Essay Questions

How does Eustace see himself, and how does his view of himself differ from reality?

Eustace sees himself as an upstanding boy who is gifted, clever and horribly disrespected by others. He feels that they are all nasty to him when he is nothing but kind to them. He feels he is the only member of the group with the skills and intelligence to lead the adventure. He believes he is brave and a good sailor. Eustace's entire view of himself is paradoxical as what he sees in himself is opposite to how he really is. He is a terrible sailor and is seasick before they have sailed anywhere. He is reluctant to engage in any physical activity, or to be uncomfortable or hungry, and he is very unkind, baiting others until they are very upset. He sees himself as the victim whereas he is more often than not the one victimizing others.

The Narnia Chronicles are said to be allegories of Christianity. Is there a particular part of this novel that is more allegorical?

At the end of the novel, Aslan and the children are speaking of the way in which they can get to his world without going to Narnia. They are able to get there from their own world and Aslan will be telling them every day what they need to do to get there. This is allegorical for Jesus' teachings that tell how to get to Heaven and how to live on earth in a way that makes this possible. The way in which Aslan calls Lucy "my child" also speaks to this Allegory. This conversation is the strongest indication that the book is an Allegory of the teachings of Christianity.

Why do you think Caspian wanted to abdicate and continue to the end of the world?

Caspian seems to be a good king with a deep sense of responsibility towards his subjects. This might have something to do with his desire to continue on his expedition as he may have believed that the task was so dangerous that he should not expect his subjects to undertake something he would not do himself. He might also have felt that although there were others who could assume the role of king successfully there were no others who could sail to the end of the world. There is also a possibility that he was caught up in the adventure and in building a legacy for himself and was putting his own desire to do this ahead of his responsibility, but his character through most of the novel does not indicate that this is the case.