Good Versus Evil
As with all of the Narnia Chronicles, the key theme in this novel is Good versus Evil. This theme occurs in both the earthly world with the nice children versus the "evil", bullying ones, and in the other world, in Narnia, with the constant battle between Aslan and the descendents of the White Witch whom he battled from the time he created Narnia. The Evil Queen is a descendent of the original Witch and is constantly trying to overpower good with her evil, for example, using Prince Rilian, who will be recognized as a force of good, to help her to rule Narnia with her evil. Throughout the book acts of good are shown to overcome acts of evil, and the characters who act with evil in their hearts are eventually beaten by the forces of good that come from the good hearts of the children and the fact that they are doing what Aslan, the embodiment of Good, tells them to do.
Faith
One of the key themes in this book is that of Faith, chiefly of having it, and of its importance even when the path that faith is offering seems less safe and more hazardous than doing something else. For example, Aslan commands Jill to do whatever the person who invokes his name tells her to do. When the children and Puddleglum meet the Prince they do not realize his identity but assume him to be the right hand man of the evil Queen. For this reason they vow that not one of them will buckle and untie him no matter how persuasive he is, because he is obviously going to kill them if he is free. THey stick resolutely to this promise but when he invokes Aslan's name in his pleading for release from the chair, they have faith in Aslan's words, and they untie him even though it does not seem like a very good idea. Once untied he reveals himself to be the Prince that they seek, showing that having faith leads the faithful to what they are seeking.
Courage
One of the themes of the book is the importance of having courage and all three of the main characters have this in abundance. Puddleglum in particular shows himself to be very brave and puts his own life in danger a number of times for the greater good of the group. Eustace has already demonstrated his courage in the earthly world by deciding to stand up to the bullies which is not an easy thing to do. Jill begins to show her courage on her entrance to the other worlds as when she sees Aslan for the first time she is frightened but has the courage to approach him, to listen to his words, and to take on the incredibly hazardous task that he has charged her with. She also shows courage when it comes to going into dark cramped places as she is very afraid of the dark. The theme of courage is utlised throughout the book and it shows the importance of demonstrating this quality in life and in various tasks that lead to the best result.
Bullying
At the beginning and end of the novel the theme of bullying is addressed. Jill is miserable at her school because bullying is rampant and the faculty seem to be more on the side of the bullies than on the side of the kids they are tormenting which makes it impossible for the bullied children to get any respite from their misery. Jill is chosen by Aslan for his task because she is bullied and wants to escape by any means possible. Eustace's change in character - for the better - is illustrated by his starting to stand up to the bullies and defend the bullied children instead of going along with them. At the end of the novel the theme is addressed again as Aslan comes to help the children stand up to the bullies and avenge in some way the harm that they have done, showing that standing up to bullies is always a better thing to do than going along with them.
