#the chronicles of narnia cs lewis

[panromanticace]

Fine, but you should know I'm a messy reader

If you see this you’re legally obligated to reblog and tag with the book you’re currently reading

[dont-tell-my-mom-im-here]

I've never seen a normal post about C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkien it's always just like: Tolkien once murdered someone and Lewis helped him bury the body but he wore a Santa costume just to spite him

[avengerraven]

My favourite thing about The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is that CS Lewis very obviously knew that kids were going to go hunting in cupboards and wardrobes for Narnia because multiple times he very clearly states that the kids did not close the door behind them when they climbed in the wardrobe because that would be stupid and dangerous. He knew some kid was going to lock themselves in the closet and he obviously didn’t want to be responsible for that.

[silmarillion-ways-to-die]

Two British Fantasy Authors, a play in one act.

JRR Tolkien: So my epic fantasy has elves and dwarves and gods and demons and vampires and werewolves.

CS Lewis: Cool cool cool.

JRR Tolkien: What about yours?

CS Lewis: Mine? It's got fauns and a witch and a talking lion and precocious children—

JRR Tolkien: I like the talking lion.

CS Lewis: —and Santa Claus.

JRR Tolkien: ...

JRR Tolkien: ...

JRR Tolkien: What?

CS Lewis: Santa Claus. You know, "ho ho ho."

JRR Tolkien: I know Santa Claus! I wrote the book on Santa Claus! But you can't have Santa Claus in your High Fantasy!"

CS Lewis: Why not? You have Tom Bombadil!

JRR Tolkien: HOW DARE YOU

[godsfavoritedumpsterfire]

“To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.”

-C.S. Lewis

[clumsy-words-again]

I think magically becoming a Narnian queen would help me a lot actually

[thatrandomblogsays]

Dear Diary,

Today I cried for Susan Pevensie’s loss today.

[always-a-king-or-queen]

C 👏 S 👏 LEWIS 👏 WAS 👏 NOT 👏 MISOGYNISTIC

IM SO SICK OF THIS TAKE

“But he said girls shouldn’t fight in battles—" No, actually. What he said was “Battles are ugly when women fight.” Which literally translates to “in a war where women are required to fight to help win it, it means the war itself is really bad.” And this literally just means that the war has gotten so bad that women have to fight, not that women shouldn’t fight. Just that they shouldn’t be forced to. Anyway, remember Lucy?? Lucy who rode to battle in The Horse and His Boy?? Lucy who fought as an archer?? “But Susan didn’t—" Yeah. Because she didn’t want to. No one was forcing her not to fight. She had free will to fight or to not fight, and she chose not to because she didn’t want to, not because a man made her stay home.

“He punished Susan for growing up—" S i g h. This is the one I see the most often. “He did Susan dirty” “he made her suffer because she liked lipstick” “etc etc blah blah blah” First of all Narnia is a children’s book series. For CS Lewis to delve into why Susan forgot Narnia, talk about her dealing with the death of her entire family, discuss her grief, and write about her eventual return to Narnia (more on that in a second), it would’ve made for a pretty dark and heavy children’s book, and Lewis said that he didn’t think that was something he wanted to write. But he also encouraged people to finish Susan’s story themselves, and said she might eventually make her own way back to Narnia. Not only this, but Susan’s name means lily, and the waters around Aslan’s country are covered in lilies. Coincidence? I think not. I think it symbolizes she was going to go back. (Especially considering I think Lewis was very careful in choosing each of the Pevensie’s names, since they all relate to their character).

Also, Lewis did not condemn Susan simply for growing up and liking makeup and clothing and boys. If so why would he have written about Aravis and Shasta/Cor, or Caspian and Liliandil? Why would he have written about Susan and Lucy being beautiful and having many suitors? So no, he wasn’t condemning her for that, and in fact he wasn’t condemning her at all. It’s extremely probable that her family’s death would have brought Susan back to her senses. Because here’s the thing: she forgot. She threw herself so much into the world and approval and convinced herself that her life as a queen and her acquaintance with Aslan was all a silly game they played as children, that it wasn’t real. But, she very well could remember again, and I 1000% believe she did.

“All his female characters were weak and did nothing—" My friend. Lucy Pevensie was a female. She discovered Narnia. It was because of her. Her siblings would never have found it without her. Lucy is one of THE most important characters in the entire series. And her title? The Valiant. Lucy’s very title as queen denoted her bravery and fortitude without one even knowing her. As for Susan, she was not any weaker for being “The Gentle.” I would say gentleness is honestly one of the strongest traits a person can have, because it takes a lot to live and be gentle. Also remember Aravis? A major character in The Horse and His Boy and future wife of Shasta, Aravis literally nearly killed herself to escape an arranged marriage. She was not someone to be dictated to; she made her own choices and escaped rather than submitting. And in the end, she’s still fiery, just a little more humble and with less of a chip on her shoulder. Then there’s Polly, who is the more logical person in The Magician’s Nephew and tries to stop Digory from ringing the bell that wakes the White Witch. A boy causes her to awaken, not a girl. It was Digory’s fault she woke up, not Polly’s!!

Also, Peter and Edmund do not ignore their sisters because they’re girls. They listen to what they have to say and speak to them as equals. They don’t forbid them from fighting; Susan chooses not to, but Lucy goes straight into the heart of the battle with them! So don’t even say Lewis made his female characters weak. They were the backbone of much of the series and without them much of the plot would never have happened!!

So don’t you ever say to me that CS Lewis was misogynistic because it’s the furthest thing from the truth

[amphorographia]

Shakespeare: So, in Macbeth, the forest doesn't actually move, it's just an army holding branches

C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien: And we took that personally

[wyrd-author]

The Chronicles of Narnia omnibus containing all seven books in one! Originally a paperback, rebound into hardcover with hand dyed green goatskin leather and gold design depicting Aslan on the front cover. Now available in my shop at the link in my bio.

[magicaloxford]

I love going to the Old Library at Magdalen College, where C.S. Lewis interspersed his literary studies with meditations on the magical world of Narnia. 🌟📚 The Library has such an air of old Oxford, with its rows of ancient bookcases and windows looking out onto a timeless quad *:･ﾟ✧

[queen-lucy-the-valiant]

"there once was a boy named Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it" is probably the result of "there once was a boy named Clive Staples Lewis and he absolutely did not deserve it"

[healerqueen]

“Where sky and water meet, Where the waves grow sweet, Doubt not, Reepicheep, To find all you seek, There is the utter East.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

More: The Silver Chair aesthetic moodboard

[lenoreamidala]

“Grief is great. Only you and I in this land know that yet. Let us be good to one another.”

[mrs-jamesbbarnes]

Listen I’m rewatching Reign because I didn’t finish it the first time and I can’t stop laughing about this scene…

The writers really said, “Do you guys want to make J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis roll over in their graves? Let’s give a bow to the two actors on set most likely to know how to use it.”

So they had Haldir, the Elf…

teach Susan Pevensie how to use a bow

And honestly I can’t fault them for making this happen

[clumsy-words-again]

There’s little child in me who just wants to be best friends with Lucy Pevensie and wear flower crowns all the time