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Passover post coming up!
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The Last Battle: Tirian and the Rule of Law

In the previous post we saw that the northern part of Narnia at the beginning of The Last Battle is not a land of peace and prosperity, far from it. Northern Narnia had become a land overrun by outlaws and engulfed by a great war. The war was not a clean victory for the Narnians, but one which saw the death of their king and, presumably, friends and neighbors. The young king who has taken the throne is brave and daring in battle, he put the country back together. But he is still immature even rash. The citizenry is, without a doubt, still on edge. Puzzle’s comment to Shift, “isn’t everything right already?” even without oranges and bananas, may be technically true, but if it is, it is only in the recent past that it has become so.

Turning to King Tirian we find his actions in The Last Battle fraught with inconsistency. This causes us to question how much confidence he could have aroused in his people. At first, he is in no rush to determine whether Aslan has returned to Narnia. He then rashly (as Lewis describes it) seeks to avenge the murdered dryad. When this leads him and Jewel to kill two unarmed Calormenes (who unquestionably deserved it) Tirian is suddenly ashamed of his actions. 

King Tirian did win the war after harsh battles in the north, Aslan himself compliments Tirian for his firmness in Narnia’s final hours, yet as a leader Tirian is still immature, doubtfully earning the people's trust, and clearly unprepared for the intrigue of Shift and the Calormenes.

One might compare Tirian to King Saul, the great warrior of ancient Israel who also stood firm in the face of a mortal enemy, but whose actions were inconsistent. This inconsistency is most clearly demonstrated in King Saul’s love-hate relationship with his son-in-law the future King David. But inconsistency in King Saul's actions is constant, especially when considering his periodic willingness to be led by the populous rather than lead the populous. 

King Saul listens to the people and does not wipe out the evil tribe of Amalek (Samuel 1, chapter 15), yet he utterly destroys the priestly city of Nov despite their innocence (Samuel 1, chapter 22). King Saul (Samuel 1, chapter 14) declares a fast after a victory against the Philistines weakening the army and limiting their ability to chase down the retreating enemy. When his son Jonathan eats (he did not know about the declaration), King Saul is ready to kill him. Yet, in this case he is persuaded by the people to spare Jonathan’s life. No one can doubt King Saul's overall fidelity to God, love for his country, and bravery and sacrifice in battle. He centralizes Israel after its disastrous history in the book of Judges. But his inconsistencies make him unacceptable before God and the prophet Samuel, and eventually his kingdom is lost. 

With King Tirian the situation is worse. His unwillingness to address "Aslan" quickly, his unwillingness to heed the advice of the centaur, and his rashness in responding to the actions of this "Aslan" destroy all of Narnia.

With this as background we can, perhaps, understand the willingness of the Narnians to be taken in by Shift. Through “Aslan,” Shift provides a stability and consistency not seen in perhaps decades. True the yoke is heavy and the work is hard, but the hardness is welcome because it demonstrates that leadership and the rule of law, missing for so long, has finally returned.

The Last Battle: Context

At this point in our discussion some may be wondering what this all has to do with Torah or Judaism. We’ll get there (maybe), but for the moment we need to set the background for “The Last Battle.”

A typical reader opening The Last Battle may assume that all is peaceful in Narnia. We are not told of any active battles. The King, a young man between the ages of 20 and 25, is out at his little hunting lodge without much of a retinue, not something a King should do should there be a threat of danger. In fact, we are explicitly told that with respect to Narnia's arch-enemy, “there was peace between Narnia and Calormen in those days.”

However, there are a number of clues hinting that the seemingly idyllic portrait is not correct. The Narnian timeline tells us that 21 years before "towers are built to guard Lantern waste, where there has been an increase in outlaw activity." Furthermore, we see evidence of great battles in the recent past. In discussing the relationship between King Tirian and his best friend Jewel the Unicorn we are told, “Each had saved the other’s life in the wars?” What wars? Tirian is not old enough to have participated in wars decades before! Even more telling is the explicit statement later in the story that King Tirian’s father, King Erlian, had been severely wounded, and apparently killed, by the giant. What giant? 

As a first step, let us try to determine who the enemy was in the battles that Tirian fought. Here are some possibilities:

1. Calormen
2. Some other enemy from the islands to the east or the wilds of the west 
3. The just mentioned outlaws or a civil war
4. The Giants on Narnia’s northern border
5. The Giants of Harfang

Possibility 1 seems to fall away immediately due to the declaration that there was peace between the countries in those days. Should war have been fought five years earlier, such a statement would not have been made. Possibility 2 would require having a new enemy pop out of nowhere. Why do that? Possibilities 3, 4, and 5 or some combination of them seem to be most likely. We know that King Erlian was killed by the giant and thus it would make sense that these battles continued into the reign of Tirian.

Whoever it is, perhaps the wars, possibly instigated by the increase of outlaw activity in the region, give us further insight into the true situation of Narnia at that time. All is not comfortable and at peace. Not too long before a Narnian king was killed in battle. Further conflict almost cost the life of the new, young, king. Could this have led the citizens of Narnia to start doubting Aslan’s kindness? Could desperation with a shaky political situation make them willing to accept Aslan’s arrival despite all evidence to the contrary? And, no matter what enemy it may have been, we have still not explained King Tirian’s unwillingness to immediately investigate the arrival of Aslan. Could Tirian have become too self-confident?

To be continued…

The Last Battle: Questions

The Last Battle opens by describing the relationship between Shift, the monkey, and Puzzle, the donkey (note the rhyme), who live to the west of Lantern Waste not far from the Great Waterfall. Though the pair claim to be friends Shift constantly takes advantage of Puzzle making use of his old-age, supposed wisdom, and Puzzle’s good nature, to convince Puzzle to do all the work. One day the pair find a lion skin and Shift convinces Puzzle to put it on and pretend to be Aslan. Puzzle initially refuses, but Shift keeps insisting that Puzzle just does not understand and stressing how much better things could be if he, Shift, could tell everyone what to do.

Up to now, the story is understandable. Shift wants power to satisfy his physical lusts (bananas). He starts with Puzzle, and then, upon finding of the lion skin, grabs the opportunity to extend his power. Puzzle is a simple soul too easily taken advantage of by the power-hungry Shift. While he understands the difference between right and wrong, he has internalized Shift’s messaging that he is ignorant and foolish. Hence he sacrifices his morality to Shift whom he believes understands morality better than himself. (As an aside we note that this is the same tactic that “Weston” attempted on the Lady of Perelandra.)

The story then changes focus to Tirian, the king of Narnia, who is at a hunting lodge not far from Lantern Waste. It has been more than a week since he has heard the first rumors that Aslan has, once again, come to Narnia. He and his friend Jewel the Unicorn are overcome with happiness at this momentous turn of events. However, the delightful dream is about to shatter, as Roonwit the Centaur warns that the rumors are false, and a dryad is killed (due to her tree being cut down) right before their eyes. 

Tirian and Jewel then set off to Lantern Waste. On the way horrible sights meet their eyes. A water rat is guiding a raft of newly felled trees to Calormen, Calormenes are cutting down the forest, and a Calormen is whipping a talking horse, treating it like a dumb horse. All claim that this is on the word of Aslan. Tirian and Jewel are overcome with anger and each kill a Calormen. They then make to escape, but have a change of heart. After all, everything was being done under the orders of Aslan. Furthermore, they did not warn the Calormenes of their impending attack and have thus violated their honor. They turn back and surrender to the Calormenes.

This section of the plot is extremely troubling. If Tirian has indeed known for more than seven days that Aslan has come to Narnia, why has he not presented himself before the King of Kings? Or at least send a trusted advisor? He has plenty of flying birds, centaurs, and stags who could have easily covered the distance. Furthermore, why are all of the animals listening to the false Aslan? Do they really believe that Aslan would give up on his people and order them to work for Calormen? Could they, and much more so Tirian and Jewel, really believe that Aslan would have commanded actions worthy of Tash? Finally, why did Tirian and Jewel give themselves up? They sacrifice much more than themselves as individuals, they risk all of Narnia!

Something must be missing in the story line. Some basic facts of background that would give reason to the actions of our characters. Perhaps a few lines that Lewis puts in as description and knowledge of who or what should be the true enemy of Narnia will be helpful. 

Narnian Enemies: Introduction to The Last Battle

The tyrannical monarchy of Carlomen is not, however, Narnia’s greatest existential threat. In fact, though Carlomen does eventually invade and conquer Narnia, this was only possible due to a societal/theological rebellion that had already weakened Narnia. This rebellion was headed by Shift, the antichrist, the “prophet” of the false Aslan. 

(It is worth pointing out that Shift is a monkey who pretends to be a man, just as the antichrist is a man pretending to the be the savior.)

The story of this rebellion is told in the first part of the Last Battle. I have to admit that the plot of the first part of The Last Battle has, for me, always been troubling. The actions of the creatures are most bewildering. The willingness of Tirian and Jewel to give themselves up for the sake of “honor” is, to me, infuriating. There is a need for clarification, and maybe a little background is missing as well. While I am not sure I can explain everything, or anything, I will share some of my thoughts.

In the next post we’ll review the story of The Last Battle highlighting certain aspects that require explanation. This will set the stage for identifying the true enemy facing Narnia in its final days. With this identification we can then go backwards in time and try to imagine what allowed this enemy to gain a foothold in Narnia.

Narnian Enemies: Calormen

The introduction of Calormenes into the Chronicles of Narnia is found in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. While on the Lone Islands Edmund, Lucy, Reepicheep and Eustace were captured and put on the slave market. After some adventure, King Caspian, supported by the Lord Bern, a former friend of Caspian’s father, mounts a rescue. The slave market is closed for good and the slaves are set free. At that point two Calormene merchants approach our heroes. Lewis describes the encounter as follows:

The Calormen have dark faces and long beards. They wear flowing robes and orange-coloured turbans, and they are a wise, wealthy, courteous, cruel and ancient people. They bowed most politely to Caspian and paid him long compliments, all about the fountains of prosperity irrigating the gardens of prudence and virtue - and things like that - but of course what they wanted was the money they had paid.

These sentences paint a picture of Calormen as somewhere out of the Arabian Nights. Calormenes wear the clothes of the Middle East (and also carry scimitars rather than straight swords). They are courteous and speak with great eloquence but are really seeking something base and mundane. The fact that the Calormen currency is the crescent, cements the connection between it and the Ottoman Empire.

Yet, Lewis builds into Calormen society certain ideas which are patently at odds with a model of an Islamic Empire. First, the religion of Calormen is certainly not Islam. The chief deity of the Calormenes (though not the only one) is Tash who has four arms and the head of a vulture. The Calormenes worship idols of Tash and are said to practice human sacrifice. Tash is also regarded as the ancestor of the line of the Tisrocs (the empires of Calormen). All of which is totally at odds with Islam, a monotheistic religion which rejects idols and images of God. Why? If Lewis was seeking an Islamic enemy to Narnia, make the country fully Muslim!

I humbly suggest that the Muslim-like characteristics of Narnia's enemy is effectively a red-herring. Lewis endows Calormenes with some physical and cultural features of Muslims from the Middle Ages simply to recreate a Crusader-type defense of the Holy Land atmosphere in the Chronicles. However, the true conflict between Narnia and Calormen is not religion.

The major difference between Narnian society and Calormen society is the relationship between the common-folk and the great Lords, be they human or spiritual. In Calormen the populous is worthless in the eyes of the great leaders. Laws in Calormen are created by and for the elite. No man is allowed to stand in the presence of the Tisroc (who must be blessed upon mention of his name), and the traffic regulations in the capital city of Tashbaan are described as, “There is only one traffic regulation, which is that everyone who is less important has to get out of the way for everyone who is more important; unless you want a cut from a whip or punch from the butt end of a spear.” In Narnia, and its ally Archenland, however, “The king's under the law, for it's the law makes him a king.”

The same is true with the relationship towards the Gods. Tash seeks to conquer. He demands human sacrifice, he stretches his arms to “snatch all Narnia.” Borrowing from the description of the devil in the Screwtape Letters, Tash seeks to “draw all other beings into himself.” Aslan, of course, is the very opposite. Tash seeks human sacrifice, Aslan sacrifices himself for a human (Edmund). Tash seeks to swallow up Narnia, Aslan sends the Calormene crown-prince home to Calormen to be transformed back into a man in the Temple of Tash. Upon seeing Tash, Rishda Tarkaan falls face down to the ground. Upon seeing Aslan, Lucy’s face lights up and she runs towards him with joy.

This is the actual battle between Carlomen and Narnia. What is the purpose of the masses? To be servants whose will and very being are consumed by the elite, or to be sons who can receive blessings from He who seeks to give?

Calormene Poetry: Questions

Those who ask questions that do not concern them are steering the ship of folly towards the rock of indigence.

In a number of previous posts we have attempted to show that while, superficially, the apophthegms and maxims of Calormene poetry seem reasonable, in fact they are always inaccurate, or incomplete is some way. Either they are brought up slightly out of context, emphasize a point too much or too little, or simply miss the mark in a sometimes subtle way. The above verse is very much in line with our previous studies.

No doubt everyone knows or remembers the child (or adult?) who has a million questions, none of which concern the subject at hand. Facing such a person we would all like to hammer home Arsheesh’s lesson to Shasta, keep your mind on your work and do not pester me or anyone else about things that are irrelevant! However, we soon learn that the reason Arsheesh is not interested in answering Shasta’s question of, “What is there beyond that hill?” is not necessarily because it is irrelevant, but because he does not know. This demonstrates that Arsheesh’s invocation of the poetic verse is inappropriate. How does Arsheesh know whether or not Shasta’s question is irrelevant? Perhaps there is something of importance beyond the hill. Perhaps there is another village there that would buy his fish for a higher price or an inlet from the sea from which it is easier to catch fish. Certainly, those would be facts that should concern both of them!

Arsheesh’s utilization of the poetic verse now takes on different light. Arsheesh uses the verse not only to force Shasta to keep him mind on his work, but also to stave off questions that might force Arsheesh himself to rethink his chosen path in life. Questions open vistas to new possibilities and create doubts concerning the current situation. Arsheesh “had a very practical mind,” one that was not interested in thinking in new ways.

While the Talmud does report certain questions that are not to be asked, the silencing of questions is an anathema to Judaism. Our Sages taught:

“One who is shy will not learn” (Ethics of Our Fathers 2:5)

With this statement, the Sages highlighted not only the acceptance of questions, but their primacy. Only one not afraid to ask, will be able to learn. A true religion, honest philosophy, or constructive government is not afraid of questions. Only one who has something to hide, or is ashamed, or simply does not know is unwilling to address the curiosity of a student.

The Torah itself places questions in the mouths of future generations as they ask their parents about their People’s history. The Passover meal, the seder, centers around these questions. The Talmud goes a step further and institutes various rituals at the Passover seder designed to specifically to engender even more questions. The goal of Judaism then is not to squash curiosity but to peak curiosity, not to silence questions but to encourage them.

Why are questions so important? Why not simply insist to our children this is how it is, and that is final!? One possible reason is practical. Barring questions is simply not a good way to keep adherents. While some people may be satisfied with accepting as gospel whatever they are told, others are not. The danger inherent in questioning religion and authority is outweighed by the risk of losing followers who cannot then give voice to their doubts and queries.

However, I believe the real importance of freedom to question is a positive one. The Talmud insists that just as no two people have the same physical appearance, so too no two people possess the same intellect. Each individual has their own view on a myriad of concepts and their own ideas about a variety of issues. This is true even, and perhaps especially true, when it comes to forming a relationship with God and shaping our lives around His word. Each person must form a unique relationship with God and design their life in fulfillment of His word. In fact, to truly comprehend the most we can about God, for the maximum number of different perspectives, we must perceive how each individual uniquely fulfills these tasks. Individuality, however, comes about only when questions are encouraged and original thought is valued. The silencing of questions represses individuality and leads to uniformity.

Shasta asks questions. His adopted father attempts to stifle these questions for he is uninterested in individuality but only that the necessary work be completed. Even when on the verge of selling Shasta he cares only that he is paid enough to hire another boy. The other boy will do his work and thus be just as good as the baby Arsheesh saved from death and raised to a young man. Despite his father, Shasta continues to ask questions. And these eventually bring him to know the true God.