By Curtis Chapman

The release of two feature-length films—“The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” in 2005 and “Prince Caspian” in 2008—has revived popular interest in “The Chronicles of Narnia” by C.S. Lewis.  

C.S. Lewis, a professor of literature at Oxford, was an atheist who converted to Christianity. During World War II, Lewis became widely known across Great Britain for his views on faith through a series of BBC radio addresses, which were later published under the title “Mere Christianity.”  

His talent was clearly explaining why he believed what he believed and doing it with great assurance of heart and mind.  He promoted and defended Christianity from an intellectual perspective.

Lewis wrote “The Chronicles of Narnia” in the late 1940s – early 1950s. He opposed attempts to make films, TV shows, or cartoons of the stories because any visual depiction could make the characters appear too cute or too nightmarish.  

Disney has worked with the C.S. Lewis estate to ensure the films coming out now and in the future stay as true as possible to the author’s intentions.

One obvious intent is to use fantasy to illustrate Christian concepts for young minds. The lion, Aslan, and all that he does, represents Christ, the Lion of Judah. The children — Peter, Susan, Edmund, Lucy — and all they do represent the good and bad qualities of the children of Adam and Eve.

The appeal of Lewis’ fiction, or turn-off for some religious people, is the way it blends Christian and pagan elements. Centaurs (half human – half horse), minotaurs (half human – half bull), elves, dwarves, witches, fairies, etc. are based on Greek or Celtic myth. It is interesting that C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien (author of “The Lord of the Rings”) reviewed each other’s writing.

I definitely recommend making “Prince Caspian” a movie-going experience for the entire family, but expect a different story from “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.”  One is a story of nature locked away by ice; the other is a story of nature green and alive.

The film “Prince Caspian” is most true to the book when it shows the Telmarines as a military society bent on ravaging and destroying the environment. The good guys of Narnia struggle to resist, but are not completely victorious until Aslan calls on the spirits within nature to rise up and reclaim the land.

While “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” emphasized Christ’s sacrifice, “Prince Caspian” deals more with the power of Christ over nature. Aslan, like Christ, is the one even the wind and the sea obey.

Perhaps C.S. Lewis is not such an old-fogey writer with old-fogey ideas. He presents a lesson for us today.  The less respect we have for nature, the less we are good stewards of God’s creation and the more we can unleash natural forces (like global warming) that we cannot control.

Curtis Chapman is a professor at Hiwassee College.