My Favorite Character from Narnia

I was raised on the Chronicles of Narnia, both from having the books read aloud to me by my father and from watching the old BBC mini-series based on them, but until I was an adult I only actually knew three of the books: The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It wasn't until I was in my 20s, and devouring every C.S. Lewis book I could get my hands on, that I finally read the rest of the series. And if you had asked me as a child who my favorite character was, I probably would have said Reepicheep, the most heroic mouse literature has ever known, or perhaps Mr. Tumnus the Faun or Mr. and Mrs. Beaver. Even if I had known the whole series and every character during my childhood, my answer to that question would probably still have been very different than it is now. But as a grown adult, who's own temperament tends towards the melancholic, there is only one true love for me in Narnia: Puddleglum the Marsh Wiggle. 

Puddleglum is one of the main characters in The Silver Chair, along with the human children Eustace Scrubb and Jill Pole (I'll admit a special love for Eustace, as well). Eustace and Jill are tasked by Aslan to seek and rescue Prince Rillian, who has been missing for ten years, and Puddleglum is chosen to be their guide as they travel to the wastelands of the north. Puddleglum is a Marsh Wiggle, depressive creatures who live isolated even from each other and who take a pessimistic view on just about everything. Think Eeyore from Winnie-the-Pooh.

Puddleglum is the ultimate melancholic, always predicting the worst for every situation, and yet that does not cause him to be bitter or angry. In fact, he is never discouraged by even the harshest circumstances they encounter on their quest; having already assumed the worst, he is more than prepared to deal with any reality.

So, why is Puddleglum my favorite? Because he is steadfast and loyal, reminding the children of the task Aslan set them and of the promises they made to fulfill it. He is also patient and understanding, never finding fault in the weaknesses of others or offense in their own criticisms of him. And because when things are at their darkest (literally and metaphorically), when all seems to be lost, he proves to be the only one who doesn't actually lose hope. 

In the climax of the story, when Puddleglum, the children, and Prince Rillian are trapped in a land deep under the earth, and an evil sorceress is working her magic to convince them that all their memories of the sun and sky and Narnia itself were just a dream, Puddleglum is the only one who is able to rally his faith in reality. First, knowing that it will cause him great pain, with his bare foot he stamps out the sorceress' magical fire, which had been muddling their senses and thoughts. And then he gives perhaps my favorite speech of the entire series:

I'm a chap who always liked to the know the worst and then put the best face I can on it. So I won't deny any of what you said. But there's one thing more to be said, even so. Suppose we have only dreamed, or made up, all those things-- trees and grass and sun and moon and stars and Aslan himself. Suppose we have. Then all I can say is, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones. Suppose this black pit of a kingdom of yours is the only world. Well, it strikes me as a pretty poor one... I'm on Aslan's side even if there isn't any Aslan to lead it. I'm going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn't any Narnia.

As a Christian, I think it is perfectly natural to occasionally have doubts as to whether we aren't just making it all up. Our creed is a pretty fantastical one. The whole point of faith is that in this life we can't ever really know that what we believe is true, but we still carry on as if it were. I don't follow Christianity because it's easy (it's not) or because it will bring me great power or wealth (it won't) or even because it always makes sense (sometimes it doesn't); instead, I follow it because I believe it's true and because even it isn't I believe it's a worthwhile way to live my life. If the atheists are right, if there is no God and this world is all there is and then everything is over, well, that's a pretty poor reality, in my opinion. Even if it's all made up, I still prefer the Christian view of reality. I'm on Christ's side, even if there is no Christ.

C.S. Lewis was not subtle in his Christian messaging in the Narnia books, but that doesn't invalidate the message. Many of the characters and themes in these books are easily recognizable as drawn from real life, despite being cast in such an imaginative light.

Perhaps I love Puddleglum so much because I am a bit of a melancholic Marsh Wiggle myself, and Puddleglum is the heroic Marsh Wiggle I aspire to be.