Anhun wrote:There's a big difference between the adrenaline rush of reading a romantic novel and the rush of facing death. It's like the difference between having one glass of wine with dinner versus drinking until you pass out, to draw a comparison with a different addictive substance. So, no, I would not call all romantics severe adrenaline addicts, but I would call Reepicheep one.
Possibly, until you remember that mice - and Reepicheep still is a mouse - might see things differently to a human. The normal mouse isn't noted for courage at all, though it might take both courage and rat cunning for a mouse to survive. And with much of the carnivorous animal world making a meal of mice, life is short and death is commonplace. Adrenalin is the hormone involved in fight and flight, and until a mouse is cornered, flight is the preferred choice.
Reepicheep is proud, even vain-glorious, as Aslan has already noted in PC. Timidity (cowardice or poltroonery) is something he takes great pains to disassociate himself from, and what he despises most. And he has so far had great reward from his ability to defend himself. I'd agree with you more if Reepicheep was more aggressive than he appeared in the books, but I think his payoff isn't an adrenalin rush, but probably something else. It must look good for any lady friends he might have, for instance, that he is so adept at defending himself. No wonder he is the chief mouse.
An interesting example, partly because cases of true heroism always are, but also because Albert Jacka makes a striking contrast to Reepicheep. There are countless examples of Reepicheep wanting to take unnecessary or even completely pointless risks with his own or other people's lives. Had he been working with Albert Jacka, he would have been disgusted with Jacka's "poltroonery."
Not necessarily, as we may see further on. He generally does as Caspian tells him, accepting that Caspian is his king, or superior officer. Unlike Jacka who, being an Australian in WW1, wasn't necessarily a fan of superior officers, particularly UK-born superior officers. As both
his Wikipedia article and the print Daily Telegraph article I read do show.
6. How accurate do you think Eustace's portrayal of his thoughts, motives, and actions in the water incident is? I do think his recollections are all too accurate, and that in his recounting of what happened in the water incident, he was making excuses for his behaviour. Caspian did take pity on Eustace as an unwilling guest. But Eustace dismisses his concern as being patronising. Afterwards he bunkered down, in his bunk, with his only visitor being Lucy.
7. Do you agree with Eustace or Caspian about going ashore at night? Why?Caspian. Eustace was talking out of a desire to get away from the Dawn Treader, but Caspian has to be responsible for everyone on board. It is called Duty of Care.
In daylight there is less problem about seeing danger or of keeping track of people. Or in finding possible supplies, come to think about it.
8. What about the island makes it a place that would be pretty in a picture but oppressive in real life?Mountainous islands can look attractive in a picture, particularly if snow-capped. It is a different story when in real life one has to cross them. But maybe this might give you an idea of what C.S.Lewis might have meant. In 1788, a fleet of 11 ships formed a settlement at a place called Port Jackson. Watkin Tench, one of this party's officers, penetrated the hinterland as far as the Nepean River a couple of years later. Across this river were the foothills of the Blue Mountains, a section of the Great Dividing Range which stretches from the tip of Australia to the Mount Lofty ranges in South Australia. Eventually the
mountains were crossed, but not until 1813, despite many attempts. The growing environs of Sydney by that time were being hemmed in and their settlers needed to get past these mountains. If you ever saw them in real life, they might indeed look oppressive, if you look away from the settled bits and traffic-laden roads that are there now. But on calendars and when away from home, they do look picturesque.
10. Edmund had to explain to Eustace what getting "two dozen" meant because it was in the sort of book that Edmund would have read, but not what Eustace had read. What sort of books do you think the Pevensie children read? How might they differ from Eustace's reading choices?It was established when we first met him that Eustace preferred reading non-fiction books, on geography and economics. Probably science as well. And from his references to the British consul, to lodging a disposition, he seems to know a thing or two about the law and even politics - such as when he said he was a republican (as opposed to monarchy).
It stands to reason that the sorts of books the Pevensies read for relaxation were more likely to be fiction. Not only fairy tales but adventures, detective novels and boarding school yarns. Three of these types of books would certainly explain what "six of the best" might mean. Even classical literature and UK history would certainly have informed Eustace of what Caspian meant by "six of the best", as the British Navy of Samuel Pepys, Horatio Nelson and Captain Cook was noted for its strict discipline.
By the way, do you agree with what C.S. Lewis is suggesting repeatedly, so far, in this book, that you can tell a lot about people by what sorts of books they choose to read?