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A Guide Through Narnia
A Guide Through Narnia was one of the first in-depth studies of C.S. Lewis's seven Chronicles of Narnia. The focus and organization of this revised and expanded edition is on why Lewis wrote the books as fairy tales, the best "Form" for his ideas. It is written for both students and scholars who want to expand their understanding of these popular classics. Chapters include: -Seeing Pictures: How the books were written, chronological summaries, publication history -Selecting the Ideal Form: Why Lewis chose the fairy tale form, fairy tale elements and style -Seeing Man as Hero: Child heroes -Stealing Past Dragons: Characteristics of religious fantasy, allegory and "supposition," Christian elements -Stepping Through the Door: Themes and effects of fantasy -Dictionary of Names and Places Martha C. Sammons is Professor of English at Wright State University.
244 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 21, 2021
Most generic book on Lewis and Narnia I've read. This is a book which contains all the things that a half-clever person can realize after first reading of the books and it doesn't have interesting analysis of anything.
October 1, 2016
I've read many books about Narnia, but I still found insights. This book has too much summarizing and rehashing of the books, and not enough original material. I most liked the Christian parallels and the index which includes the etymology of names.
I read it because it was mentioned in Inside Narnia by Devin Brown.
Notes
The writing of the Chronicles, and the Chronicles themselves
"Lewis's great love for learning and his endless reading from Homer and Plato to classical writers to fairy tales … contain fragments reminiscent of Malory and the Arthurian tradition; Norse, Celtic, Greek and Arabian myths; and children's books such as those of Potter, Nesbit, and George McDonald."
King Frank and Queen Helen's youngest son, Col, leads followers into Archenland and becomes its first king. Then outlaws from Archenland set up Calormen. Then Calormenes colonize Telmar (west of Narnia), but behave so wickedly that Aslan turns them into dumb beasts. Later, pirates from our world are driven by storm onto an island in the South Seas. They enter a cave that allows them to enter the uninhabited Telmar. Later, due to famine, the Telmarines invade Narnia and Caspian I becomes king.
Narnia "seems to resemble Lewis's favorite parts of the English and Irish countryside" with forests, flowers, mountains, waterfalls, and rivers.
"Lewis associates Aslan with two symbols he said he borrowed from the Grail legend: brightness and a sweet smell."
Christian Concepts in the Narnia Tales
"The time between [Aslan's] first arrival in Narnia and the coming of spring is appropriately about 3 months - when Easter occurs."
Deep magic "is similar to God's Old Testament Law which is written on the stone tablets, requiring death and the shedding of blood as the penalty for sin." The stone table and stone knife may be symbols for God's law.
Lewis uses the biblical symbol of water to show the regenerating power of salvation (John 4:13-14, Revelation 22:1-2, John 7:37-39). Jill is thirsty but afraid to approach a stream (Silver Chair). After Shasta communes with Aslan on the mountainside, he notices a deep footprint from which a stream runs (Horse). Tirian and his followers discover a trickle of water (Last Battle). The way to Aslan's country is across a river, and the children scale a waterfall (Last Battle).
The way to Aslan's Country is through a stable that was previously used for the false Aslan and Tash. Lewis may be illustrating his belief that many false religions "prefigure" Christianity, containing elements of truth, even pointing the way to God.
The bird in the garden which Digory sees in the Magician's Nephew is revealed in the last battle to be a phoenix.
Index of Names and Places
Cair Paraval: a "court paravail" is an inferior/lower court; a "paravail" is one in a position below another, but below whom is another position. Lewis is implying that the Kings and Queens rule Narnia but are under Aslan and the Emperor.
Charn: a form of "churn," which means to agitate.
Hyaline: transparent like glass.
Jadis: a "jade" is a contemptuous name for a woman; "jadish" means worn or wearied.
Puzzle: his name fits not only that he puzzles the Narnians by masquerading as Aslan, but also that he's slow and confused.
Ramandu: Babylonian and Blackfoot Native American legends say every star was once a human.
Scrubb: means "a person of little account and poor appearance, insignificant."
Shasta: probably based on Hindu "Shastri" meaning one who is learned and teaches.
Shift: possible connection with "shifty."
Tash: means "blemish." By having Tash really exist, Lewis shows the reality of demons.
Tirian: probably from "tire," meaning to fail, cease, diminish give out; appropriate since Narnia ends during his reign.
Dwarfs: In Norse mythology there were black and white dwarfs, and black were usually evil and associated with the earth and metal craftsmanship.
Narnian names of royalty seem to have "-ian" endings, perhaps deriving from name "Aslan."
Experiment House children have derogatory names.
I read it because it was mentioned in Inside Narnia by Devin Brown.
Notes
The writing of the Chronicles, and the Chronicles themselves
"Lewis's great love for learning and his endless reading from Homer and Plato to classical writers to fairy tales … contain fragments reminiscent of Malory and the Arthurian tradition; Norse, Celtic, Greek and Arabian myths; and children's books such as those of Potter, Nesbit, and George McDonald."
King Frank and Queen Helen's youngest son, Col, leads followers into Archenland and becomes its first king. Then outlaws from Archenland set up Calormen. Then Calormenes colonize Telmar (west of Narnia), but behave so wickedly that Aslan turns them into dumb beasts. Later, pirates from our world are driven by storm onto an island in the South Seas. They enter a cave that allows them to enter the uninhabited Telmar. Later, due to famine, the Telmarines invade Narnia and Caspian I becomes king.
Narnia "seems to resemble Lewis's favorite parts of the English and Irish countryside" with forests, flowers, mountains, waterfalls, and rivers.
"Lewis associates Aslan with two symbols he said he borrowed from the Grail legend: brightness and a sweet smell."
Christian Concepts in the Narnia Tales
"The time between [Aslan's] first arrival in Narnia and the coming of spring is appropriately about 3 months - when Easter occurs."
Deep magic "is similar to God's Old Testament Law which is written on the stone tablets, requiring death and the shedding of blood as the penalty for sin." The stone table and stone knife may be symbols for God's law.
Lewis uses the biblical symbol of water to show the regenerating power of salvation (John 4:13-14, Revelation 22:1-2, John 7:37-39). Jill is thirsty but afraid to approach a stream (Silver Chair). After Shasta communes with Aslan on the mountainside, he notices a deep footprint from which a stream runs (Horse). Tirian and his followers discover a trickle of water (Last Battle). The way to Aslan's country is across a river, and the children scale a waterfall (Last Battle).
The way to Aslan's Country is through a stable that was previously used for the false Aslan and Tash. Lewis may be illustrating his belief that many false religions "prefigure" Christianity, containing elements of truth, even pointing the way to God.
The bird in the garden which Digory sees in the Magician's Nephew is revealed in the last battle to be a phoenix.
Index of Names and Places
Cair Paraval: a "court paravail" is an inferior/lower court; a "paravail" is one in a position below another, but below whom is another position. Lewis is implying that the Kings and Queens rule Narnia but are under Aslan and the Emperor.
Charn: a form of "churn," which means to agitate.
Hyaline: transparent like glass.
Jadis: a "jade" is a contemptuous name for a woman; "jadish" means worn or wearied.
Puzzle: his name fits not only that he puzzles the Narnians by masquerading as Aslan, but also that he's slow and confused.
Ramandu: Babylonian and Blackfoot Native American legends say every star was once a human.
Scrubb: means "a person of little account and poor appearance, insignificant."
Shasta: probably based on Hindu "Shastri" meaning one who is learned and teaches.
Shift: possible connection with "shifty."
Tash: means "blemish." By having Tash really exist, Lewis shows the reality of demons.
Tirian: probably from "tire," meaning to fail, cease, diminish give out; appropriate since Narnia ends during his reign.
Dwarfs: In Norse mythology there were black and white dwarfs, and black were usually evil and associated with the earth and metal craftsmanship.
Narnian names of royalty seem to have "-ian" endings, perhaps deriving from name "Aslan."
Experiment House children have derogatory names.
September 10, 2024
this was very interesting, provided some great insights on narnia and lewis’ writing process
August 20, 2022
I’m ashamed to say I’ve had this book in my library since 1981, and I just got around to reading it this week. Perhaps if I’d read it 40 years ago, before reading many of the myriad books about Narnia published since then, it would have been more instructional. Nevertheless, there were many helpful insights provided which made it a worthwhile read. It would be especially useful to someone wanting to reacquaint oneself with this beloved series as well as gaining a little understanding of the author.
May 9, 2018
Sammons was one of the first (1979) to write concise summaries of the seven Chronicles of Narnia, provide a map, chronology and an index of names and places. Her comprehensive knowledge of Lewis and his stories provides a solid background for students of his work. As I re-read these classics, I am once again entranced with the stories.
September 28, 2025
Some parts were interesting for sure but the author repeated a lot of thoughts and parts which was a little annoying at times :/ And many parts were just an essay of the story so nothing new there.
October 8, 2012
A companion, but no new information about the books and stories. Kind of took all the info from the books and compiled it into this one. Fun book, didn't love it.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews