C. S. Lewis’s the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: a Fairytale of Faith

2833 Words12 Pages
Clive Staples Lewis was born on November 29, 1898 in Belfast, Ireland (Edwards 1). At the age of four, Clive decided he hated his name and insisted on being called Jacksie (Jacobs 1). This was eventually shortened to Jack and became the name he was known as by his friends, students, and family. Professionally, he became known by his initials C.S. Over the course of his life, Lewis wrote more than forty books covering a multitude of subjects including literary criticism, science fiction, fantasy, poetry, and Christian faith, many of which are still in print today (Downing 25). Of his numerous works, perhaps none are more famous than his seven book children’s fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. The series began in September of 1939, when Lewis, who had children staying with him due to the German bombing of London, wrote on a scrap of paper: This book is about four children whose names are Ann, Martin, Rose and Peter. But it is most about Peter who was the youngest. They all had to go away from London suddenly because of Air Raids, and because Father, who was in the Army, had gone off to the War and Mother was doing some kind of war work. They were sent to stay with a kind of relation of Mother’s who was a very old Professor who lived all by himself in the country. (Downing 29) Over the next ten years, that paragraph developed into a tale of four siblings that find themselves in Narnia, a magical land filled with talking animals. Aided by the mighty lion, Aslan, they free the realm from the evil White Queen and bring peace to Narnia. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe reflects Lewis’s life, the era in which he lived, and his Christian faith. Many elements found within The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe reflect the life of C. S. Lewis. Born into a well off family, Lewis’s early years were filled with happiness (Lewis, Joy). Born the second son,

More about C. S. Lewis’s the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: a Fairytale of Faith

Open Document