Literature: the Chronicles of Narnia and Fantasy
Fantasy literature is fantasy in written form. Historically speaking, literature has composed the majority of fantasy works. Since the 1960s a segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of movies, television programs, novels, video games, music and other media. Fantasy Language is a constructed language designed for aesthetic pleasure. Fantasy language has an irregular grammar, much like natural languages. Many are designed within the context of fictional worlds.
Others represent fictional minority languages in a world not patently different from the real world, or have no particular fictional background attached. There are several schools of Fantasy language construction. The most prominent is the naturalist school, which seeks to imitate the complexity and historicity of natural languages and has artistic language. Many do not use this language, but follow a more abstract style. The poem and story that I chose was an African Poem by Walter Dean Myers and the story the Chronicles of Narnia. While choosing the two of these I thought they were very interesting, and I wanted to share.
The poem is called Jeannie Had a Giggle which recites the words : Jeannie had a giggle just beneath her toes She gave a little wiggle and up her leg it rose. She tried to grab the giggle as it shimmied past her knees But it slid right past her fingers with a “‘scuse me if you please” It slipped around her middle, it made her jump and shout Jeannie wanted that giggle in, that giggle wanted out! Jeannie closed her mouth, but then she heard a funny sound As out that silly giggle flew and jumped down to the ground. Jeannie caught it with her foot just beneath her toes She gave a little wiggle and up her leg it rose.
I chose this poem because I believe this poem is a form of dance. Where as in the African culture they interpret a lot of movement through dance. African dance teaches values and social patterns to help people work, mature, or praise people in their community. I feel that this poem showed how Jenny was full of Joy from head to toe. This poem expresses that values of the African religion of how they use dance to interpret praise within themselves. The fantasy story that I chose was The Chronicles of Narnia. I chose this story because it is filled with fantasy and full of imagination.
According to (Matt Brennan http://cslewis. drzeus. net ) The Narnia Chronicles are surely the most popular works of writer C. S. Lewis. And although they are recognized as children’s fantasy novels, they are also popular with students and adults, including many Christian theologians. In the Narnia Chronicles, Lewis identifies the Biblical character of Jesus Christ as the character of Aslan the lion. He retells certain events in the life of Jesus to children. This way it is easier for a children to understand; most importantly, however, children can both relate to and enjoy the fantasy of Narnia.
I feel that this story is a great story that uses animals to grasp the attention of the children. Narnia is a land of talking animals, and as children usually find the concept of animals and magical creatures more interesting than that of a historical reality of long ago. This story also has a religious aspect behind its creation. It speaks from the book of Genisis. Narnia proves to be the perfect vehicle for a captivating work of children’s literature. Through using animals to create the story gains interest Animals in this story are especially apparent with the use of Aslan the lion as a God figure: “The Lion opened his mouth… e was breathing out a long, warm breath; it seemed to sway all the beasts as the wind sways a line of trees. ” (Lewis, 1988, p. 108). This image of life-giving breath directly correlates to a passage in Genesis: “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. ” (Gen 2:7). I believe that the two compare based on religious beliefs. I have viewed the Chronicles of Narnia and this story seems to have a strong affect on many viewers and I believe it is due to the fantasy of the story but the reality of the biblical times.
Aswell as the poem. Its grasp the attention of children because of the laughter but it expresses movements of the traditional praise of how the African culture expresses themselves. The Chronicles of Narnia has been criticized in the past for gender stereotyping. I think that this may have caused a lot of problems with some readers because of how the story was written about Sarah. In my poem I didn’t feel as if it had any stereotyping. The way I see it is that It just basically described a fun-loving little girl who enjoys life from head to toe.
These two types of literature were very different, but I believe that they will both gain the interest of young children. I believe the message that the poem sends to children is that the world is the limits. Go after your dream and most importantly be Happy! The Chronicles of Narnia sends a message that the world of fantasy is real. It gives children the idea to dream and hope. I gives children the belief of following their dreams and believing in yourself. Fantasy is a world of make believe that many children thrive to have. We all have had the urge to follow our dreams.
As a child many children have the dream of being a princess and in the story the little girl became a princess and that is a little girls fairy tale just like a little boys to become a warrior. In conclusion children’s fantasy plays a big part in literature. It’s easy for children to understand what they are reading or being read to. Fantasy to a child is a big part of their lives. They believe in what they read and watch and its up to adults to help them understand better how to use their imagination.
References
- Myers, W. D. (n. d. ). Jenny Had A Giggle. Retrieved from http://cslewis. drzeus. net Retrieved from http://www. wikipedia. com
