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Michael Ward
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Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis Illustrated Edition, Kindle Edition

by Michael Ward (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 325 ratings
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For over half a century, scholars have laboured to show that C. S. Lewis's famed but apparently disorganised Chronicles of Narnia have an underlying symbolic coherence, pointing to such possible unifying themes as the seven sacraments, the seven deadly sins, and the seven books of Spenser's Faerie Queene. None of these explanations has won general acceptance and the structure of Narnia's symbolism has remained a mystery.

Michael Ward has finally solved the enigma. In Planet Narnia he demonstrates that medieval cosmology, a subject which fascinated Lewis throughout his life, provides the imaginative key to the seven novels. Drawing on the whole range of Lewis's writings (including previously unpublished drafts of the Chronicles), Ward reveals how the Narnia stories were designed to express the characteristics of the seven medieval planets - - Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Luna, Mercury, Venus, and Saturn - - planets which Lewis described as "spiritual symbols of permanent value" and "especially worthwhile in our own generation". Using these seven symbols, Lewis secretly constructed the Chronicles so that in each book the plot-line, the ornamental details, and, most important, the portrayal of the Christ-figure of Aslan, all serve to communicate the governing planetary personality. The cosmological theme of each Chronicle is what Lewis called 'the kappa element in romance', the atmospheric essence of a story, everywhere present but nowhere explicit. The reader inhabits this atmosphere and thus imaginatively gains conna^itre knowledge of the spiritual character which the tale was created to embody.

Planet Narnia is a ground-breaking study that will provoke a major revaluation not only of the Chronicles, but of Lewis's whole literary and theological outlook. Ward uncovers a much subtler writer and thinker than has previously been recognized, whose central interests were hiddenness, immanence, and knowledge by acquaintance.
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"I cannot contain my admiration. No other book on Lewis has ever shown such comprehensive knowledge of his works and such depth of insight. This will make Michael Ward's name." --Walter Hooper, Literary Adviser to the Estate of C.S. Lewis

"Noting Michael Ward's claim that he has discovered "the secret imaginative key" to the Narnia books, the sensible reader responds by erecting a castle of scepticism. My own castle was gradually but utterly demolished as I read this thoughtful, scholarly, and vividly-written book. If Ward is wrong, his wrongness is cogent: it illuminates and delights. But I don't think he is wrong. And in revealing the role of the planets in the Chronicles, Ward also gives us the fullest understanding yet of just how deeply Lewis in his own fiction drew upon those medieval and renaissance writers he so loved." --Alan Jacobs, Professor of English, Wheaton College and author of The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C.S. Lewis

"Michael Ward presents an absorbing, learned analysis of C.S. Lewis's bestselling and beloved series, The Chronicles of Narnia. Readily accessible to the average reader, Ward's book reads so much like a detective story that it's difficult to put down." --Armand M. Nicholi, Jr. M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and author of The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud

"All who have enjoyed the The Chronicles of Narnia and indeed are interested in any aspect of Lewis's imaginative work should read Michael Ward's book. He argues convincingly for a hitherto unrecognized inner structure of the Chronicles, and gives excellent reasons for understanding why Lewis should have worked in such a mysterious way, his wonders to perform. Ward has an encyclopedic knowledge of Lewis's writings and uses it to support his theory that each of the seven volumes of the The Chronicles of Narnia is based on the classical, medieval and renaissance mythography of one of the then seven planets. Even those critics who dislike the Narnia books in principle because of their implicit Christianity must consider their planetary structure and its significance. Michael Ward has made an outstanding contribution to Lewis studies." --Derek Brewer, Emeritus Professor of English, University of Cambridge

"Planet Narnia is not simply one for the fans. Lewis had, and has, many enemies. This brilliant study may not persuade them that he was right, but it should convince them of his extraordinary subtlety." --The Independent

"MIchael Ward's stunning work of scholarship has shone a celestial light on the Chronicles of Narnia, and it will undoubtedly send many old friends of Narnia back through the wardrobe to explore the land again with new eyes."--Church of England Newspaper

"An argument which is at once subtle and sensible, a combination not often found in modern academic writing. . . . This is an outstanding guide not only to Narnia, but also to Lewis's thinking as a whole, and to the 'genial' medieval world-view which he so much loved and wished to restore, not in fact but through fantasy."--Books & Culture

"Planet Narnia is one of the most creative works of scholarship I have read. . . . Ward has made a brilliant discovery. . . . [B]y thinking seriously about Lewis's life-long interest in the medieval imagination, Ward has uncovered a symbolic structure in the seven books that deepens both their literary and theological significance. He also reveals Lewis to be a better writer than we knew . . . [A]n important work of scholarship . . . absorbing . . . serious . . . rich . . . a brilliant work to be savoured, read often and kept at hand when re-reading Lewis's novels."--The Catholic Register

"Brilliantly conceived. Intellectually provocative. Rhetorically convincing. A panegyric is not the usual way to begin a book review, but Michael Ward's Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis is worthy of such praise. I do not mean to suggest it is a perfect book, yet what Ward attempts - the first rigorously comprehensive reading of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia - is magisterial . . . stimulating and engaging . . . important . . . thoughtful, informed, perceptive. . . . [E]very serious student of Lewis should buy Planet Narnia. In effect, it is the starting point from now forward for all serious scholarly discussions of the Chronicles of Narnia."--Christianity and Literature

"This feat of scholarly detective work will absorb your attention from start to finish. Michael Ward proposes a heretofore unnoticed structure that unifies the Chronicles of Narnia, based on Lewis's lifelong engagement with medieval astrology. . . . The result is both surprising and persuasive."--Christianity Today

"Ward builds up a painstaking case based on Lewis's other writings, particularly his works on the medieval world-view and his "planetary" trilogy. And a compelling case it is, too, built on exhaustive evidence of the way in which Lewis the Christian convert still found the imaginative universe of paganism and medieval astrology rich and allusive. . . . Ward's painstaking scholarship should help dispel two critical stereotypes: Lewis the unsubtle Christian propagandist, and Lewis the literary Reliant Robin parked next to the Rolls-Royce that is J.R.R. Tolkien."--Church Times

"Ward's contention, simply stated, is breathtakingly elegant." --The Journal of Religion

"One comes away from this study convinced that Ward's theory is believable, particularly given Lewis's knowledge of medieval scholarship and Christianity. Summing Up: Recommended. All readers, all levels."--Choice

"All Narnia specialists should read this book . . . the lengthy footnotes and interesting illustrations paralleling Pauline Baynes's artistry with classical pictures of the gods are further evidence of meticulous research. . . . Ward's discovery is crucial to our appreciation of Narnia."--Christian Librarian: The Journal of the Librarians' Christian Fellowship

"The work that can be considered the most groundbreaking is Michael Ward's Planet Narnia. This text offers an entirely new way of understanding and reading both Lewis's science fiction Space Trilogy and The Chronicles of Narnia...Far from spoiling or seeming to devalue the message and rich beauty of Lewis' works, Ward's revelations serve to deepen one's appreciation for and understanding of them. Ward is a thorough and careful guide who provides an in-depth textual study of how Lewis's fascination with the medieval understanding of the cosmos is found throughout the texts."--Anglican and Episcopal History

About the Author

Michael Ward, Fellow of Blackfriars Hall, University of Oxford.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000SKMOMY
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press; Illustrated edition (January 15, 2008)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 15, 2008
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 4257 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 388 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 325 ratings

About the author

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Michael Ward

Michael Ward

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"Michael Ward has established himself not only as the foremost living Lewis scholar, but also as a brilliant writer" (N.T. Wright in The Times Literary Supplement). Dr Ward is Associate Member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford and Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University, Texas. On the fiftieth anniversary of C.S. Lewis's death, Ward unveiled a permanent national memorial to him in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey. He presented the BBC television documentary, 'The Narnia Code', made by Bafta-winning director, Norman Stone. He handed a pair of X-ray spectacles to Pierce Brosnan in the James Bond film, 'The World Is Not Enough', and played the part of C.S. Lewis's vicar in 'The Most Reluctant Convert', starring Max McLean and Nicholas Ralph. A Catholic priest in real life, Ward assists at Hinksey Parish in Oxford, alongside his work as an academic. He read English at Oxford, Theology at Cambridge, and has a PhD from St Andrews. More details at www.michaelward.net.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
325 global ratings
Scholarly endeavor
4 Stars
Scholarly endeavor
Only negative was that book arrivedSomewhat damaged. Need to package items better. This book will take some time to read. Looks fascinating.
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Top reviews from the United States

DMT
5.0 out of 5 stars Book Review: Planet Narnia
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2008
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Narnia lovers behold this book. Michael Ward's revelatory work is too edifying to ignore. For half a century we read (or had read to us) C.S. Lewis's magnificent Chronicles of Narnia. We love them because they captivate us.

The series has a mystery, however. Disparateness clouds the atmosphere; a lack of thorough artistry found in Lewis's other fiction. Lewis's mind is consistently meticulous and lucid, a chief trait of the medieval authors he taught professionally, and therein lies the secret.

More than allegory, yet nothing obviously more, Planet Narnia contends that Lewis made it so intentionally. Ward argues that each chronicle corresponds to one of the seven planets of medieval astrology. As a whole, they (the chronicles infused with the characteristic traits of the planets) create an atmosphere that is both honest to the human experience and consistent with the loveliness and sovereignty of Christ the Lord. The subtlety, an atmospheric quality, is consistent with Lewis's pneumatology, which maintains that unawareness of the Holy Spirit is a common condition in our human experience. Ward's case focuses on the peculiarities in The Chronicles, of which there are many, like the supposedly discordant appearance of St. Nicholas in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. Suddenly they make sense - the jovial saint's laughter resonates like guilt forgiven.

Many critics mistook Lewis for slopping together a menagerie of characters and plots without a guiding principle, argues Ward. Rather, it seems that a combination of an allegorical element teetering the brink of believability and dissatisfaction, a well-known pejorative judgment by J.R.R. Tolkien, and Lewis's deliberate imaginative subtlety kept readers orbiting the astrological inner meaning without fully understanding that which pulled them.

Planet Narnia is and claims to be a scholarly work. It is formidable, but as a reader I was pleasantly surprised by how cogently the argument runs. The Chronicles of Narnia are, after all, no Ulysses or Shakespearean play: the story is easy and the prose style is perfectly clear for everyone to enjoy. A work of literary criticism on such a matter-of-fact story lives or dies by its success in drawing out the facts or else garbling the matter. Ward excels in the former. Furthermore, Ward has not fluffed a Procrustean bed. Every proper literary question such as those of occasion, composition, and reception is considered thoughtfully and convincingly. Narnia is not scathed like the Planet Narnia cynics I know feared. Planet Narnia opens our eyes to something we already sensed: the kingly robes that the series has worn all along.

Ward does not argue that The Chronicles of Narnia fail at spiritual edification unless you accept his conclusion. He affirms that Narnia animates our moral imaginations with the glories of landscape, adventure, and righteousness whether or not readers recognize what (or Who!) is acting on them. Planet Narnia is merely a vestibule between the shade of a purblind enjoyment and spiritual convalescence - a sort of enjoyment that draws you further in and higher up. Narnia is a spiritual place that ought to be discerned spiritually. Lewis might add: heavenly, for the heavens do the declaring.
76 people found this helpful
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D. Beckmann
5.0 out of 5 stars The sun shines on Narnia!
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2008
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Planet Narnia could prove to be the most important book thus far ever written on the Chronicles of Narnia. All the other books I know of are commentaries, attempts to enlarge upon religious and moral questions, allegorical interpretations, and so forth. But Ward has managed to discover for us more of the mind of Lewis himself which illumines the very foundation of the stories and becomes a necessary ingredient in all our subsequent considerations of the Chronicles.
His discovery reminds me of Lewis's explanation of the relationship of the "Grand Miracle" and all the other miracles (Miracles, pp. 173f in the recent Harper Collins edition). Ward's thesis is the "missing part of the work" which illuminates all the parts, and thus a proper understanding of the parts (the seven stories) requires a reference to the "missing part" (Lewis's "donegality"). While previous attempts to introduce people to the Chronicles will continue to maintain their particular value, to a certain degree they are now obsolete. Everyone else who writes on Narnia will have to refer to Ward's book. It is a sun by which we now see everything else in the world of Narnia.
This is a scholarly, not a popular work. As others have noted, you may need to keep a dictionary handy. But if you are a mature reader and love Narnia you will love this book!
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Rev. Beckmann, Moderator, C. S. Lewis Soc. of Chattanooga, TN
15 people found this helpful
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Chad Bird
5.0 out of 5 stars The Key to Narnia
Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2022
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This book's basic premise is that Lewis patterned the seven Narnia novels around the medieval geocentric view of the universe, with the seven planets circling the earth (Moon [Luna], Mercury, Venus, etc.). Each of the novels is linked with a different planet, with implicit and explicit nods to that planetary influence, including on how Aslan is presented.

I found the arguments not only convincing but brilliantly argued.

I can imagine that Michael Ward's study would appeal to readers who are coming from several different directions (maybe, for some of us, multiple directions simultaneously).

To the casual reader of the Narnia novels, the book demonstrates that, even though the stories often seem rather loosely connected, there is an underlying bond that joins all seven. It would be fun to reread the novels with Ward's argument in mind, to ferret out the planetary language while enjoying the story.

For the serious student of Lewis, Planet Narnia is an obvious must-read. Not only is the narrative unity of the works exposed, but Ward demonstrates how Lewis wove the planetary theme into the Space Trilogy as well as his other works, poetry especially.

For readers like myself, who are at home in the biblical world, with its intertextuality and web of connections between the OT and NT, this book serves as a handy example of how this same intertextuality is at work in other literature. Lewis masterfully yet often obliquely kneaded together myth, history, Bible, and current events into a coherent whole in the Narnia series. Planet Narnia provides the key that unlocks that coherence. Likewise, when Christ is discovered to be the key that unlocks the unity of the OT and NT, one can begin with Genesis and perceive how masterfully and yet often obliquely Christ is present in the salvation story.

Thanks to Michael Ward for giving us such a gem!
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Top reviews from other countries

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W Gill K
5.0 out of 5 stars Planet Narnia book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 6, 2024
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An insight into C.S. Lewis's structure of the Chronicles of Narnia. Quite scholarly but absorbing reading,
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christine mason sutherland
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent contribution to Lewis studies.
Reviewed in Canada on October 19, 2017
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Most interesting and I find his argument convincing.
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Hanniel
5.0 out of 5 stars Eintauchen in die Welt von Narnia
Reviewed in Germany on July 7, 2017
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Zwei Erfordernisse an den Leser

Zwei Voraussetzungen zeigten sich während der Lektüre, welche ich nur teilweise erfüllte: Erstens ist es von Vorteil, die Perelandra-Trilogie gelesen zu haben. Zweitens wird der Lesegenuss erhöht, wenn man in der Lage ist, ein hochstehendes literarisches Englisch zu geniessen anstatt nur zu bewältigen. Ich liess mich nicht entmutigen, brauchte jedoch zwei Anläufe zum Lesen des Haupttextes (rund 250 Seiten, der Rest besteht aus dem Fussnotenapparat und weiteren Verzeichnissen).

Die Entdeckung des Autors

Für einmal beginne ich mit dem Epilog des Buches. Dort erfahren wir nämlich, wie der Autor auf seine Hauptidee für dieses Buch stiess. Obwohl Ward schon seit Jahrzehnten C. S. Lewis las, kam ihm die Idee erst später über dem lauten Lesen des Gedichts „The planets“ bei gleichzeitigem Einfluss von Musik. Die Parallele zu Narnia dämmerte ihm besonders über den Abschnitten in „Der König von Narnia“, welche den Wechsel Winter/Frühling beschreiben. Natürlich stellt sich die Frage: Warum hat niemand vor ihm diese Entdeckung gemacht? Dies begründet Ward mit der Vermutung, dass die meisten Gelehrten, die sich gründlich mit C. S. Lewis auseinandersetzten, Christen waren und darum keine Affinität für Astrologie aufwiesen (245). Damit leuchtete in mir auch die erste Warnlampe auf. Wie bitte, Astrologie?

C. S. Lewis und die mittelalterliche Astrologie

Bevor wir ein Pauschalurteil sprechen, lohnt es sich die beiden einleitenden Kapitel vollständig zu lesen. Erstens meint Ward nicht den heutigen Wortgebrauch von „Astrologie“, sondern geht von der mittelalterlichen Vorstellungswelt aus. Ward ist sich der biblischen Verbote von Sternendeuterei sehr wohl bewusst, und er nennt die entsprechenden Stellen auch. Glaubte Lewis an Astrologie? Jein. Erstens war er ein begeisterter Hobby-Astronom mit einem eigenen Teleskop auf dem Balkon. Zweitens war er zeitlebens Weltspitze in seinem Fachgebiet, nämlich der englischen Literatur des Mittelalters und der Renaissance. Drittens war er sich bewusst, dass die mittelalterliche Vorstellung bezüglich Himmelswelt nicht den Forschungsergebnissen nach der kopernikanischen Wende entsprach. Viertens war er kein blinder Vertreter der Moderne, sondern bemerkte den immensen Verlust, der mit der Technisierung einherging. Vor allem vermisste er den staunenden Blick in das göttliche Universum, der dem mittelalterlichen Betrachter noch eigen war. Ward stellt zwei (zu diskutierende) Behauptungen auf: Lewis unterschied zwischen dem Wahren und dem Schönen; das Schöne verliert seine Aussagekraft nicht automatisch dadurch, dass es sich als nicht wahr herausstellt. Ward unterstellt Lewis zudem, dass er es als schwierig empfunden hätte, nicht an Astrologie (im mittelalterlichen Sinn) zu glauben (228). Wie brachte er das mit dem christlichen Glauben in Zusammenhang? „Nur wenn Gott kommt, können die Halbgötter bestehen.“ In anderen Worten: Die heidnischen Mythen müssen im Licht Gottes betrachtet werden und nie umgekehrt.

Zum Aufbau des Buches

Diese Argumentationslinie war für mich transparent genug, um dem Rest des Buches folgen zu können. Das Buch ist sehr schlüssig und strukturiert aufgebaut. Zwei Kapitel gehören wie gesagt der Einleitung; der Hauptteil widmet sich in je einem Kapitel einem Planeten. Die beiden letzten Kapitel beschäftigen sich mit dem Schreibanlass und der sagenhaften Rezeption. Wie rekonstruiert Ward den Schreibanlass (Kapitel 10)? Er führt sie – wie andere Lewis-Interpreten auch – auf eine berühmte Debatte mit der jungen Oxforder Philosophin G. E. M. Anscombe (1919-2001) im Jahr 1948 zurück. Allerdings interpretiert er die daran anschliessende Auseinandersetzung mit den Argumenten von Anscombe nicht als Rückzugsgefecht, sondern als befreite und engagierte Verarbeitung. Zudem sieht Ward die Narnia-Chroniken als das imaginative Begleitmaterial zu seinem apologetischen Buch über Wunder (223; engl. „Miracles“, erstmals 1947, überarbeitet 1960 erschienen).

Hypothesen zum Schreibanlass und zur Faszination der Narnia-Chroniken

Die Narnia-Buchserie ist bekanntlich ein Longseller mit unglaublichen Absatzzahlen. Was macht die Faszination von Narnia aus? Ohne zu stark bei C. G. Jung Anleihen zu machen, attestiert Ward dem Literaten C. S. Lewis die Fähigkeit, über eine Art „Archetypen“ erfolgreich das Unbewusste des Menschen adressieren zu können. Lewis sah den Menschen ausgerüstet mit Wille (erste Ebene), Verstand (zweite Ebene) und Imagination (dritte Ebene). Mit den Narnia-Chroniken trat er gemäss Ward der menschlichen Tendenz entgegen, das Offensichtliche zu übersehen: Nämlich das Übernatürliche. Der Leser der Narnia-Chroniken wird genau in diese übersehene Dimension, welche ein Teil der Realität darstellt, mitgenommen. Er spürt intuitiv, dass diesem Bereich eine Wichtigkeit zukommt. (Das wirft für den Christen die Frage auf, ob die Bücher deswegen gefährlich seien. Die Meinungen gehen stark auseinander. Ich plädiere für Mässigung auf beide Seiten: Natürlich muss im Blickfeld gehalten werden, dass sich Lewis von klein auf mit der antiken Mythen- und Sagenwelt fütterte. Wie bei aller Literatur darf diese nicht zum primären „Wahrnehmungsfilter“ werden. Das heisst, die Bibel bleibt oberste Prüfinstanz aller – auch und gerade – imaginativen Ideen des Menschen. Persönlich kann ich der Lesart von Douglas Wilson, der manche Parallelen zur Heilsgeschichte, zum geistlichen Leben und zur Charakterentwicklung herstellt, eher folgen. Ward stuft gerade diese unter Christen gebräuchliche Interpretation zurück. Ich halte es für überzogen, von Lewis an sich Abstand zu nehmen.)

Begriffe zum besseren Verständnis des Buches

Für das Verständnis des Buches ist es entscheidend, die Bedeutung von einigen Begriffspaaren auseinander zu halten:

- Contemplation vs. Enjoyment (16-17): C. meint (rationales) Einordnen von aussen, E. ist hingegen das innere Mitleben („looking along the beam“); Lewis möchte Letzteres erzeugen.
- Silence (21): Für Lewis gibt es eine gute und schlechte Art der Stille. Die gute Art der Stille verbindet er mit dem vor-kopernikanischen Modell des Kosmos, nämlich der von unhörbaren Musik erfüllten Planetenwelt
- Symbole vs. Allegorie (30): Der Allegorist bildet bewusst die reale Ebene mit der allegorischen ab und verbindet beide miteinander. Symbolismus ist hingegen eher Modus des Gedankengangs als eine Form des Ausdrucks.
- Geist (32): Gegensatz von körperlich bzw. materiell, Emotionen, Leidenschaften, Gedächtnis und Vorstellung umfassend (1. Bedeutung); das rationale Element in der menschlichen Natur (2. Bedeutung); das Leben, das denen geschenkt ist, die durch Christus in der göttlichen Gnade leben (3. Bedeutung)
- poiema vs. logos: Ward stellt bei jedem Planeten deren Bedeutungsgehalt aus dem Handlungsverlauf (poiema) heraus; in einem zweiten Schritt entwickelt er den theologischen Aussagegehalt (logos).
- theosis Lewis: steht dem Gedanken der theosis, also der Teilnahme des menschlichen Lebens am göttlichen Leben sehr nahe
- Donegality: Lewis liebte Stimmung und Wetter der irischen Provinz Donegal. Ward prägte deshalb den Begriff „Donegality“, um das in den Chroniken vermittelte Stimmungsbild besser zu fassen.

Zum Lesen des Hauptteils

Im Hauptteil des Buches beschreibt Ward also die sieben Planeten im Sinne von Archetypen des ptolemäischen Weltbildes (7). Er tut das in sehr strukturierter Weise. Er wertet dazu nämlich zuerst das fachliche Werk sowie Lewis‘ Gedichte aus (die uns weniger bekannt sind). Weiter bespricht er Stellenwert und Wirkung der einzelnen Planeten in der Perelandra-Trilogie. Den grössten Teil des Kapitels widmet er dann wie kurz beschrieben dem Handlungsverlauf und dem Aussagegehalt in den einzelnen Chroniken. Dabei ordnet er jeweils einen Planeten einer Folge der Narnia-Chroniken zu (z. B. Jupiter – Der König von Narnia, Mars – Prinz Kaspian, Sonne – Reise der Morgenröte). Jeder Planet wird mit einem Metall in Verbindung gebracht (Jupiter – Zinn, Mars – Silber, Sonne – Gold etc.). Jeder Planet steht in einer bestimmten Hierarchie (z. B. Jupiter als König, Mars als infortuna minor). Zudem ist jedem Planeten eine Bedeutung zugewiesen; Ward zitiert dazu aus Lewis‘ fachlichem Werk. So wird Mars z. B. als kalter und starker Sohn der Notwendigkeit beschrieben. Bedeutung und Material widerspiegeln sich in Stimmung, Handlungsverlauf und Aussagegehalt. So nehmen der Militarismus und die Silberfarbe in Prinz Kaspian eine wichtige Rolle ein. Als zugehörigen (christlichen) Aussagegehalt leitet Ward den christlichen (geistlichen) Verteidigungskampf ab. Ein zweites Beispiel: Bei der Sonne fokussiert Ward auf das Thema von Licht und Dunkelheit in der „Reise der Morgenröte“ und auf die sieben Auftritte Aslans innerhalb des Buches.

Einschätzung

Insgesamt fehlen mir einige grafische Übersichten. Ich begann während der Lektüre eine Tabelle zu zeichnen, um den inhaltlichen Überblick zu behalten. Die Stärke des Buches ist sein integrativer Charakter. Ward hat eine immense Forschungsarbeit geleistet. Auch wenn man der These des Buches nicht oder nur bedingt zustimmen kann, erhellen die zahlreichen Zitate viel über Lewis‘ Gedankengänge. Insgesamt betrachte ich die These von Ward als innovativ. Trotz sehr strukturiertem Vorgehen und herausragender Arbeit mit den Quellen erachte ich die Idee als spekulativ. Muss man das Buch gelesen haben? Jeder, der sich mit den Narnia-Chroniken beschäftigt und/oder Lewis häufig zitiert (auch als Pastor oder Bibellehrer), empfehle ich die Lektüre.
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A Partington
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful book
Reviewed in Australia on February 19, 2018
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I find his idea that each Narnia book is infused with a metaphor of one of the planets entirely credible, and Michael Ward has backed it up with irrefutable evidence. Well worth a read if you are interested in CS Lewis’ approach to writing.
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Douglas Porto
5.0 out of 5 stars Revelador.
Reviewed in Brazil on January 16, 2016
Verified Purchase
O livro é chave para o entendimento da obra de Lewis, além de dar novo vigor para as Crônicas de Nárnia. Obrigatório para estudantes de filosofia.
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