Chronicling Narnia: Prophecy, Christian Allegory, and Feminism

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My trip to England this spring brought me a deeper appreciation for history and a reinvigorated interest in some modern Brittish classics. Wandering around Oxford and Cambridge gave me a window into the deep literary history present there, and the tours left me with some anecdotes that piqued the curiosity.

In fourth grade, with no previous experience, I attempted to read The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in fourth grade, and found it impossible. I thought it was boring and confusing at the same time, and I swore off fantasy in favor of Beverly Clearly and Judy Blume (though I later made an exception for the glory of Rowling's Harry Potter). Fifteen years later, I started the series out right, and I found myself much more enthralled.

I was well aware of the Christian allegory in The Chronicles of Narnia, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that those messages were weaved in in an authentic and not (too) preachy way. I was less enthusiastic, however about Lewis's ideas of gender roles and the position of women in this epic story. On more than one occasion, Lucy and Susan are confined to roles of submissive support while their brothers are asked to be the leaders. Leaving no room for interpretation, Lewis warns against war that engages women in battle and stresses the importance of keeping the young girls in their appropriate place. Aslan's words instruct the boys to use their weapons offensively while the girls' instruments are strictly defensive. While the prophecy refers to Narnia's future kings and queens with relatively equivalent stature, Lewis uses Aslan to remind us of the traditional gender dichotomy to which he ascribes.

The story unfolds eloquently, and Lewis has a firm command of the English language.The world he creates is rich and intricate, and he provides vivid details that put the reader directly into Narnia in a way that many authors after him have attempted to emulate. We as educators must view his work in the context of the time and culture that he comes from, but we must remain vigilant in reading with our students in such a way that those values are not reinforced and affirmed in our present reality.