Prince Caspian | Chapter 1: The Island

Chapter Summary:

One day, about a year after returning from Narnia, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are on a train going off to school. Suddenly, they all feel a strange tugging sensation. They grasp hands, and the world around them becomes a forest with a sandy beach nearby. They immediately wonder if they are back in Narnia, but no one knows the answer for certain.

After exploring and discovering that they are on an island, the four children go to search for water, and after much walking find a stream. Here, they stop and eat sandwiches (that they luckily had with them) as well. They also realize that they are on an island. They follow the stream inland into the woods, and eventually come to an apple orchard and a very tall wall. The children find a archway in the wall, and go through it to find themselves in a wide open space with no trees--just an empty field. 

Reflection:

Hooray! We have arrived back at a story that, it seems, brings us back into the lives of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. It's not that I didn't enjoy my time with Shasta, Aravis, and the horses, but it's nice to get back to see what the (former) Kings and Queens of Narnia have been up to back in the real world. Turns out, not much--they are headed back to school just like anyone else, ready to take on another year. (This should resonate with many of you, given that the posted date for this entry should be August 24. I'm writing about 11 days advance of schedule at this point; go me!) 

But it is kind of odd to see Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy back in their natural environment. The most striking oddity is the change of language from their last day in Narnia, which was the high and formal language of Kings and Queens, to today, in which they speak, well, like kids again. It is really possible for their twenty or thirty-some years of language advancement to be virtually extinguished by the transition back from Narnia to the earth? It seems so. Anyway, perhaps I'm just being picky.

Nonetheless, the children have been magically pulled away from their train ride and into a different world. Narnia is what we expect, but we don't know for certain. And then of course the children encounter the apple orchard, which should bring to mind the apple tree planted by Digory/Aslan near the conclusion of The Magician's Nephew. But if this is the same apple orchard, what of the giant wall surrounding the area? I have some guesses, but I will leave them until the novel answers those questions itself.

This chapter reminded me of The Magician's Nephew in another way. Recall that when Asland sends Digory/Polly on their journey to find the apple needed to plant the protective apple tree, Digory realizes too late that he doesn't have a meal for himself or for Polly, and they had to rely on some leftover toffee for a meal. Similarly, we see the four children in this chapter have to struggle to find water to drink, and then split the sandwiches that they have luckily happened to carry with them in their coat pockets. This realistic focus on the necessities of survival is both appreciated and adds to the realism within the story. I've discussed this at another point in this blog, I think, but often times I feel that these little things are left out due to space or convenience within a novel (how often are they eating in Harry Potter except during grand banquets?). C.S. Lewis certainly brings home the consequences of their situation, and reminds us that being transported to a deserted island would certainly not be all fun, games, and mystery--survival must take place as well.