The Chronicles of Narnia - entertaining families for generations
The Chronicles of Narnia - entertaining families for generations
If you ask just about anyone which stories from their childhood they remember as being formative, you can place a safe wager that one of the titles they name will be The Chronicles of Narnia'.
The seven-book series, written by C.S. Lewis between 1949 and 1954, has been in continuous publication since the 1950s, and to date has sold over 100 million copies, as well as having been translated into 47 different languages.
The series' theistic themes of ordinary children who discover a secret parallel world of magic, and who enter into exciting and dangerous adventures to help good triumph over evil, have proven to be universally popular.
Narnia is a world where ordinary children can become Kings and Queens, where the benevolent talking lion Aslan represents the forces of good, and the forces of evil are represented by the likes of the ice queen the White Witch, who travels in a silver sleigh bearing Turkish Delight, and has a penchant for turning characters to stone. It's a magical world populated by fauns, tree nymphs, anthropomorphic animals and dashing, sea-faring princes, where the powerless can become heroes by virtue of their bravery.
Perhaps the secret behind the series' enduring popularity is that C.S. Lewis drew upon some of humanity's oldest tales as inspiration for his seven books. Christian Biblical theology is a noticeable influence, in particular in the first book The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', in which Aslan's sacrifice is an allegory for the crucifixion of Christ, and last book The Last Battle', which can be seen as a reworking of the Book of Revelation'. However, Lewis also draws heavily upon Greek and Roman mythology and literature, as well as Turkish and Anglo-Saxon stories.
The third novel, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader', uses as its template the epic Greek ode, Homer's The Odyssey', for its tale of heroes on a ship-borne quest, hopping between islands where they encounter a host of dangers and wonders, such as dragons, cyclopes and merpeople.
While the books will always remain classics for children, and indeed readers of all ages, the recent reworking of the stories as live-action films by Disney has opened them up to a whole new audience. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', released in 2005 and starring names such as Tilda Swinton, Liam Neeson and James McAvoy, was a great hit, taking in $745 million USD to date, making it the third highest-grossing film of all time. And its release on DVD saw it become the highest-selling DVD that year in North America, taking $332 million.
Film adaptations of Prince Caspian' and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader' followed in 2008 and 2010, with Dawn Treader' being the first of the film series to make use of brand-new 3D technology to create an awe-inspiring cinematic experience. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader DVD will also be among the first home cinema experiences to be released in 3D, in Fox's Blu-ray 3D series, which will also include Avatar' and the classic Star Wars' series.
However you enjoy the Chronicles of Narnia', though, whether as books, in the cinema, or at home on DVD, one thing remains the same they are, and will always be, a series of classic tales that entertain the whole family. Isla Campbell writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.
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