The Chronicles of Narnia (1950 – 1956)

Written by C.S Lewis.

Movies were usually my entry to any worlds, and in 2005, I was first introduced to the concept of Fantasy. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and directed by Andrew Adamson. This movie marked what I believed as the beginning of the Children’s Fantasy Movies era (2005 – 2009) whereby movies like The Spiderwick Chronicles, Inkheart, and Bridge to Terabithia became one of the most common movies that you can find on theatres. But as much as it flooded the cinemas, I did watch nor did I look forward to any of them. To me they were just another children’s movie. But this was an exception to Narnia.

The first Narnia movie introduced me to Fantasy. I was obsessed with mythological creatures portrayed by the movie—Centaurs, Minotaurs, Fauns and Werewolves. When the second movie—The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian—came in 2008, I fell in love with Narnia.

From then on, I started reading the books. I did not begin with The Magician’s Nephew however. I started with The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Well, my reason was quite simple. I just wanted to know what happened next in the adventure. Then I went on to read The Silver Chair. And I just kept going and going. Narnia became the first world that I have truly immersed myself in.

Much like the Pevensies, I did not come to Narnia alone. Around that time, I had a friend who was also completely obsessed with the notions of mythological creatures from various folk lore and stories all around the world. And he too was obsessed with Narnia. Together, we would share the books and slowly we read every single bit of it. Not only that, we began to re-live the story told in the books. We began to imagine ourselves as High King Peter and even the White Witch. Sometimes, I would act like I was Oreius—the Centaur from the movie. We would re-enact the battle between High King Peter and the usurper, Miraz. The list goes on.

One funny story, there was a time during my obsession when I began to ask a dumb question to one of my classmates. I believe we were only a fifth grader back then. One of our teachers would ask us to present the things that have inspired us in life. One of my classmates, she brought up how much she loved the first Narnia movie. Of course loving something does not mean that you are completely obsessed with it. But back then, I thought that the extent of her “love” for Narnia would translate as much as what my Narnian friend and I had. So, I asked her what is your favorite creature from Narnia? and she gave me a confused face. I went on to ask her about the centaurs, the minotaurs, the hags, the fauns, the dwarves and the many creatures I can think of. But all she replied was hey, I like the Pevensies and their story, that’s all. And she would gave me a look (the kind you would give when you see a weirdo). But looking back that was probably the time when I managed to see what a world truly is. Beyond the story, beyond the cinematography. I love Narnia.

Back then, my favorite book was The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It was probably because it was the first book I have read from the series. Recently, I managed to re-read the entire series all over again. And after reading them again, I truly feel that The Voyage of the Dawn Treader really is my favorite book. I felt that the book did not shy away from telling more about the world of Narnia—the multitudes of magic it possess—and it does so in a much more detailed manner compared to the rest of the books. And perhaps the other reason why I really love The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was because it introduced my favorite character in The Chronicles of Narnia—Eustace Clarence Scrubb.

Before we continue, you should know that C.S Lewis is a Christian. And a lot of the story elements in The Chronicles of Narnia is actually taken from the bible and in general what Lewis thought to be the meaning of Christianity. Just to lay it out, I am a Christian myself. And I could relate to the various references Lewis would take as an inspiration for a scene in his story. The very fact that Lewis did not shy away from his roots—he is a theologist—and create a morally meaningful stories from Narnia is what inspires me. Truly, I believe that amongst the different form of magic he had written within Narnia, the true magic inside his books were the portrayal of what Christianity should be. And through this concept, I can start talking on why I love The Voyage of the Dawn Treader so much.

The reason why Eustace was my favorite character is because he is the realest character in Narnia. Among the many magical entity or occurrences, and even to say boldly Aslan himself. Eustace takes everything very practically and rationally. In the beginning it became a metaphor to how non-believers would perceive religion. That a lot of the stories that came from religious text does indeed sound like a total bogus. Eustace over and over again, exemplify this idea. And I believe that his views serve as some sort of a bridge for people who generally don’t enjoy the idea of magic or fantasy to begin with. In the end, during the events of Dragon Island, Eustace experienced first hand magic itself when he was turned into a dragon. This in a sense was a metaphor to people who is going through a hard time in real life. And in the end, Lewis wanted to deliver the message, that the only solution to it is through religion / faith—in Lewis case, Jesus—the same way Eustace can only be saved through Aslan. His scenario became one of the more applicable ones in the modern world today when it comes to religious faith.

Another I realised from The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was how Lewis’s way of writing evolved with his audience. As his audience grow up, his method of writing grows up with them. He still use a relatively simple words but this time he added more description on Narnia itself. Every single detail of every islands are presented well. Of course this later on translates to The Silver Chair as well. But it was the first time I felt that Lewis had put in a lot more description on Narnia. In one book, I could imagine Narnia much better than what The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian had covered. I grew to appreciate The Voyage of the Dawn Treader a lot due to the amount of world building Lewis had put in the seas of Narnia. The more I read, the more I became interested in Narnia itself. Every stones, every creatures and every magical entity Lewis had created.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader truly became the first book that gives me that thirst of adventure of seeing other worlds. It made me wanted to read every single lore there ever was written in Magic the Gathering and World of Warcraft. It made me to read the long repetitive pages of the Assassin’s Creed books. And looking back, the seas of Narnia was truly one of my first adventures.