"The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe"

Paper Summary:

The paper relates that the implied readers of "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe" are likely children of both sexes aged from about 6 to 12. The paper discusses how Lewis was a devout Christian and his aim in "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe" was clearly to convey to his readers the importance of certain moral values that are associated with Christianity. The paper shows how Lewis reflects values of the British people he grew up with and teaches the implied readers certain stereotypes about "appropriate" gendered behaviors.

From the Paper:

"As the lessons Lewis wants to convey to the implied reader are so closely related to both his religion and his society, it is illuminating to begin with a little background information about Lewis. He was born in Ireland in 1898. At the age of 10, he was sent to boarding school in England. He later attended Oxford University, and then became an English teacher there. He spent his entire life teaching at Oxford and then Cambridge, and writing books, and died in 1963. Thus, Lewis was firmly rooted in an English culture. Consequently he must have absorbed the values that were held by other upper middle class British people in the first half of the 20th century. With regard to religion, Lewis was an atheist till the age of 33, and then converted to Christianity. This conversion is reflected in many of his books, which dealt either implicitly or explicitly with Christian values and morals."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Lewis, C.S. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1983.
• Myers, Doris T. C.S. Lewis in Context. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 1994.
• Tickle, Phyllis A. Greed: The Seven Deadly Sins. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.

More papers on "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe":

• Comparison Essay # 5764 : "Alice in Wonderland" and "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"
• Book Review # 131347 : "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" - An Analysis"
• Analytical Essay # 130478 : "Implied Readers in "The Lion, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: