Hobbits, Wizards, and Wardrobes

There's something about those British writers. They know how to put together a good story. Granted, they have been writing in the English language for quite a long time, but even so, it's not a very big country, so how many master storytellers can it produce? I find it interesting, therefore, that there are three such well-known fantasy series that have come from Great Britain in the last 60 years--J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter, and C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia. At the beginning of this semester, I started reading the Harry Potter books because I wanted to read all of them before the last movie comes out this summer. They truly are very good books, and reading them got me thinking about how these three sets of books all have different strengths. Each writer puts their stories together in special ways, and I like all of them a great deal. So I thought I would take some time to comment briefly about what I like in each, just because I think it's interesting. No ethical challenge in today's post. Just some thoughts on how three very good writers do what they do so well.

First, The Lord of the Rings. A few things I want to mention. First off, out of the three series that I mentioned, I think this one has the highest writing style. I've heard before that Tolkien was a bit of a perfectionist, and that he finally submitted his books for publishing at the insistence of his friends that he finally put down his pen and let them be finished. And it shows in his writing. Tolkien was a master of words, and each sentence in these books is carefully crafted.

Second, I am impressed with the level of detail that Tolkien gave to the history behind his story. The tale of Frodo taking the ring to Mt. Doom is not an isolated story. Rather, Tolkien places it in an extensive context. He creates an entire history of Middle-Earth. At the end of The Return of the King, there are a number of appendices that provide chronologies, family trees, and details of elvish language. I haven't read much of this material, but it amazes me that Tolkien would have put the time and the thought into sorting out so many details.

Third, The Lord of the Rings is truly an epic story. It is played out on the big stage. Somehow, the stakes of the story just seem bigger than in many others stories. The outcome of the plot doesn't just affect a few select characters. Frodo's mission has ramifications for the entire world that Tolkien creates. In reading these books, the reader gains a wide perspective. Tolkien crafts a tale of gigantic proportions, while still giving adequate attention to the primary characters. Fourth and finally, I think that Gollum is one of the most intriguing characters in all of literature and is really a highlight of this story. Psychology classes could use him as a case study, and he's not even a real person.

Second, Harry Potter. Before reading the books, I was hesitant. I felt like I would be selling out to mass culture. But now, having read them, I can see why they are so popular. In fact, I would say that they are probably the most culturally influential books that have been written in my lifetime. This is because Rowling does a number of things especially well. First, while Tolkien does a great job of creating a history for his story, Rowling does a great job of creating the world of her story. She creates a unique culture and vocabulary, so that readers can hear about muggles, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, or the Daily Prophet and know exactly what is being spoken of. That's what fantasy fiction does--it creates a new world, and Rowling does that with incredible detail.

Second, the Harry Potter story, from beginning to end, is woven together exceptionally tightly. Events that happen in the first couple books have importance even at the end of the story. Rowling began writing with the end in mind, and each book contributes significantly to the climax of the epic. That's not an easy thing to do in seven books published over a period of ten years. Third, the characterization in the Harry Potter series is very well done. There are a lot of characters in the book, but the reader feels like he really knows each one. The reader is able to anticipate how a character will react to a situation, and each character is unique.

Finally, The Chronicles of Narnia. I think that the greatest feature of these books is that their meaning is the most apparent and the most significant. Not that The Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter don't communicate a message. All literature does. But, in my view at least, the message communicated by Lewis' books is the greatest. In reading of Aslan's interactions with the children who visit Narnia, as well as with Narnia's own inhabitants, one can see how Jesus himself loves the world. What's especially interesting is that Lewis communicates this through children's literature (an umbrella under which The Lord of the Rings and most of the Harry Potter books don't fit). Also, throughout The Chronicles of Narnia, Lewis has a way of including specific lines that I think are so powerful and that have implanted themselves in my mind. Here are some of my favorites:

Mr. Beaver speaking of Aslan: "Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you." (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe)

After Lucy asks how to get to Aslan's country from her own world: "'I shall be telling you all the time,' said Aslan. 'But I will not tell you how long or short the way will be; only that it lies across a river. But do not fear that, for I am the great Bridge Builder.'" (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)

After Jill asks if Aslan eats girls: "'I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,' said the Lion. It didn't say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it." (The Silver Chair)

"The term is over: the holidays have begun. The dream is ended: this is the morning." (The Last Battle)

So there's my thoughts. Nothing life-altering, but as someone who likes to write and is interested in how storytellers shape their stories, it's good for me to do some reflection on those who do it especially well. If you've read any of these books, leave a comment and share what you think.