There is no shortage
of writing
about C. S. Lewis. A quick catalog search for the subject “C. S. Lewis”
is
almost overwhelming. Much has been written about his writings, his
life, and
his Christianity. Upon its release, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader received several favorable reviews in
newspapers and
magazines. These reviews tended to be brief plot summaries and a few
value
statements about the book’s quality, and a comparison to the first two
books in
the series.
I believe C. S.
Lewis’s reputation
as an author of adult literature and essays has led to the Narnia books
being
taken more seriously by scholars than they might otherwise have been.
Although
more scholarly focus has been placed on his adult works, there are
still many
writers interested in the Narnia books. David Downing’s C. S. Lewis
bibliography lists 60 books and essays as “General Studies of Lewis and
His
Fiction” and 26 books and essays under “Studies on the Chronicles of
Narnia.”
Joe Christopher and Joan Ostling’s earlier (1974) but more extensive
annotated
Lewis bibliography lists 65 works (not reviews) about the Narnia books,
although some of the article listed appear to only make brief mention
of Lewis
and Narnia. Of these, only two specifically mention The Voyage of
the Dawn
Treader, although several
purportedly
address the Chronicles of Narnia as a whole. Based on these
bibliographies,
scholarly analysis of the Narnia books seems to have taken off in the
late
1960s. Earlier works tend to be reviews or summaries. Christopher and
Ostling
describe Bess Porter Adams’ treatment of Narnia in About
Books and
Children: Historical Survey of Children’s Literature: “Brief discussion of The
Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
as a ‘gay little story’; no mention of its meaning”
(99).
More recent
research on Voyage
of the Dawn Treader has included
topics
like “Medieval Echoes in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia with a
Special
Emphasis on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader," “'Where Sky and Water Meet': Christian
Iconography
in C. S. Lewis's The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” and “'The Way to Aslan's Country':
Allusions in The
Voyage of the 'Dawn Treader'.” In
short,
they are being treated as literary research topics just like the adult
works of
C. S. Lewis. They are not exclusively being written about for their
educational
value or sales numbers, as children’s books often are.
The Narnia books are
also often
written about in terms of their Christian allegory. Richard Wagner
lists
Biblical allusions for all seven books. In The Voyage of the Dawn
Treader, Aslan parallels Jesus in
2 Corinthians 5:17 and
Psalms 51:5-12. Eustace parallels the Apostle Paul in Acts 9:18 (Wagner
83).
Books like A Family Guide To Narnia: Biblical Truths in C.S.
Lewis's
The Chronicles of Narnia by
Christin
Ditchfield, Eternal Truths in Narnia: Bible Study with the
Chronicles
of Narnia by Julie Kloster, and Finding
God
in
the
Land
of Narnia by Kurt
Bruner
make explicit the Christian allegory that Lewis kept veiled, and offer
the
Narnia books as guides for their readers to become better Christians.
Religious
interpretations of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader often hold up Reepicheep the Mouse as the
best
Christian role model in the book; “the courtly Mouse is a model of the
true
Christian disciple” (Bruner 104). Evan Gibson observes that “Reepicheep
is the dawn treader”
(172). He continues East on his
quest for Aslan’s country after the others turn back. Lewis himself
wrote that The
Voyage of the Dawn Treader is
about “the
spiritual life (especially in Reepicheep)” (Downing 47). However, Lewis
also
said, “You are mistaken when you think that everything in the books
‘represents’ something in this world. Things do that in The
Pilgrim’s
Progress but I’m not writing in
that way”
(Downing 64).
The Voyage of
the Dawn Treader received some
recent reviews
for a new audio book version, which frequently comment on both the
quality of
the audio production but also on Lewis’ text. Patricia Austin in Booklist observed of the
story, “the
troops encounter myriad adventures (some more interesting than others),
which
can stand alone as fantastical stories of fantastical lands” (1212). Louise Sherman’s 2002 review of
the Voyage of the Dawn Treader
audiobook
from Scholastic Library Journal notes, “While adults might find the
story a
little dated at times and the religious elements somewhat heavy handed,
children will not notice and will enjoy the story” (87). I think this
is true.
Although there are certainly Christian elements to the story that can
be easily
drawn out by those who are seeking them, Lewis’s work is also perfectly
enjoyable at the non-allegorical level. Children do not need to
recognize Aslan
as a symbol of Jesus Christ to enjoy Lucy’s rapturous experience of
touching
his fur or to understand why Reepicheep would sail to the edge of the
world to
see him.
The Narnia books as a
series have
remained very popular over time. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, with its exciting sea journey and new
lands, may
provide more to hold the interest of a modern child than The
Magician’s Nephew or The
Horse
and
His
Boy. I read all of the
Narnia books
as a child—not for school, not for religious instruction, but just for
fun—and
remember The Voyage of the Dawn Treader as one of my personal favorites for its
relatable characters and
appealing adventures. It reunited me with Lucy, Edmund, Caspian, and
Reepicheep--characters I'd already become fond of through previous
books, and introduced Eustace, whose journey of self development is
relatable to middle school age children, who are beginning to develop
their personalities.
On Amazon.com,
where its average customer rating is 4.6 stars out of 5, many users of
all ages
have called Dawn Treader one
of their favorites of the series. Matt Poole wrote, "
When I first read the chronicles of Narnia (in fifth grade), this was
the one that captured my imagination the most. It's a book that is
constantly exciting, each destination reached more incredible than the
last. Such amazing creatures and concepts." E. A. Solinas observes, "
"The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is one of Lewis's most original and
tightly-written Narnian adventures. It's also a bit of a break from
form. After two books of battles against evil tyrants, "Voyage" simply
goes where no man/woman/mouse has gone before, and gives us a view of
the Narnian world as more than one isolated little region." A review
entitled "A Kid's Review" said, "
I think that "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" was a fantastic book. I
liked it because it had a lot of suspence and adventure."A different
"Kid's Review" highlighted the character development in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: "The
last reason that I liked the book is because of its many
interesting characters. Eustace is a very obnoxious, spoiled child.
Prince Caspian is further developed in this story and I expect to learn
more about him as I finish this series. Lastly, Lucy and Edmund become
more mature on their third trip to Narnia."
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
contains many of the hallmarks of excellent children's literature:
children adventuring without adult guidance, animals, humor, and a
journey. Its explorations of another world and of human nature are
timeless. Additionally, the best children's books are said to "delight"
more than to "instruct." The Narnia books in general have been popular
across a wide spectrum of people because although they were influenced
by Lewis's theology, they were not blatant in their moral instruction. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in
particular is subtle in its pursuit of a Christian theme; as previously
mentioned, it does not feature a big "good versus evil" battle but is
instead a journey. The characters grow and mature throughout the course
of their journey, but it feels natural and relatable. Lewis's writing
has characters who are more sophisticated than the "good girls and
boys" who serve as shining examples and the "bad boys and girls" who
serve as terrible lessons to children in books like Horatio Alger's
tales of street urchins working their way to respectable middle class
livelihoods and Carolyn
Keene's Nancy Drew series.
Works Cited