(#41) / The Voyage of the Dawn Treader / by C. S. Lewis / (Book)

Opening

Bibliographic Information:

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader / by C. S. Lewis

ISBN-13: 9780064471077 / HarperCollins Publishers

p. 288/ $6.99 (Barnes & Noble)

1952

Body of Content

Summary: In this Narnia story, the two youngest siblings (Lucy and Edmund) feature predominately – as they older siblings are occupied with other activities.  As the children stay with their ill-tempered cousin (Eustace), they enter Narnia – this time not through the wardrobe but instead through a painting.  Falling onto the deck of the Dawn Treader, they meet the former prince, and now King, Caspian.  The plot centers on a quest – as Caspian looks to investigate the disappearance of seven key vassal figures of Narnia.  Often at sea, this adventure centers on water themes and exploration – carrying the typical Narnia magic along the way.

Critique: In many of the Narnia books, Lewis draws on other world stories to create Narnia’s characters.  It is often said that Lewis draws on Christian theology for the message of his Narnia books.  But Lewis also draws on pagan mythologies – redacts them – revises them – reallocates them – and inserts them into his stories.  Aslan returns as a character – the symbolic translation of the Bible’s Christ – the proverbial “Lion of Judah”. 

But in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Lewis inserts imagery from other sources – like a dragon – a staple of medieval folklore and Germanic and Nordic traditions.  Elsewhere, mermaids appear in his book – showing an interest for more modern mythology supplied by New World explorers/sailors.  One-legged creatures appear on an island scene, too.

Yes – overall – the Narnia books contain a Christian message (as authorial-intended by Lewis), but the language – the symbols – the development of his allegories are not straightly determined by theist traditions.  Lewis, himself, is not troubled by that reality, and neither should the audience per se.  But while the Narnia books are categorized as Christian literature, the methodology is mixed more than many readers are aware.  The better genre for Narnia is simply the label of fantasy literature.   

Teaser: The story of Narnia continues as the youngest siblings set off in an epic adventure.

Information about the Author: see entry #35.

Supplemental Material

Genre: Fantasy / Christian Fiction

Curriculum Ties: Philosophy – mythology

Booktalking Ideas: 1) The siblings have a new addition in their adventures – with their insolent cousin, Eustace.

Reading Level: see entry #35.

Challenge Issues and Defense: Pretty safe title for teenage ages. Some magic and mythology is contained within the book – but the (Christian) parents who object to Harry Potter on those grounds usually give C. S. Lewis a pass.  

Personal Reasons for Inclusion: I wanted two separate series included in this project – and titles from Narnia and Hunger Games accomplished that intention.

Last Thoughts

References: n/a

Listening to (Music):

Artist – “Katy Perry” / Album – various playlists   

(#35) / The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia Series) / by C. S. Lewis / (Book)

Opening

Bibliographic Information:

The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia Series) / by C. S. Lewis

ISBN-13: 9780064471046 / HarperCollins Publishers

p. 224 / $6.99 (Barnes & Noble)

1950

Body of Content

Summary: In this novel – the first in the series written by the author, but the second chronologically in the series – Lewis tells the story of four young siblings – of Lucy, Edmund, Susan, and Peter – who stay in a mansion in the English countryside – in order to avoid the city bombing during WWII.  In this mansion, they soon discover a magical wardrobe that leads to an even more magical kingdom.  They encounter various talking animals – a fawn, some beavers, etc. – who tell them that their kingdom is under the spell of the White Witch – stuck in a perpetual winter – but that the siblings’ arrival could change the events of their world.  The animals long for the return of their true king, Aslan – and when he does return – the children must face the prospects of all that they have heard of this magical place.  

Critique: C. S. Lewis’ tale is basically an allegory for the death of Jesus Christ – with Aslan the Lion as the messianic translation.  According to this Narnia novel, Aslan’s death acts as a sacrifice – corresponding to the atonement model dealing with substitutionary atonement.  Theologians have long asked the question – “how” exactly is Jesus’ death meaningful?  Various explanations – or “atonement models” – have been submitted over the centuries by scholars and theologians to articulate doctrines attached to the personhood of Jesus Christ.

What is interesting is that Lewis chooses the “substitutionary atonement” model – which in itself is the view popular within the last few centuries – and overall, provides a very Western way of looking at the issues – but it is not the only explanation given – nor is it the dominant view throughout church history. 

I wonder what the Chronicles of Narnia would look like – particularly how the story of the Witch vs. Aslan would play out differently – or what the outcomes of the children’s lives would look like – if Lewis had chosen another atonement model as the basis for his work – if he had chosen the “Christus Victor” model – or the “Ransom Theory” – or the “Satisfaction Theory” – or the more recently lobbied “Betrayal Model”. 

All of these models could work within the Narnia story – but doing so would require different approaches to character development, a different literary climax, and subsequently an altered denouement.  While such a proposal – of altering the basis for a work – seems a little far-fetched, the novel’s chief purpose is to explain the meaning of Aslan.  Lewis takes – what I would call the safe route – by electing to use the substitutionary model.  A more creative and clever rendition could have occurred if the novel utilized some of the other atonement models.  This is not a fault of Lewis’ work – but at the least, I wish to expose a basic assumption on Lewis’ part – that, for him, the substitutionary model is chief.         

Teaser: Four British youngsters enter a land of fantasy and magic – and they find themselves at the heart of an ancient struggle.

Information about the Author: C. S. Lewis was an English author and professor at Oxford – teaching classes dealing with literature – particularly those dealing with medieval literature and mythologies.  The famed author was also friends with J.R.R. Tolkien, as they both taught at the same university.  Lewis credits Tolkien as a key person in his conversion to Christianity. 

Lewis’ works include many apologetic and religious books, including Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, A Grief Observed, The Space Trilogy, The Great Divorce, along with seven entries into the Narnia canon.    

Supplemental Material

Genre: Christian Fiction / Fantasy

Curriculum Ties: Religion – allegory, mythology  

Booktalking Ideas: 1) Can four brave, young souls sway the outcome of an epic battle between good and evil? 2) What role does the story’s setting during WWII affect other aspects of the storytelling process?

Reading Level: The Narnia books follow the “two under rule” – where a library collection should also have resources that fit two years below the marketed range.  And in this manner, the book is likely read by 12-15 year-old teens.

Challenge Issues and Defense: The religious, allegorical content could offend some parents – particular if held in a public school.  The best defense is to have a wide range of fantasy titles – from various worldviews – including the Golden Compass book from His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman – which basically, by the author’s own admission, is an allegory for atheism.

Personal Reasons for Inclusion: The book represents a lighter title within the fantasy genre.

Last Thoughts

References: n/a

Listening to (Music):

Artist – Hans Zimmer / Album – “The Dark Knight (Movie Soundtrack)” 

(#10) / The Blind Side / (adapted from book) by Michael Lewis / (Movie)

Opening

Bibliographic Information:

The Blind Side / (adapted from book) by Michael Lewis / 
(directed) by John Lee Hancock

OCLC Number: 501073267/ Alcon Entertainment / Warner Bros (DVD)  

$9.49 (Amazon) / 129 minutes

Release date: 2009 / Rating: PG-13

Body of Content

Summary: The inspirational movie tells the story of a homeless, teenage boy by the name Michael Oher.  Coming from a broken home, Oher bounces around living dynamics – between foster homes and friend’s houses.  Ultimately, a friend’s family can no longer afford to provide for him and Oher becomes homeless.  The previous family manages to enroll him in a private school – given his athletic prowess in both basketball and football – and that is how Oher’s life intersects with another family from the school – the Touhys.  When the Touhys find out that Oher sleeps in the school’s gymnasium at night, they offer to “put him up for a night”.  As days become weeks, the question becomes how permanent is this arrangement?  The story centers on Oher – who is a shy, African-American, teenage boy – with Mrs. Touhy as the direct opposite – a talkative, white, middle-age, woman.  In a moving narrative, The Blind Side provides the story based on the real-life story of Baltimore Ravens starting left tackle.     

Critique: Thematically, the movie is about charity as much as it is about football.  The movie depicts two individuals – Oher and Mrs. Touhy – whose lives, under any other circumstances, would likely never cross. 

The Touhys take Oher into their household and treat him just like any other member of the family.  Many of the students at school refer to Oher as “Big Mike”.  Mrs. Touhy detects his aversion to the nickname and decides to call him “Michael”.  When, as an under-experienced driver, Oher is involved in a car accident with the Touhys’ youngest child, the parents do not blame Michael for the accident, but instead, praise him for instinctively protecting S.J. with his free arm.  On more than one occasion, Mrs. Touhy defends Michael – as “her son” – whether it is in front of parents from rival football programs, well-intentioned but judgmental lady friends, or a case worker trying to follow the letter of the law. 

Bullock’s performance clearly was recognized by the Academy because of her strong ability to communicate subtle items of charity to Michael.  But the story is, as Mrs. Touhy expresses, not about how much Michael learns from the Touhys, but about “how much he [Michael] is teaching me”.  I did not find the movie cliché – and overall, I’m not one for inspirational films.  However, I found that the kernel contained in Michael Lewis’ book became a well-designed adaption on the big screen.      

Teaser: How could a homeless teen ever become the starting left tackle for a professional football team?

Information about the Author: Michael Lewis specializes in writing stories which revolve around finance and/or sports.  The one-time beat writer for the Oakland Athletics eventually penned the book Moneyball – which, in itself, recently received a film adaption.

John Lee Hancock is primarily a film director and screenwriter – with some work experience in movie production.  His other well-known films include the inspirational tale My Dog Skip and another sports-inspired movie The Rookie (Wikipedia, 2011a).  His next film is one titled The Goree Girls – which is a musical set in the 1940s about a group of inmates who form a country band (Wikipedia, 2011b).    

Supplemental Material

Genre: Drama / Sports

Curriculum Ties: Sociology – race relations, homelessness, class warfare, private schools

Booktalking Ideas: 1) Where would you go – if you were homeless?  Who could you turn to? 2) Why is the left tackle position so important in football?

Reading Level: The film is rated PG-13 – with some adult themes – namely, “for one scene involving brief violence, drug and sexual references” (Worldcat, 2011).  This film is viewable for grades 7 and up – easily.  But the lead character is a high-school student – and interest in the film is easily transferrable and appropriate for high-school-aged teens.

Challenge Issues and Defense: Anytime that a film/book represents racial issues (cf. To Kill a Mockingbird), there exists the possibility of challenges on a wide range of objections.  Still, the film deals with the issues well – and the film produced some awards, including Bullock’s performance – which received an Oscar for “Best Actress”. 

Personal Reasons for Inclusion: I have read some other works by Michael Lewis and loved his interviews on shows like The Daily Show.  This film presented itself as an opportunity to work him into the blog project.  

Last Thoughts

References:

Wikipedia. (2011a). John Lee Hancock [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

John_Lee_Hancock

Wikipedia. (2011b). The Goree girls [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

The_Goree_Girls

Worldcat. (2011). The blind side [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://www.worldcat.org/title/blind-

side/oclc/501073267&referer=brief_results

Listening to (Music):

Artist – Hillsong (Live)/ Album – “A Beautiful Exchange”