the lion the witch and the wardrobe essay prompts

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

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Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-8

Chapters 9-11

Chapters 12-14

Chapters 15-17

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

When Lucy Pevensie first enters Narnia, it seems like a mystical winter oasis. However, Lewis soon reveals that Narnia has some very real dangers of its own. To what extent can The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe be described as an escapist fantasy? Support your response with textual evidence.

Mrs. Beaver bakes a “great and gloriously sticky marmalade roll” that both satiates the children’s hunger and delights their senses (83). Food features as an important motif in the novel. Trace the appearance of food and consider how Lewis’s use of food imagery changes as the plot progresses.

Certain aspects of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe have been read as Christian allegory . Identify two chapters in the novel that employ religious symbolism and analyze them, strengthening your answer with textual support.

Lewis employs bildungsroman character arcs that trace Lucy Pevensie , Susan Pevensie , Edmund Pevensie , and Peter Pevensie from childhood into adulthood. Choose one of the four siblings and examine how their character develops over the course of the novel.

When Aslan dies, the narrator addresses the reader: “I hope no one who reads this book has been quite as miserable as Susan and Lucy were that night” (171). Consider Lewis’s use of narrative voice and the effect it has throughout the novel.

Compare and contrast Aslan and the White Witch . Do their characters carry any symbolic significance? Explain.

Lewis anthropomorphizes a number of Narnian animals. Why do you think Lewis chooses to use speaking animals as supporting characters? What effect does this have?

Father Christmas tells both Lucy and Susan that “battles are ugly when women fight” (119). To what extent does The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe depend on patriarchal norms? Support your answer with textual analysis.

When the siblings return from Narnia, it is “the same day and the same hour of the day on which they had all gone into the wardrobe to hide” (202). Why do you think Lewis gives Narnia its own timeline? Is it important that the siblings return to Earth as children rather than adults?

What is the significance of the Emperor-beyond-the-Sea in the novel? Is it significant that the Emperor is always physically absent from Narnia?

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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

By c. s. lewis, the lion, the witch and the wardrobe essay questions.

How does the Professor demonstrate logic? How does this demonstration enable him - and us - to believe in Narnia?

How does Edmund's character change over the course of the story? Be sure to address how he comes to earn the title "Edmund the Just."

What moral values does Aslan's death at the hand of the White Witch teach us?

Why would the creation of an alternate universe such as Narnia be useful to a writer like C. S. Lewis?

How does the reader know that the White Witch's magic is weakening? How is the strength of her power reflected in the seasons?

What is Mr. Tumnus's crime? What do you think his arrest and punishment tell us about justice in Narnia under the White Witch's reign?

How are the actions of Aslan, Peter, and Edmund courageous?

How is the children's journey into Narnia an alternative "education" to the one they experience in school?

What moral lesson does Aslan teach Lucy with regards to how she uses her bottle of fire-flower juice?

How is the opposition between skepticism and faith expressed in the story?

What is the significance of Father Christmas's arrival? What values might C.S. Lewis be trying to express using the character of Father Christmas?

How do meals and the consumption of food express differences in ideas of friendship and trust?

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Why do you think Edmund shouted out not harm animals to the queen?

Chapter please?

Describe what happened in Peter's first battle.

In Chapter Twelve, Peter and Aslan hear the sound of a horn. When they look back to see the wolf that was sent by the Witch, it is threatening to kill Susan, who climbed a tree before alerting them with the horn she received from Father Christmas....

In the first two chapters of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe what are some unrealistic characters?

In Chapter One, for Lucy, the lamp-post is the first signal that the wood she has entered is not a regular wood, closely followed by the second signal: the appearance of the faun, a man with the legs of a goat and two horns on his head.

In Chapter...

Study Guide for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe study guide contains a biography of C. S. Lewis, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Summary
• Character List

Essays for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.

• The Function of the Secondary World in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
• Independent Growth Through Gendered Alternate Universes: Peter and Wendy and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
• Analyzing the Character of The White Witch in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
• Comparing Child Protagonists in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Ursula Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea
• Structuralist Conventions, Religious Intents: The Uses of Fantasy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and His Dark Materials

Lesson Plan for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Essay Topics & Writing Assignments

Essay Topic 1

Aslan and the White Witch were both very dynamic leaders in this book with strong followings. What are the differences in the two styles of leadership, and how do these differences affect their characters, their followers, and their roles in the plot?

Essay Topic 2

Edmund endures many different trials before the end of the book. What are some of these trials and what lessons does he learn through these experiences?

Essay Topic 3

Mr. Tumnus was a minor character whose presence made a big difference in the plot. How does he accomplish this? What are some ways that his presence, however brief, alters the outcome of the plot? What would have happened differently if he had not been in the book at all?

Essay Topic 4

Security and safety were two themes that were touched on a number of times throughout the course of this book. What are...

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Sample of Discussion & Essay Questions

• Mr. Tumnus was a spy with a good heart. He is one of the first characters we meet in Narnia and his warm hospitality causes him to befriend Lucy and save her from the White Witch. If you found a world in the back of your closet, what type of creature or character would you want to meet first? Describe him/her.

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