White Witch example essay topic

The implied reader of this story would be someone willing to believe in a world such as Narnia, where the personification of animals is real and where children can become Kings and Queens. Not only would the reader have to believe in the imaginative reality of Narnia but also in the characters portrayed in the novel, for example Mr. Tum nus", [f] rom the waist upward he was like a man, but his legs were shaped like a goat's (the hair on them was glossy black) and instead of feet he had goat's hoofs" (8). In our world a character such as this seems impossible, however in the world of Narnia these characters come to life. My brother and I fit the description of the implied reader perfectly. We were completely willing to become trapped in the world of Narnia and to become one of the characters, this novel was our chance to live the life of someone completely opposite to ourselves. As a child I was able to thoroughly enjoy the book because the main characters in the novel were of similar age to me which made it easy for me to relate to them.

After re-reading, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and discussing it with a few of my peers who also enjoyed the book as a child, I encountered a certain depth about the book that I had never noticed before. As an adult I discovered certain parallels to the bible and to Christ. Aslan, the great lion, is an obvious symbol of Christ. He risked his life in order to save Edmund from his own gluttony and from the White Witch. This parallels the way Christ was crucified in order to save mankind. There is also the parallel of temptation in the novel similar to that in the bible.

In the bible, Adam and Eve are tempted by Satan to eat the fruit from the tree of good and evil, this directly disobeyed God's wishes, Adam and Eve sinned by placing their desires above what God had told them and through this act sin entered the world. Edmund's act of temptation very closely resembled the act of temptation of Adam and Eve. Edmund was lured into the sinful world by turkish delight from the White Witch, a round box, tied with green silk ribbon, which, when opened, turned out to contain several pounds of the best Turkish Delight. Each piece was sweet and light to the very center and Edmund had never tasted anything more delicious. He was quite warm now, and very comfortable (Lewis 38). The turkish delight represents the forbidden fruit, had he never tasted the turkish delight, Edmund might not have succumbed to the evilness of the White Witch, and would have not brought sin to his siblings Another important aspect of the story that I noticed only as an adult was the importance of setting.

The White Witch has created a never-ending winter in Narnia. For me winter is the most unenjoyable season, the ground is frozen, which means nothing can be planted, the world around us is completely dead. In Narnia this symbolizes the life there, everyone is utterly under the control of the White Witch, and nobody is happy. However once the White Witch's reign of terror is over, the seasons continue on and spring finally arrives. The arrival of spring brings upon new life for the trees and flowers, but spring also symbolizes a new life for the characters of the novel whom now can live free in Narnia without the watchful eye of the White Witch. The genre of, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is fantasy.

Fantasy genre deals with the impossible. Most of the aspects in the novel are impossible, a wardrobe that contains a hidden world and inhabiting this world are impossible creatures, talking lions, beavers and half-men half-deer. However it is because of these impossibilities that the book is so popular among children. Children are born with incredible imaginations and due to these imaginations of this seems impossible, intriguing maybe, but not impossible.

In conclusion, after re-reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe I feel the book is a great novel for both children and adults. For children, the novel allows them to escape into a world of fantasy and to use their imaginations to their greatest extreme. For adults, C. S Lewis has provided a novel with extreme imaginative reality but also with great literary value through themes, motifs, setting and creative characters.