Wouldn’t you know it, just as Prince Caspian is about to be released to DVD and Blu-ray Disc, a BBC documentary is announced that won’t air until Easter. Not that I blame them… that is pure marketing.
The documentary is called “The Narnia Code” and it is based on a theory that the Chronicles of Narnia books all relate to the different planets in our solar system.
Each of the seven children’s chronicles is based on one of the seven planets that comprised the heavens in medieval astrology, says a scholar whose theory is examined in the programme.
The explanation comes after more than five decades of literary and theological debate over whether Lewis devised the fantasies with a pattern in mind or created characters and events at random.
It is put forward by Reverend Dr Michael Ward, in his book Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of CS Lewis.
Norman Stone, director and producer of The Narnia Code, to be screened on BBC2 at Easter, says the theory is the “best explanation yet” for the chimerical nature of the books.
The Chronicles of Narnia have sold over 120m copies in 41 languages since their first publication in the early 1950s first of the books, The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, was turned into a film starring Tilda Swinton and James McAvoy in 2005.
The books are already known to work on two levels: the fantasy narrative enjoyed by generations of children, and the Christian allegory in which the lion Aslan represents Christ. However, Lewis never revealed the hidden key behind the series.
Dr Ward made his discovery in 2003 after reading The Planets, a poem by Lewis which refers to the influence of Jupiter in “winter passed / And guilt forgiv’n” – a theme echoed in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.
He claims Lewis’ knowledge of medieval history, of which he was one of the leading scholars, made him familiar with the characteristics attributed to the seven planets during the period. Each of these planets gives one of the books its theme. Prince Caspian, for example, is a story ruled by Mars, who is manifested by soldiery and battle, while The Voyage of the Dawn Treader focuses on the Sun, with its light and gold themes. In The Horse and His Boy, based on Mercury, the planet that rules the star sign Gemini and is associated with the power of communication, the characters include twins and a talking horse.
Mr Stone said: “This isn’t the first theory on Narnia and I don’t suppose it will be the last but this is the best explanation yet.
He added: “This will help change the view of Lewis. It will help elevate Lewis to a different level and make him the equal of Tolkien – both as a writer and thinker.”
So, who’s interested in this possible theory? Thoughts?
That’s absolutely ridiculous!I think it’s based on Christ.Those who don’t think it is’nt just don’t want to except it.
Dumb idea, really. Lets take a book that has broad themes and apply them to something else, and because they’re so broad, they’ll fit! Oh yeah, we’ll just pick something that has the same number of items in it…lets see, 7 books and…..7 days of the week? nah. 7 continents? nah….7 planets? hey, sure.
this is insanity. Lewis wrote about the planets in his Space Trilogy, this doesn’t mirror it really.
As soon as I read this I thought, ‘of course!’ As the author of the theory reportedly said, it’s obvious once you thnk of it. I tested the idea out on our resident Narnia expert, my 9 year old daughter, who knows a lot of the books by heart. She was completely unfazed and told me Prince Caspian was connected to Mars, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader to the Sun. She flicked through her copy of the latter and showed me a passage where Ramandu (did I get that right??) discusses his origins as a star.
Does this establish Lewis as the equal of Tolkien? Well, I’m not sure it’s a competition, but I think it still depends on how in-your-face you like your allegories (and I think Lewis’s claims about Narnia being technically non-allegorical are interesting but ultimately unconvincing). Dr Ward’s ideas will certainly enhance my reading of Narnia with my children, and give substance to Lewis’s claim that it could be necessary “first to make people good pagans, and after that to make them Christians”.
This is a very intriguing idea – as I think about it, I can definitely see it. From what I know of Lewis’ biography and literary knowledge/preferences, it makes perfect sense that he would go “further up and further in” with more and more levels to his writing, more peels in the onion.
Now, as to Lewis becoming an equal to Tolkein – never going to happen. Tolkein’s a great writer, but he could never reach the heights of Lewis. 🙂
This is actually a very intriguing idea and a very logical conclusion, especially when you remember how much C.S. Lewis loved astronomy and ancient planets. The book “Planet Narnia” by Michael Ward pursues this idea in depth. I recommend this book for any C.S. Lewis fan. It connects Narnia to Lewis’ space trilogy and poetry and really delves into the mind of Lewis like never before. Of course the idea of narnia relating to planets is going to sound absurd at first. But it is not really so weird at all. And the aspects of the different plants are also tied into the different aspects of Aslan portrayed in the book. This makes for an extraordinary read read! Read it, Narnia Fans out there. “Planet Narnia” comes highly recommended by Walter Hooper and Alan Jacobs, both huge C.S. Lewis researchers and authors.
When I first heard the idea I was intrigued, yet sceptical. Once you hear Michael Ward speak about it, or read Planet Narnia, it is utterly convincing and irrefutable. there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that it is intentional, the only surprise is that it has remained undetected for years; this is probably because people already know that it is about Christ, and therefore looking for a ‘third layer’ of meaning seems to many, like Guamnarniafreak a ridiculous idea that detracts from the depiction of Christ. When properly understood it adds depths to his depiction.
Heres a link to the program..its a very good watch
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00jz2qp/The_Narnia_Code/
Just watched the programme and was highly sceptical at first, but then it made perfect sense and fitted into what we know of C S Lewis’ mind and interests. It does not for a moment deny the Christian level, but goes even beyond that. I can’t wait to read the book! I loved what was said about seeing a metaphysical meaning to the universe