The Magician's Nephew | Chapter 11: Digory and His Uncle Are Both in Trouble

Chapter Summary: 

The chapter opens with a variety of Talking Beasts attempting to determine what type of creature Uncle Andrew is, who has since fainted from fear. Eventually the Talking Beasts determine that Uncle Andrew is a tree, and they plant him in the ground up to his knees, and then water him.

Meanwhile, Strawberry, Digory, Polly, and the Cabby reach Aslan, who is in council with some of the Talking Beasts. When Digory asks whether he may have something to heal his mother, the question goes unanswered by Aslan. Instead, Aslan asks Digory to recite how the Witch came to be in Narnia in front of everyone present.

Then Aslan addresses the Cabby, and asks whether he would like to remain in Narnia. The Cabby said he would, if his wife were present. Aslan makes the Cabby's wife appear using his song, and when she does, Aslan tells them (after a little convincing) that they will be the first King and Queen of Narnia. 

Aslan finally asks Polly if she has forgiven Digory for the violence he did to hear in Charn, and she says that she has.

Reflection:

The middle of his chapter--in which Digory is retelling the story of how the Witch came to Narnia--reads like a scene out of the movie Liar, Liar, in which a boy wishes that for one day his father would be unable to tell a lie (the father is a trail lawyer and played by Jim Carrey, so you get the idea). When Digory is telling Aslan what has occurred, it becomes rather apparent that this is Digory's confessional, and that he both cannot and will not lie to Aslan or himself, about the events that have transpired. The short passage below is only a small sample of this, but you will get the idea:

"'She woke up,' said Digory wretchedly. And then, turning very white, 'I mean, I woke her. Because I wanted to know what would happen if I struck a bell. Polly didn't want to. It wasn't her fault. I--I fought her. I know I shouldn't have. I think I was a bit enchanted by the writing under the bell.'

'Do you?' said Aslan, still speaking very low and deep. 

'No,' said Digory. 'I see now I wasn't. I was only pretending'" (p. 55).

I have read articles on the Internet (so we know it's true) that we lie to ourselves (and to our spouses, friends, and family) significantly more often than we are aware of. I think the article says that the average married person tells 17 white lies to their spouse a day, on average. Numerical accuracy aside, I think that if most of us were to observe our day-to-day behavior, we would realize how often we lie. For a great example, how many times this week did you tell an acquaintance, co-worker, or passer-by that you were "doing good, thanks!" when you really weren't? I know I'm guilty of that one. Or when is the last time you've told a salesperson "no, I'm just browsing" when asked if you were looking for something specific (and you were, and you probably could have used some help, but you really just wanted to be left alone during the process)? 

This chapter reminds us just how easy it is to lie to ourselves and others without giving it a second thought. We are taught by society to do this from an incredibly young age, and it is thus engrained in most of us. Observe yourself--when is the last time you lied? (You probably can't remember.) But you'll probably notice the next time you do, and it will probably catch you off-guard, because most of us do it every day without even realizing it.