On The Death Theme Of C.S.Lewis's The Chronicles Of Narnia

Clive Staples Lewis,one of the distinguished literary giants in the 20 th century,wrote The Chronicles of Narnia,the plots of which are interlinked with each other,the language full of wit and humor and the theme rich and diverse.It has been very popular since its publication.Death is one of the important themes in the Chronicles,concerning dozens of characters,which include such important main characters as Aslan,Peter,Edmund and Lucy.Nevertheless,scholars mostly analyze the text from the theory of archetypes,Christian thoughts and characters,but pay little attention to the theme of death.The thesis intends to analyze multiple connotations of death,explore functions of death,and delve into attitudes towards death,expressing the view of life and death that Lewis wanted to convey and revealing the importance of the theme in western literary works.Except for introduction and conclusion,the thesis is divided into three chapters.Chapter One analyzes the connotations of death.The three most important aspects of life are reflected through the plots about the discussion of death and events relating to it,which are manifested as life,freedom and faith.Specifically,love for life,value of freedom and the importance of faith.Chapter Two elaborates three functions of death,respectively acting as a form of punishment,a means of sacrifice,and an end of a secular life.In the novel,physical or spiritual death becomes a way for characters when they commit something wrong,sacrifice for others,or bid farewell to a secular life.Chapter Three explores attitudes towards death,respectively fearing death as a devil,accepting death as a natural process,and confronting death with reason and confidence.Through different attitudes towards death,personalities of different characters can be shown and the views of life and death can be conveyed to readers.Through the analysis above,it is concluded that the theme of death contained in the Chronicles is not always good for nothing,and many valuable things are revealed through death.Without death,it would be difficult for men to appreciate the value of life,freedom,and faith.