The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
From Freepedia
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis. It is the third book in The Chronicles of Narnia, and the fifth in chronological order. It was originally published in 1952.
The two younger children from the previous stories, Lucy and Edmund Pevensie, are sent on holiday to the house of their obnoxious cousin Eustace Scrubb. As chance or fate has it, the three children are pulled simultaneously into a maritime-themed painting which is a portal to the world of Narnia. The ship depicted in the painting is the Dawn Treader, and it is onto this ship that the three children are fished out of the sea.
Once safely on board, Lucy and Edmund are overjoyed when they are greeted by their dear friend Prince Caspian, now King Caspian X, who, having shepherded his kingdom to peace and prosperity, has undertaken a quest to find the seven lost lords who were the loyal retainers of his late father, King Caspian IX. Eustace, however, is much less enthusiastic.
In this volume Lewis describes Eustace's conversion (when he gets turned into a dragon and is saved by Aslan). The role of Aslan as a Christ-like figure is developed further; he appears at the end as a lamb, a Biblical image for Jesus. Chiefly, the story is an exciting adventure story in the tradition of the great sea-voyages of classical mythology, particularly the story of Jason and the Argonauts.
While the story is generally much less steeped in Christian imagery than others in the series, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is unique in that it contains what might be called the "John 3:16" of the Chronicles of Narnia. When asked by Edmund whether or not Aslan exists in their world he replies:
"I am... but there I have another name. You must learn to know me by that name. This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there."
This is arguably the most succint and precise reason Lewis provides for the children's adventures and, indeed, his most direct statement of the purpose of the Narnia novels for the young reader.
Criticism
Some readers have criticised Lewis because Edmund and Lucy will never return to Narnia.
| The Chronicles of Narnia C. S. Lewis | ||
| The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Prince Caspian | The Voyage of the Dawn Treader The Silver Chair | The Horse and His Boy | The Magician's Nephew | The Last Battle | ||
| Books | Characters | Places |
