The Silver Chair | Chapter 11: In the Dark Castle

(Posting this one day late--a busy start to the weekend, but I'm doing my best to get caught up!)

Chapter Summary:

During a meal, the Black Knight tells Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum his story. The Black Knight says that he does not know when he came to the Underworld, but that the Queen saves him from an Enchantment every night. For an hour each night, he transforms into a wild creature. The Queen has told him that he will be free from this enchantment only when he breaks free of the Underworld and conquers the lands above the ground. Indeed, the Queen on this very day is visiting the tunnel where the Black Knight will emerge--the tunnel is only a short way from the earth where the Knight will emerge. 

The Knight says that once he goes up through the tunnel, he will conquer the Upperworld and rule under the Queen of the Underworld. Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum suggest that this is very poor luck for the Overworlders, but the Black Knight has no sympathy. 

After the meal, the Knight tells Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum that the hour of his transformation is near, and that only the Queen is allowed to be with him during the transformation. He will be bound securely onto a chair during the hour, and they can rejoin him afterwards. Eustace says that they would rather stay with him during his ravings than go to prison, and the Knight says that they can return to the room after he is bound into his chair.

Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum leave the room and wash up after dinner. They agree that the Queen is likely an evil witch of some sort, and decide to return to the Knight during his ravings. They return to the Knight, who is bound to his chair. The Knight says that they should not release him, regardless of what he says during the upcoming hour. Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum make a pact to not release the Knight, no matter what he says.

The Knight transforms, and immediately begins to tell them that he is say--that everything they have been told previously is a lie. He says that he is bound every night so that during his one hour of sanity, he cannot break free. The Knight begs and begs to be released, and finally implores them by the name of Aslan. Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum recognize this as the fourth and last sign from Aslan. Puddleglum is the one who says that it is clear that they should release him. 

Eustace and Jill cut the bonds of the Knight. The moment the Knight is free, he jumps up, grabs his sword, and cuts the chair in half. The Knight introduces himself as Prince Rilian of Narnia. Eustace says that they were sent by Aslan to find him. Rilian asks whether his father is still alive, and they confirm that King Caspian is alive, but has sailed on a journey to the east, from which he will not likely return due to his age. Rilian asks how long he has been under the power of the witch, and Eustace tells him that it has been 10 years since he disappeared from Narnia. 

Footsteps approach the room, and Prince Rilian tells the others to follow his lead--he will try to fool the approaching Earthmen (the sad men of the Underworld) that his enchantment has not been broken.

Reflection:

I can't really think of any other chapter that has so much detail within it as this chapter of The Silver Chair. Within this chapter alone, we get the Black Knight's entire back story (or what he has been brainwashed to believe is his back story), we witness his nightly change to his sane self, we hear Aslan's fourth sign, and suddenly Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum are entirely on track with their journey when they release the captive Prince Rilian from his enchantment. 

As usual, Aslan was correct. Remember, Jill was warned that the signs would appear in unexpected ways. Certainly, this way was unexpected, even for the reader. Of course, the sign came almost immediately after Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum made a collective pact to not release the Black Knight regardless of what he said. When he does call on the name of Aslan, it is Puddleglum who actually makes the final decision to release Prince Rilian. Here's how it goes down:

"'I think we do know,' said Puddleglum... 'You see, Aslan didn't tell [Jill] what would happen. He only told her what to do. That fellow will be the death of us once he's up, I shouldn't wonder. But that doesn't let us off following the sign'" (p. 428). 

And in that moment, Eustace and Jill both know that the ever-pessimistic Puddleglum is correct. The narrator calls it a "sickening moment" (p. 428) and the three of them exchange goodbyes before releasing Prince Rilian. Indeed, the culminating moment of their journey results in what they believe will be the ultimate sacrifice. Perhaps even more ultimate than the ultimate sacrifice--because the only thing more honorable than dying to save someone else is consciously making the decision to die for someone else, and then following through on the act. Thus, they did not just act heroically, they acted heroically with the full intent of it being their final act. That is what makes this journey so special, and in my opinion, that is why Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum were given this task by Aslan--because he knew that this is how it would culminate. Of course, I think that this is the lesson of the chapter--that we must listen to Aslan, even when reason tells us not to do so. 

Luckily, and unexpectedly, the raving insane Black Knight transforms into Prince Rilian of Narnia as the enchantment is broken. But there is a greater task at hand, and a greater problem. We now have a Prince who needs to escape from the Underworld, a Prince who has been under the bewitchment of an evil Queen for 10 years, and a Queen who likely will not be pleased if the Prince escapes. The journey does not end with the finding of the Prince--there is more adventure to come.