Did Edmund really leave empty handed??

WiseEdmund

WiseEdmund

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I know that there is this whole issue about santa claus in LWW but i have a suggestion that might help it slide in better. Recently i finished reading the horse and his boy and it came to my attention that Aslan can appear in many different ways. I know some people reading this might already be thinking that suggesting Aslan is Santa is something preposterous, but in the light of Santa's purpose, is it entirely impossible.

We all know that the 3 children that meet him are given their respective gifts when they meet him just before going to meet Aslan. In Edmund's case it's different. Edmund sees true evil slap him in the face(sometimes literally) before he even meets Aslan. Also, while Aslan is speaking to Edmund, we cannot be entirely certain of what was being said. I get the feeling that Aslan taught Edmund a great deal of things upon meeting him.

His gift was one of knowledge of what is right and wrong(hence his kingly title 'the Just') and although i have not read all the other books yet, this has already become painfully obvious to me. We know he never turns out to be a greater leader than his older brother but we do see that his decision making skills and his insight improve dramatically over the two books after LWW.

i just wanted to see what other people think about this possibility :)
 
Empty handed?

One got a horn, one got a cordial, one got a sword. One was saved from death by someone innocent of wrongdoing who was humliiated, cursed and stabbed through the heart with a stone knife.

Hmm....if I were Edmund I'd save my allowance and buy my own sword and feel like the luckiest man in the world.
 
haha thats funny chakal. I would assume he didnt get any gift... i may be the only who rembers but "he's makin a list; checkin it twice, gonna find out who's naughty or nice" Maybe he just found a piece of coal laying around somewhere but didnt mention it in the book or movie :p
 
WiseEdmund said:
i didn't quite get that... :confused:
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I believe the Magister's point was that Edmund got the greatest gift of all - being saved from execution on the Stone Table, which was what he deserved for his deeds. Swords and horns pale in comparison to that gift. And I don't think he needed a piece of coal to drive home the lesson - he learned it quite well.

The question is explicitly addressed by Lewis in Caspian, when the children discover the forgotten treasure chamber in the ruins of Cair Paravel. It is unplundered (now that's fantasy!), and the gifts are hanging on the far wall, except for Susan's Horn, which is in Caspian's hands. Lewis points out that Edmund has no gifts and it was his own fault, but Edmund doesn't seem to care - he just gets a sword, shield, and helmet from "general stores". There's no lack of them.
 
I believe the Magister's point was that Edmund got the greatest gift of all - being saved from execution on the Stone Table, which was what he deserved for his deeds. Swords and horns pale in comparison to that gift. And I don't think he needed a piece of coal to drive home the lesson - he learned it quite well.
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ah ok... just wanted to make sure i understood that's all...

To make matters even better i noticed that Edmund developed and matured a lot since the end of the lion the witch and the wardrobe in Caspian.

He seems to have become a lot more prudent in his speech and seems to know a heck of a lot more than the others about certain things(it just makes one wonder how much time he spent in the library a Cair Paravel :D )

Oh and a little off point but i've been meaning to ask... Where can i get an avatar like yours Prince?
 
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You're right - he did grow in wisdom, which is why he was called The Just.

My avatar was graciously provided by Lord Eirek - if you like it, I think you can just right-click on it, save the image somewhere, then load it into your profile as you'd load any other graphic.
 
Of course when next Christmas came about, I'm sure Edmund got something really yummy like a magic harp, a tooled leather saddle, or maybe even a plaque for Most Improved Attitude. :D
 
Chakal said:
Of course when next Christmas came about, I'm sure Edmund got something really yummy like a magic harp, a tooled leather saddle, or maybe even a plaque for Most Improved Attitude. :D
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that made me laugh so hard i think i'm going to have a heart attack hahahahahahahahaha!!!!! :D
 
Chakal said:
Hmm....if I were Edmund I'd save my allowance and buy my own sword and feel like the luckiest man in the world.
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Nice :p

While that is true, you may be right about Edmund... I wondered where he learned his excellent sense of discernment in the other books.

Times like this make me wish you could actually know what Aslan said to Edmund...
 
iheartsk said:
i dont quite get this whole meaning of this thread from the very start!!!

im LOST!!!!
somebody help me out
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someone asked if Edmund doesnt receive any gift from Father Christmas, coz Lucy got a cordial, Susan a bow and Arrow, then Peter a sword, since Ed wasnt there when Father Santa gave his presents to the 3 children, he asks if he was empty handed,
so "they" the persons who answered the question said that he has the greatest gift of all, beign saved and all that,.. get it?

Originally posted by Chakal
Hmm....if I were Edmund I'd save my allowance and buy my own sword and feel like the luckiest man in the world.
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thats funny,.. :D
 
But I wouldn't say that Edmund wasn't a great leader. There is no indication of that, just that Peter is a greater warrior. Edmund was probably the one who cooled Peter off at times especially early on in his reign.
 
onlymystory said:
But I wouldn't say that Edmund wasn't a great leader. There is no indication of that, just that Peter is a greater warrior. Edmund was probably the one who cooled Peter off at times especially early on in his reign.
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that's exactly what we're talking about. if you look at the reflection i started this thread with, you'll see that it's really a matter of proving that Edmund, through his conversation with Aslan was given the gift of wisdom.

lamer said:
Times like this make me wish you could actually know what Aslan said to Edmund...
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that's exactly what i've been trying to say with all this. :D
 
That's actually pretty insightful. I never actually thought about it that way. Cause I know that in Prince Caspian, *spoiler!* when they go to Cair Paravel, the other 3 find their gifts while Edmund does not get one. I think knowledge and wisdom would be powerful gifts. Material gifts are not always the best and only gifts. So I think it's entirely possible, and that'd be pretty neat if we later read (in a book after Caspian) something to that effect. I'm only in the middle of that one, and I skipped The Horse and His Boy. Definetly a neat proposition.
 
WiseEdmund, you asked if anyone had thought about Aslan being Father Christmas. That's an interesting idea, and I had never thought about that; I can see what you mean, but I don't think he is; here's why-

In all the other books when Aslan turns into something other than a lion, HHB, VDT, (anything else?)we are always very much,if not intensley hinted at the other creatures really being Aslan, if that makes sense.


In HHB, it explains that while Shasta is among the tombs, a lion comes (which we all know is Aslan himself) and scares the jackles away by roaring at them- then Shasta closes his eyes b/c he was afraid- when he opens them again there is only a cat by his feet.

In VDT, it says that Aslan turned from a lamb to a lion.

In LWW, there is no such hint leading us to believe that Aslan is Father Christmas.

True, F.C. could be, but I do not believe that that is what Lewis intended while writing the book.
 
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