Chapter 15 - Aslan Makes a Door in the Air

[Pattertwigs Pal]

1. Why would not believing in lions make the Telmarines fear greater?

2. Why did the Narnians react so differently from each other when they first saw Aslan?

3. Lucy is sitting by Aslan and feels "divinely comfortable". How do you imagine that feels?

4. Why is a tail the honor and glory of a mouse?

5. What do you like best of Lewis' description of the celebration? How does it compare with the Romp in chapter 11?

6. Why do you think Lewis described what the trees were eating in such detail?

7. Why do you think Lewis shows some Telmarines still being unpleasant at the very end (instead of them all becoming friendly)?

8. Where do you think Edmund left his torch?

9. What do you think about the way Lewis chose to end the book, especially the last line?

[Ryadian]

1. Why would not believing in lions make the Telmarines fear greater?
For one thing, even if they didn't believe in lions, they've likely heard stories - and surely the stories remember the renowned strength and ferocity of lions. It would make Aslan's appearance not entirely unlike us encountering a monster in real life. Also, it gives them no frame of reference before encountering the terrifying (especially to evil-doers) Aslan.

2. Why did the Narnians react so differently from each other when they first saw Aslan?
Perhaps there's some truth to what Trufflehunter said about beasts versus creatures like Dwarfs - dwarfs are "as changeable as the humans themselves", but the Beasts more easily remember who Aslan is and how much they love him, while the Dwarfs have to reconcile their skepticism.

3. Lucy is sitting by Aslan and feels "divinely comfortable". How do you imagine that feels?
I imagine it as both physically feeling comfortable, but more importantly, wrapped up in the joy of being with Aslan again, and with only good times ahead.

4. Why is a tail the honor and glory of a mouse?
To be fair, it's what Reepicheep considers to be the honor and glory of a mouse. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that, really, it's the most prominent feature of a mouse - tails sometimes take up about half of a mouse's total length, after all, and it's one of the ways I find easiest to identify mice from different kinds of rodents of similar size. Plus, tails have a nice flourish, and may even give mice a balance advantage while in combat.

6. Why do you think Lewis described what the trees were eating in such detail?
Probably because, of all the creatures there, what they would eat would be the most unusual - we can pretty easily imagine the foods and how the Talking Beasts, dwarfs, etc. would eat them, but if you say that the trees eat earth... well, my first thought was them grabbing chunks of brown dirt. The description gives you enough detail and (I promise this wasn't intended as a pun) flavor to get an idea of what it looked like, and how it would actually be like a meal for the trees.

7. Why do you think Lewis shows some Telmarines still being unpleasant at the very end (instead of them all becoming friendly)?
I think it's a good reminder that these Telmarines made choices - they weren't all just following Miraz's orders, many of the Telmarines were nasty in their own right. I think it's even more important that Lewis told us that there were many Telmarines who decided to accept the new Narnia and its true inhabitants, to remind us that not all the Telmarines are unredeemable.

8. Where do you think Edmund left his torch?
Well, the only time we see him use it is when they're searching Cair Paravel. However, I find it most likely that he forgot it when the group got up in the middle of the night to follow Aslan - given all the confusion and grogginess, it's easy to imagine him forgetting that.

9. What do you think about the way Lewis chose to end the book, especially the last line?
Well, it does have a nice "there's no place like home" feel to the ending, to show how the children are settling back into their mundane, English lives. At the same time, though, it makes sense to me that the book, which is so much more about the fantastic adventures in Narnia than the children in their normal lives, would spend very, very little time there - especially since there's nothing really to give us as an epilogue for this particular story.

[Pattertwigs Pal]

1. Why would not believing in lions make the Telmarines fear greater?
They would have not only the shock of seeing something so formidable as a lion but also the shock of seeing something they didn't believe in.
2. Why did the Narnians react so differently from each other when they first saw Aslan?
It had a lot to do with how they thought of Aslan before they met him. The ones who believed in him before rushed to him. The ones that didn't believe in him were surprised. And ones who were willing to believe in him or the white witch must have seen that they couldn't really do that.
3. Lucy is sitting by Aslan and feels "divinely comfortable". How do you imagine that feels? Wonderful. I think it would be peaceful and joyful. It would be lovely and just feel right.

4. Why is a tail the honor and glory of a mouse?
It is something the mice can be proud of I guess. Useful, yet attractive at least in their minds.
5. What do you like best of Lewis' description of the celebration? How does it compare with the Romp in chapter 11?
I like the fun details about what the trees were eating and the description of how the feast ended with everyone but Aslan falling asleep. They are both joyful occasions but the Romp is wild while the feast is more controlled.
6. Why do you think Lewis described what the trees were eating in such detail?
To add a little humor and show how Aslan didn't leave anyone out. If anyone ever asks what a talking tree eats, readers of Lewis will be ready with the answer.

7. Why do you think Lewis shows some Telmarines still being unpleasant at the very end (instead of them all becoming friendly)?
Like Rya said, it indicates that they have a choice. It also might have seemed too perfect if everyone suddenly became friendly and pleasant and accepted the Old Narnians.
8. Where do you think Edmund left his torch?
Maybe it wasn't brought down from the castle or he left it with his Narnian clothes.
9. What do you think about the way Lewis chose to end the book, especially the last line? It conveys the bittersweetness of the return and then ends on a rememberable line of humor.

[aileth]

1. Why would not believing in lions make the Telmarines' fear greater?
Two awful things proving true at once. An angry king would be bad enough, but a gigantic, fierce lion? The return of the lawful sovereign and their worst nightmare, all rolled into one. Their mothers had probably threatened them with lions when they were naughty children.

2. Why did the Narnians react so differently from each other when they first saw Aslan?
Throughout the Chronicles, the animals tended to prove more loving and more loyal to Aslan than the human-like beings. Think of Trufflehunter versus Nikabrik. They seemed to have a built-in, instinctive knowledge that he was good.

3. Lucy is sitting by Aslan and feels "divinely comfortable." How do you imagine that feels?
Imagine revelling in the company of someone you love dearly, knowing that the hard times are past. She knows that all is right because Aslan is there, and she is content just to be near him.

4. Why is a tail the honor and glory of a mouse?
To distinguish it from a shrew, of course. Perhaps because its tail makes up about half its length.

5. What do you like best of Lewis' description of the celebration? How does it compare with the Romp in chapter 11?
I like the discourse on the menu of the trees; the best part of all was when he described them going off to sleep without any "breaking up or going away."

The romp contained a lot more physical activity. This feast was a rest after the work was done (most of it, anyway).

6. Why do you think Lewis described what the trees were eating in such detail?
I think he liked exploring the unusual possibilities of any situation that we don't experience in normal everyday life. It was as if he would ask himself questions: "What would it be like if such-and-such were true..." and then use his imagination to answer those questions. You see that same type of interest and curiosity in the descriptions in his science fiction trilogy.

7. Why do you think Lewis shows some Telmarines still being unpleasant at the very end (instead of them all becoming friendly)?
Very true to life.

8. Where do you think Edmund left his torch?
Possibly wherever they changed back into English clothes. He may have left it in the pocket and forgotten to switch it over. Or perhaps at Caspian's castle?

9. What do you think about the way Lewis chose to end the book, especially the last line?
I think we all feel a "little flat and dreary" now that the story is ended; the dash of irony helps relieve the disappointment. We also can recognize that, much as they loved Narnia, the Pevensies' proper place was in our own world. And that it was all right for it to be that way.