Main characters
Aslan
Main article: Aslan
Aslan, the Great Lion, is the central character of The Chronicles of Narnia. He is the eponymous lion of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,
and his role in Narnia is developed throughout the remaining books. He
is also the only character to appear in all seven books. Aslan is a
talking lion, the King of Beasts, son of the Emperor-Over-the-Sea;
a wise, compassionate, magical authority (both temporal and spiritual);
mysterious and benevolent guide to the human children who visit as well
as guardian and saviour of Narnia. C. S. Lewis described Aslan as an
alternative version of Jesus as the form in which Christ might have
appeared in an alternative reality.[27]Pevensie Family
The four Pevensie siblings are the main human protagonists of The Chronicles of Narnia. Varying combinations of some or all of them appear in five of the seven novels. They are introduced in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and eventually become Kings and Queens of Narnia: High King Peter the Magnificent, Queen Susan the Gentle, King Edmund the Just, and Queen Lucy the Valiant. Although introduced in the series as children, the siblings (Peter in a passing mention) appear as adults in The Horse and His Boy. Echoing the Christian theme of redemption, Edmund betrays his siblings to Jadis, the White Witch, but eventually realises the error of his ways whereupon he is redeemed with the intervention of Aslan and joins the fight against the White Witch. Lucy is the central character of the four Pevensie siblings. Of all the Pevensie children, Lucy is the closest to Aslan, and of all the human characters who visit Narnia, Lucy is perhaps the one who believes in Narnia the most. All four appear in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian. Susan, Lucy, and Edmund (Peter is mentioned) appear in The Horse and His Boy. Lucy and Edmund appear in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Peter, Edmund, and Lucy appear in The Last Battle. Susan doesn't appear in The Last Battle because she has stopped believing in Narnia. Asked by a child in 1958 if he would please write another book entitled "Susan of Narnia" so that the entire Pevensie family would be reunited, C. S. Lewis replied: "I am so glad you like the Narnian books and it was nice of you to write and tell me. There's no use just asking me to write more. When stories come into my mind I have to write them, and when they don't I can't!..."*[28]
Eustace Scrubb
Main article: Eustace Scrubb
Eustace Clarence Scrubb is a cousin of the Pevensies, and a classmate of Jill Pole at their school Experiment House.
He is portrayed at first as a brat and a bully, but comes to confront
and improve his behaviour. In the later books, Eustace is shown as an
altogether better person, becoming a hero along with Jill Pole. He
appears in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, and The Last Battle.Jill Pole
Main article: Jill Pole
Jill Pole appears in The Silver Chair and The Last Battle. She is a classmate and neighbour of Eustace Scrubb.Digory Kirke
Main article: Digory Kirke
Digory Kirke is the character referred to in the title of The Magician's Nephew. He first appears as a minor character in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, but his true significance in the narrative is only revealed in The Magician's Nephew.Polly Plummer
Main article: Polly Plummer
Polly Plummer appears in The Magician's Nephew and The Last Battle.
She is a friend of Digory Kirke. Her accidental journey to the wood
between worlds prompts Digory to follow her, and sets up the pair's
adventures in The Magician's Nephew.Prince Caspian / Caspian X
Main article: Caspian X
Prince Caspian, later to become King Caspian X of Narnia, Lord of
Cair Paravel and Emperor of The Lone Islands – also called "Caspian the
Seafarer" and "Caspian the Navigator" — is the title character of the
second book in the series, first introduced as the young nephew and heir
of King Miraz of Narnia. Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia is
set 1300 years after the rule of High King Peter and his siblings, when
Old Narnians have been driven into hiding by Caspian's ancestors the Telmarines. Caspian is also a central character in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and appears briefly at the beginning and end of The Silver Chair.White Witch / Jadis
Main article: White Witch
Jadis, commonly known during her rule of Narnia as the White Witch, is the main antagonist of The Magician's Nephew and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.
She is the witch responsible for the freezing of Narnia resulting in
the Hundred Years Winter. The White Witch was born in the world of Charn
before the creation of Narnia and died in battle in Narnian year 1000.Shasta / Cor
Main article: Shasta (Narnia)
Shasta, later known as Cor of Archenland, is the principal character in The Horse and His Boy. Born the eldest son and heir of King Lune
of Archenland, and elder twin of Prince Corin, Cor was kidnapped as an
infant and raised as a fisherman's son in the country of Calormen. Sold into slavery in The Horse and his Boy,
Shasta escapes to freedom, saves Archenland and Narnia from invasion,
learns his true identity, and is restored to his heritage. Shasta grows
up to become King of Archenland, marries the Calormene Tarkheena Aravis, and fathers the next king of Archenland, Ram the Great.Aravis
Main article: Aravis
Aravis, daughter of Kidrash Tarkaan, is the second principal character in The Horse and His Boy.
Escaping a forced betrothal to the loathsome Ahoshta, she joins Shasta
on his journey and inadvertently overhears a plot by Rabadash, crown
prince of Calormen, to invade Archenland. She later marries Shasta, now
known as Prince Cor, and becomes queen of Archenland at his side.Bree
Main article: Bree (Narnia)
Bree (Breehy-hinny-brinny-hoohy-hah) is Shasta's mount and mentor in The Horse and His Boy.
A Talking Horse of Narnia, he wandered into Calormen as a foal and was
captured. He first appears as a Calormene nobleman's war-horse; when the
nobleman buys Shasta as a slave, Bree organizes and carries out their
joint escape. Though friendly, he is also vain and a braggart until his
encounter with Aslan late in the story.Trumpkin
Main article: Trumpkin
Trumpkin the Dwarf is the narrator of several chapters of Prince Caspian;
he is one of Caspian's rescuers and a leading figure in the "Old
Narnian" rebellion, and accompanies the Pevensie children from the ruins
of Cair Paravel to the Old Narnian camp. In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
we learn that Caspian has made him his Regent in Narnia while he is
away at sea, and he appears briefly in this role (now elderly and very
deaf) in The Silver Chair.Puddleglum
Main article: Puddleglum
Puddleglum the Marsh-wiggle guides Eustace and Jill on their quest in The Silver Chair.
Though consistently comically pessimistic, he provides the voice of
reason and as such intervenes critically in the climactic enchantment
scene.Appearances of main characters
| Character | Book | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950) | Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia (1951) | The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952) | The Silver Chair (1953) | The Horse and His Boy (1954) | The Magician's Nephew (1955) | The Last Battle (1956) | |
| Aslan | Major | ||||||
| Peter Pevensie | Major | Minor | |||||
| Susan Pevensie | Major | Minor | |||||
| Edmund Pevensie | Major | Minor | Minor | ||||
| Lucy Pevensie | Major | Minor | Minor | ||||
| Eustace Scrubb | Major | Major | |||||
| Jill Pole | Major | Major | |||||
| Digory Kirke | Minor | Major | Minor | ||||
| Polly Plummer | Major | Minor | |||||
| Prince/King Caspian | Major | Minor | Cameo | ||||
| Reepicheep the Mouse | Major | Cameo | |||||
| Jadis (The White Witch) | Major | Major | |||||
| Shasta (Prince/King Cor) | Major | Cameo | |||||
| Aravis Tarkheena | Major | Cameo | |||||
| Bree | Major | Cameo | |||||
| (Mr) Tumnus | Major | Minor | Minor | ||||
| Trumpkin the Dwarf | Major | Minor | Cameo | ||||
| Puddleglum | Major | Cameo | |||||
Reading order
Fans of the series often have strong opinions over the order in which the books should be read. The issue revolves around the placement of The Magician's Nephew and The Horse and His Boy in the series. Both are set significantly earlier in the story of Narnia than their publication order and fall somewhat outside the main story arc connecting the others. The reading order of the other five books is not disputed.
| Original publication order | Harper Collins order (chronological) |
|---|---|
| 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 |
I think I agree with your [chronological] order 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.[22]In the 2005 Harper Collins adult editions of the books, the publisher cites this letter to assert Lewis' preference for the numbering they adopted by including this 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. Harper Collins is happy to present these books in the order in which Professor Lewis preferred.Paul Ford cites several scholars who have weighed in against this view,[23] and continues, "most scholars disagree with this decision and find it the least faithful to Lewis's deepest intentions".[4] Scholars and readers who appreciate the original order believe that Lewis was simply being gracious to his youthful correspondent and that he could have changed the books' order in his lifetime had he so desired.[24] They maintain that much of the magic of Narnia comes from the way the world is gradually presented in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – that the mysterious wardrobe, as a narrative device, is a much better introduction to Narnia than The Magician's Nephew, where the word "Narnia" appears in the first paragraph as something already familiar to the reader. Moreover, they say, it is clear from the texts themselves that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was intended to be read first. When Aslan is first mentioned in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, for example, the narrator says that "None of the children knew who Aslan was, any more than you do" — which is nonsensical if one has already read The Magician's Nephew.[25] Other similar textual examples are also cited.[26]
Doris Meyer, author of C. S. Lewis in Context and Bareface: A guide to C. S. Lewis, writes that rearranging the stories chronologically "lessens the impact of the individual stories" and "obscures the literary structures as a whole".[4] Peter Schakel devotes an entire chapter to this topic in his book Imagination and the Arts in C. S. Lewis: Journeying to Narnia and Other Worlds, and in Reading with the Heart: The Way into Narnia he writes:
The only reason to read The Magician's Nephew first [...] is for the chronological order of events, and that, as every story teller knows, is quite unimportant as a reason. Often the early events in a sequence have a greater impact or effect as a flashback, told after later events which provide background and establish perspective. So it is [ ...] with the Chronicles. The artistry, the archetypes, and the pattern of Christian thought all make it preferable to read the books in the order of their publication.[25]
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