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Prince Caspian:The Return To Narnia

 

 

The four Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, are transported back to Narnia as they travel back to their respective boarding schools, though at first they don't recognize it; more than a thousand years have passed since they reigned there during The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It is not until they discover their own treasury room amidst the ruins of Cair Paravel that they realize where they must be.

Shortly thereafter, they rescue a dwarf called Trumpkin from drowning at the hands of two human soldiers, and Trumpkin explains what has happened in Narnia since the Pevensies returned to England. Narnia is now ruled by Telmarines, and the "old Narnians" have been driven underground. The rightful ruler of Narnia, Prince Caspian, has been forced to flee by his uncle, Miraz, who has claimed the throne for himself. They challenge Trumpkin to two challenges and he loses both, but the Pevensie children gain his trust when Lucy heals him.

Caspian and his army of Old Narnians is currently besieged at Aslan's How by Miraz and the Telmarine army. Miraz's army surround the mound of earth that now covers the Stone Table where Aslan died for Edmund, and although this is a nearly impregnable stronghold, the Narnians' defeat at the hands of the Telmarines is inevitable. Prince Caspian blows Queen Susan's horn to summon magical aid, and it is this which brought the Pevensies to Narnia. Trumpkin is dispatched to Cair Paravel to search for them but is captured enroute by the Telmarines.

The Pevensies and Trumpkin travel back to Aslan's How, meeting Aslan himself on the way. Peter, Edmund, and Trumpkin aid Caspian there, while Susan and Lucy aid Aslan as he frees the Dryads, Naiads, Hamadryads, and Silvans from their bonds.

In an attempt to avoid a full battle between the two armies, Miraz and Peter (as Caspian's champion) duel, but this duel ends when Miraz trips and falls. Peter gentlemanly steps back to allow Miraz to regain his footing, but Miraz is quickly slain by two of his own lords who wish to usurp his illegal rule over Narnia. These two murderous lords exclaim that Peter has cowardly slain Miraz as he lay immobile, and a battle ensues. The Narnians are at first outnumbered, but when Aslan and his followers arrive, the Telmarines are routed to the Ford of Beruna, largely due to the assistance of the fearless sword-bearing Old-Narnian mice and the once again mobile trees. Aslan crowns Caspian as King of Narnia. As this ceremony ends, the mice bring their grievously wounded leader, Reepicheep to Aslan; Lucy heals the mouse with her healing cordial, but Reepicheep still lacks his tail. The mice inform Aslan that they would rather be tailless themselves than have something their leader lacked. Aslan restores Reepicheep's tail, moved by their loyalty and mindful of the kindness that the mice showed him at the Stone Table so many centuries before. The children and many of the Telmarines return to their respective worlds. Aslan tells Peter and Susan that they can never visit Narnia again because they are too old.

Caspian reappears (as King Caspian) in the two following books in the series: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair and makes a brief appearance in the end of The Last Battle.

Characters

  • Peter Pevensie is the oldest of the Pevensie siblings. He doesn't believe Lucy's talk of seeing Aslan at first, but later, Aslan appears and he apologizes.
  • Susan Pevensie is the second oldest of the Pevensie children. She doesn't believe Lucy's talk of seeing Aslan at first, but later, Aslan appears and she apologizes.
  • Edmund Pevensie is the third Pevensie child. He believes Lucy and follows her, mentioning that in their first adventure they didn't believe her and she turned out to be right.
  • Lucy Pevensie is the youngest Pevensie child. Lucy is the first to see Aslan again.
  • Aslan The creator of Narnia
  • Prince Caspian is the true king of Narnia. Caspian reappears (as King Caspian) in the two following books in the series: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair and makes a brief appearance in the end of The Last Battle.
  • Miraz is Caspian's uncle, and technically only Regent while Caspian is underage, though he plans to usurp the throne for himself and his heirs. He tolerates Caspian only so long as he (Miraz) has no children of his own, as he needs an heir to the throne. He dies when stabbed in the back by Lord Glozelle during his duel with Peter.
  • Queen Prunaprismia is Caspian's aunt.
  • Doctor Cornelius is Caspian's tutor, and also aids in the Narnians' defeat of the Telmarines.
  • Trumpkin is a red-Dwarf who helps Caspian defeat Miraz. When he is captured by Miraz's soldiers and taken to Cair Paravel in exile, he meets the Pevensie children and leads them to Caspian.
  • Nikabrik is a black-Dwarf in Caspian's army. Though at first not wanting to fight alongside Caspian he changes his mind. He wants to fight Miraz by calling up the White Witch, with the black magic of a hag and a werewolf. However, he, the hag and the werewolf are killed.
  • Trufflehunter is a badger who aids Caspian in his struggle. He helps Caspian and saves him from the storm in the forest by taking him in to his den.
  • Reepicheep is a large, dark, talking mouse who carries a rapier, and wears a red plume tucked in his golden circlet. He is a direct decendent of the mice who chewed through the ropes that held Aslan down to the stone table.

Themes

The two major themes of the story are courage and chivalry (this is Narnia's Civil War story) and, as Lewis himself said in a letter to an American girl, "restoration of the true religion after corruption". Leading Lewis scholar, Michael Ward, argues in his book "Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis" (Oxford University Press, 2008) that Lewis based "Prince Caspian" on the imagery associated with the planet, Mars. As a mythological deity, Mars was both god of war (Mars Gradivus) and god of trees and forests. In this latter capacity, Mars was known in classical times as Mars Silvanus; he was the god who gave life to vegetation, which is why the spring month of March is named after him. Ward points out that the events of "Prince Caspian" are said to take place during the month of 'Greenroof' (the only Narnian month mentioned in the course of the septet) and that 'Silvans' are included in the cast of characters in this story (the only time during the septet that they appear at all). Aslan, Ward maintains, is portrayed by Lewis as a Christianized version of Mars: he is the deity who marshals his troops (e.g. in the chapter entitled 'The Lion Roars') and the one who brings life to the woods, waking the dryads, hamadryads, and silvans.