Page 5 of 5

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Oct 26, 2018 10:22 am
by The Rose-Tree Dryad
Cleander wrote:I think the main reason a lot of the people I meet don't like Narnia is because for them it was kind of eclipsed by Tolkien's works. Narnia seemed too simplistic and childish, while LOTR has a more complex, subtle structure and message.


Tolkien is actually one of the few people that comes to my mind as an actual person who hated Narnia. ;))

I think most people who don't like Narnia are indifferent or dismissive of it, thinking that they are "just children's books" or heavy-handed Christian allegory, but Tolkien actively disliked it, despite the fact that Lewis loved The Hobbit and LotR. I've always thought that the clash in their tastes was interesting... I get the sense that there are certain personalities that just aren't going to take to Narnia as much as others. If you require a well-ordered fantasy universe, then Tolkien's works are definitely going to be more your cup of tea. This article does a good job detailing Tolkien's issues with CoN, although I don't agree with the author's conclusion about Middle-Earth containing a "deeper magic" than Narnia.

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Oct 26, 2018 6:52 pm
by Col Klink
Arrrgh, why did you have to quote that last line, Rose-Tree Dryad? Now I'm going to feel compelled to read that article even though I know it's going to irritate me to no end! Must...re...sist! ~x( ;)

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Oct 26, 2018 8:03 pm
by The Rose-Tree Dryad
Col Klink wrote:Arrrgh, why did you have to quote that last line, Rose-Tree Dryad? Now I'm going to feel compelled to read that article even though I know it's going to irritate me to no end! Must...re...sist! ~x( ;)


Oh, the author has a perfectly interesting perspective... it just happens to be wrong. ;)

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Nov 17, 2018 8:28 am
by Varnafinde
In that author's comparison of Tolkien and Lewis, I find support for saying (as I have said earlier elsewhere) that while Tolkien's world-building was even better than his story-telling, Lewis' story-telling was better than his world-building.

Perhaps people who prefer a perfectly built world, will dislike (or even hate) Narnia for its defects in that area.

Personally, I don't mind those defects much - Narnia is such a charming world in its own way that I'm quite happy with it :)

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Nov 17, 2018 7:50 pm
by DiGoRyKiRkE
Varna wrote:Personally, I don't mind those defects much - Narnia is such a charming world in its own way that I'm quite happy with it


This

Our world is complicated enough the way it is, and when I read Tolkien, I think I find it more of a chore than I do enjoyment. Narnia is just so simple, charming, and juvenile. . . Things are just "easier" there, and I think that's why I like it so much.

Re: why do people hate narnia?

PostPosted: Nov 19, 2018 1:18 pm
by Cleander
Narnia doesn't go overboard with politics either; I think it has just enough of that to make it seem real without making the stories like a history book.