jeremy Northam (The Silver Chair), Alex Jennings (The Horse and his Boy), Kenneth Branagh (The Magician's Nephew) and Patrick Stewart {The Last Battle}. Cassette recording of Patrick OBrians The Mauritius Command done by Patrick Tull An audiobook is a recording that is primarily of the spoken word as opposed to music. ... Michael York (born March 27, 1942, Fulmer, England) is a prolific actor now resident in California. ... Lynn Rachel Redgrave OBE (born 8 March 1943 in London) is an English actress born into the famous acting Redgrave family. ... Sir Derek George Jacobi, CBE (IPA: ) (born 22 October 1938) is an English actor and director, knighted in 1994 for his services to the theatre. ... Jeremy Philip Northam (born December 1, 1961 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English actor. ... Alex Jennings (born 10 May 1957) is an award-winning English actor. ... Kenneth Charles Branagh (born December 10, 1960) is an Emmy Award-winning, Academy Award-nominated Northern Irish-born actor and film director. ... This article is about the actor. ...


Collins Audio also released the series on audiobook read by Sir Michael Hordern with original music composed and performed by Marisa Robles. Cassette recording of Patrick OBrians The Mauritius Command done by Patrick Tull An audiobook is a recording that is primarily of the spoken word as opposed to music. ... Sir Michael Hordern (October 3, 1911-May 2, 1995) was a British actor, knighted in 1983 for his services to the theatre. ... Marisa Robles (born April 5, 1937) is one of the worlds best-known harpists. ...


Games

In November of 2005, Buena Vista Interactive, a publishing label of Disney released videogame adaptations of the Walden Media/Walt Disney Pictures film. Versions were developed for most videogame platforms available at the time including Windows PC, Nintendo GameCube, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 (developed by the UK-based developer Traveller's Tales). A handheld version of the game was also developed by Griptonite Games for the Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance. Disney Interactive Studios is the video game publishing division of The Walt Disney Company. ... Disney redirects here. ... Walden Media is a film production and publishing company best known as the producers of The Chronicles of Narnia film series. ... Old logo from 1985-2006 Walt Disney Pictures refers to several different entities associated with The Walt Disney Company: Walt Disney Pictures, the film banner, was established as a designation in 1983, prior to which Disney films since the death of Walt Disney were released under the name of the... A windows box is a computer that uses the Microsoft Windows operating system. ... The Nintendo GameCube (GCN) is Nintendos fourth home video game console, belonging to the sixth generation era. ... For the Xboxs successor, see Xbox 360. ... PS2 redirects here. ... Travellers Tales Ltd is a British software house established in 1990 and based in Knutsford, Cheshire. ... Griptonite Games is a developer of handheld video games located in Kirkland, Washington. ... The Nintendo DS (sometimes abbreviated NDS or more commonly DS) is a handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. ... “GBA” redirects here. ...


Further reading

  • Bruner, Kurt & Ware, Jim. Finding God in the Land of Narnia. Tyndale House Publishers, 2005.
  • Bustard, Ned. The Chronicles of Narnia Comprehension Guide. Veritas Press, 2004.
  • Dorsett, Lyle, Ed.; Mead, Marjorie Lamp. Ed. C.S. Lewis: Letters to Children. Touchstone, 1995. ISBN# 0684823721
  • Duriez, Colin. A Field Guide to Narnia. InterVarsity Press, 2004.
  • Ford, Paul. Companion to Narnia, Revised Edition. HarperSanFrancisco, revised edition 2005.
  • Hein, Rolland. Christian Mythmakers: C.S. Lewis, Madeleine L'Engle, J.R.R. Tolkien, George MacDonald, G.K. Chesterton, & Others Second Edition. Cornerstone Press Chicago, 2002. ISBN# 094089548X
  • Jacobs, Alan. The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C.S. Lewis. HarperSanFrancisco, 2005.
  • McIntosh, Kenneth. Following Aslan: A Book of Devotions for Children. Anamchara Books, 2006.
  • Wagner, Richard. C.S. Lewis & Narnia For Dummies. For Dummies, 2005.
  • A Guide for Using The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in the Classroom. Teacher Created Resources, 2000.
  • The Lion, Witch & Wardrobe Study Guide. Progeny Press, 1993.
  • The Magician's Nephew Study Guide. Progeny Press, 1997.
  • Prince Caspian Study Guide. Progeny Press, 2003.
  • Ward, Michael (2008), Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis, Oxford University Press .

References

This article refers to the news department of the British Broadcasting Corporation, for the BBC News Channel see BBC News (TV channel). ... For other uses, see Guardian. ... Neil Richard Gaiman (IPA: ) (born November 10, 1960[2]) is an English author of science fiction and fantasy short stories and novels, graphic novels, comics, and films. ... Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, and film critic. ... The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... For other uses, see 5th October (Serbia). ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Clive Staples Lewis (November 29, 1898 – November 22, 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an author and scholar. ... Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... Clive Staples Jack Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... The Houston Chronicle is a daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. ... Meghan ORourke is the culture editor for Slate and, along with Charles Simic, poetry editor for The Paris Review. ... Categories: Magazines stubs | Microsoft subsidiaries | Websites | The Washington Post ... is the 343rd day of the year (344th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Philip Pullman CBE (born October 19, 1946) is a British writer. ... For other uses, see Guardian. ...

Endnotes

External links

Narnia Portal

Image File history File links Portal. ... Clive Staples Jack Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... This article is about the novel. ... For the film adaptation of the novel, see The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. ... The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. ... The Silver Chair is part of The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven fantasy novels written by C.S. Lewis. ... Cover of a recent edition of The Horse and His Boy The Horse and His Boy is a novel by C.S. Lewis. ... The Magicians Nephew is a fantasy novel for children written by C. S. Lewis. ... This article is about the novel by C. S. Lewis. ... The BBC produced a television adaptation of four books of C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988), Prince Caspian (1989), The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1989) and The Silver Chair (1990). ... The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of fantasy films from Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media based on the series of novels, The Chronicles of Narnia written by C.S. Lewis in the 1950s. ... Peter Pevensie is one of the major characters in the childrens fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. ... Susan Pevensie is one of the major characters in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Edmund Pevensie (1930 - 1949) is a major character in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia. ... Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe the 2005 film Lucy Pevensie is one of the major characters from C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Eustace Clarence Scrubb (1933 - 1949) is a character in C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia. ... Jill Pole (1933 - 1949) is a major character from C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Digory Kirke (1888 - 1949) is a human character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Polly Plummer is a human fictional character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Caspian X, King of Narnia, Lord of Cair Paravel, and Emperor of the Lone Islands, also called Caspian the Seafarer and Caspian the Navigator (born 2290–died 2356, Narnian Time) is a fictional character in the Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis. ... In C. S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia fictional series, Rilian (2325-?) is the son of King Caspian and the daughter of Ramandu the star. ... Tirian is an Asian based company, that buildings and stenghts proactive companys. ... For other uses, see Aslan (disambiguation). ... Shasta is a fictional character in C.S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia. ... Aravis is a main character in C.S. Lewis The Horse and his Boy. ... Bree (short for Breehy-hinny-brinny-hoohy-hah) is a fictional character in C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Hwin is a fictional character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... In the C.S. Lewiss fictional world of Narnia, Mr. ... Jadis, the White Witch is the key villain of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published book in C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series, and the second chronologically. ... Trumpkin is a fictional character in C.S. Lewis fantasy novel series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Reepicheep is a character from C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series. ... Puddleglum is a Marshwiggle in C. S. Lewiss novel The Silver Chair, part of The Chronicles of Narnia. ... The Lady of the Green Kirtle, also known as the Queen of Underland, is a character in The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis, appearing as the main villain. ... Shift is a fictional character in the childrens fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. ... This article is about a fictional character, for other uses of Puzzle see Puzzle (disambiguation) Puzzle is a fictional character in The Last Battle, the seventh and final book of C. S. Lewis The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Uncle Andrew Ketterley is a fictional character from C. S. Lewiss fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. ... This is a list of characters in the series of fantasy novels by C. S. Lewis called The Chronicles of Narnia. ... Narnian creatures are any non-human inhabitants of Narnia, the fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as a setting for his The Chronicles of Narnia. ... For other uses of Narnia, see Narnia (disambiguation). ... In C. S. Lewiss fantasy novels the Chronicles of Narnia, Archenland is a nation to the south of Narnia. ... Cair Paravel is the capital of Narnia in The Chronicles of Narnia. ... In C. S. Lewiss Chronicles of Narnia series of novels, Calormen (pron. ... Charn is a fictional realm in C. S. Lewiss book The Magicians Nephew, one of the Chronicles of Narnia. ... In the Chronicles of Narnia, The Lone Islands are a set of three islands - Felimath, Doorn, and Avra - that are part of the Narnian empire. ... Telmar is a country in the world of Narnia created by the British author C.S. Lewis. ... The Wood between the Worlds is a location in The Magicians Nephew, part of the Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis. ... Aslans How, or the Hill of the Stone Table, is a high mound or cairn south of the Great River in Narnia next to the Great Woods. ... Aslans Country is a fictional location from C. S. Lewis The Chronicles of Narnia series. ... This is a list of fictional places in the series of novels by C. S. Lewis collectively known as The Chronicles of Narnia. ... The BBC produced a television adaptation of four books of C. S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988), Prince Caspian (1989), The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1989) and The Silver Chair (1990). ... The First Battle of Beruna as depicted in the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. ... The Dawn Treader was a Narnian ship, built by King Caspian X, in the Chronicles of Narnia, and is featured primarily in the book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. ... The events of the Narnian timeline, listed side-by-side against relevant Earth events. ...


  Results from FactBites:
 
the Chronicles of Narnia: Information from Answers.com (5292 words)
The Chronicles of Narnia contain many allusions to Christian ideas which are easily accessible to younger readers; however, the books are not weighty, and can be read for their adventure, colour, and mythological ideas alone.
The Narnia series is not an allegory, because allegories have an overarching figurative level of meaning tied to the literal level, and the Narnia series has a literal level of meaning without any overarching figurative level, though there are figurative elements.
According to Paul Ford's Companion to Narnia there is no indication that Lewis was alluding to the ancient Umbrian city Nequinium renamed Narnia by the conquering Romans in 299 BC after the river Nar, a tributary of the Tiber.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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