Re: Favorite Narnian Male
Posted: Jul 12, 2014 11:29 amHonestly, my favorite character--male or female--varies from book to book. 
Admittedly, that's kind of my way of justifying not having to pick a favorite, generally speaking. 
In the end, though, I voted for Edmund. I really, really love seeing the maturity Edmund gains after his redemption.
From being the first character to trust Lucy's judgment in PC to being the one to talk to Eustace on the beach in VDT. Also, I like that he's a practical and level-headed character, but he's not above some snark from time to time. (I refer you to the infamous "Girls don't carry a map in their heads" scene. ) Also, as a side benefit, Edmund appears in three of my top 4 favorite Chronicles--in order, The Horse and His Boy, Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and of course The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.
After Edmund, though, I think my next favorite character is Eustace, for similar reasons. (Yes, I love a good redemption story. ) I also enjoy that, while his circumstances are similar to Edmund's, he never seems to take certain things for granted the same way that the Pevensies do. Since he didn't live in Narnia for years and years, at the beginning of The Silver Chair, he's still a little uncertain about how to call out to Aslan, relying entirely on what he witnessed in the events of VDT. This has more to do with how the story is told than Eustace himself, but still--I enjoy the opportunity to see Narnia through fresh eyes again, though without the need for the characters to start completely in the dark again.
And, if there had been three options, Shasta would have been third. Like I said before, The Horse and His Boy is my favorite Chronicle, and Shasta's character is a big part of that. Again, I like the opportunity to see the world of Narnia through a different perspective--this time, someone who has lived in the world, but has never known Narnia itself until the end. I also like that he starts the story with a certain degree of honor and courage, even having been raised as little better than a slave by a fisherman--and even without knowing his true identity. Yes, he still does some questionable things (such as all the "raiding"), but I think those are outweighed by both his character development and the moments where he shows great courage (such as, most notably, going back to rescue Aravis and Hwin from a Lion).
Admittedly, that's kind of my way of justifying not having to pick a favorite, generally speaking. In the end, though, I voted for Edmund. I really, really love seeing the maturity Edmund gains after his redemption.
From being the first character to trust Lucy's judgment in PC to being the one to talk to Eustace on the beach in VDT. Also, I like that he's a practical and level-headed character, but he's not above some snark from time to time. (I refer you to the infamous "Girls don't carry a map in their heads" scene. ) Also, as a side benefit, Edmund appears in three of my top 4 favorite Chronicles--in order, The Horse and His Boy, Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and of course The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. After Edmund, though, I think my next favorite character is Eustace, for similar reasons. (Yes, I love a good redemption story.
) I also enjoy that, while his circumstances are similar to Edmund's, he never seems to take certain things for granted the same way that the Pevensies do. Since he didn't live in Narnia for years and years, at the beginning of The Silver Chair, he's still a little uncertain about how to call out to Aslan, relying entirely on what he witnessed in the events of VDT. This has more to do with how the story is told than Eustace himself, but still--I enjoy the opportunity to see Narnia through fresh eyes again, though without the need for the characters to start completely in the dark again. And, if there had been three options, Shasta would have been third.
Like I said before, The Horse and His Boy is my favorite Chronicle, and Shasta's character is a big part of that. Again, I like the opportunity to see the world of Narnia through a different perspective--this time, someone who has lived in the world, but has never known Narnia itself until the end. I also like that he starts the story with a certain degree of honor and courage, even having been raised as little better than a slave by a fisherman--and even without knowing his true identity. Yes, he still does some questionable things (such as all the "raiding"), but I think those are outweighed by both his character development and the moments where he shows great courage (such as, most notably, going back to rescue Aravis and Hwin from a Lion).