East of the Wardrobe : The Unexpected Worlds of C. S. Lewis

A fascinating look at the rich but under-appreciated Eastern sources behind the Narnia book C. S. Lewis was no great traveller but he was a prodigious bibliophile who absorbed the world's traditions of myth, religion, and cosmology. The Chronicles of Narnia are steeped in allusions to the Bible, Greek mythology, and medieval literature, all of which has been amply discussed by critics. But, until now, what has been overlooked are Lewis' significant borrowings from Eastern influences: Arabian Nights and the Persian poets, great travellers from Herodotus and Marco Polo to T. E. Lawrence and Robert Byron, and the famous fictional adventurers Baron Munchausen, Gulliver, and Sindbad. In East of the Wardrobe , Warwick Ball explores hitherto unrecognised and unexpected Eastern aspects in and influences on C. S. Lewis' Narnia books. These include storylines, themes, imagery, religious elements, and even the cities and landscapes of the East, as well as the 'Persian' style adopted by the illustrator of Narnia, Pauline Baynes. Themes borrowed from the great epics can also be found, from The Odyssey and Aeneid to the Kalevala and The Knight in the Panther's Skin . Delve deeper and Christianity is there along with paganism, but so too are Zoroastrian, Manichaean, and even Islamic and Sufi messages. Ultimately, these influences act as a reflection of the complex intellectual world that Lewis inhabited, of both his own unique philosophy and the wider social and intellectual climate of Oxford in the first half of the twentieth century. All readers of Lewis will find in East of the Wardrobe surprising new paths into the world of Narnia. "This book teases out hitherto unrecognised Eastern aspects in and influences on C. S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles. These include storylines, plots, themes, imagery and even cities and landscapes in the East, as well as the 'Persian' style of illustrations by Pauline Baynes. Although never having ventured East himself, Lewis wrote that 'I am the product of endless books,' and in recognising Eastern references - many only subconsciously intended by Lewis - it is possible to enter the rich world of books that Lewis lived and breathed all his life. And, perhaps less obviously, overhear the conversations he had with his fellow Inklings or that he might have overheard himself in an Oxford pub. Religious messages other than the obvious Christian find their way into Narnia, but so too does the Arabian Nights and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam as well as the other great Persian poets; great travellers from Herodotus and Marco Polo to T. E. Lawrence and Robert Byron are there, but so too are the great fictional travellers, Baron Munchausen, Gulliver, and Sindbad; themes borrowed from the great epics, from the Odyssey and Aeneid to the Kalevala and the Knight in the Panther's Skin, can also be found. Delve deeper and Christianity is there along with paganism, but so too are Zoroastrian, Manichaean and even Islamic messages. Ultimately they are a reflection of the complex intellectual world that Lewis inhabited, and of the wider social and intellectual climate of Oxford in the first half of the twentieth century"-- Provided by publisher. Cover East of the Wardrobe Copyright Dedication Contents Preface and Acknowledgements List of Illustrations Introduction: Confessions of a Reluctant Narniaphile 1. Endless Books: Herodotus to Robert Byron 2. ‘It All [Perhaps] Began with a Picture’: Narnia, Persian Painting, and Pauline Baynes 3. East of the Wardrobe: The Manners and Customs of the Modern Calormen 4. On Board the Dawn Treader: Epic Quests and Fabulous Voyages to the East 5. Of This and Other Worlds: Portals and Alternative Time, from the Wardrobe to the Qur’an 6. Mere Christianity? Mere Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism, and Sufism as Well in Narnia? 7. Farther Up and Farther In: Messages Within, Beyond, and East of Narnia Notes Bibliography Index