Susan Pevensie
Template:Infobox Narnia character
Susan Pevensie (born 1928)is a major fictional character in C. S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia series. Susan is the elder sister and the second eldest Pevensie child. She appears in three of the seven books — as a child in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, and as an adult in The Horse and His Boy. She is mentioned in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Last Battle. During her reign at the Narnian capital of Cair Paravel, she is known as Queen Susan the Gentle.
In Disney's live-action films, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (2005) and Prince Caspian (2008), Susan is portrayed by actress Anna Popplewell. Actress Sophie Winkleman portrays an older Susan at the end of the first film.[1]
Biography
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Susan is given a bow and arrows by Father Christmas, together with a magical horn to blow in difficult times to bring aid. Susan shows her excellence at archery, but is advised to stay out of the battle. Together with her sister Lucy, she witnesses Aslan's death and resurrection on the Stone Table. After the battle, she is crowned as Queen of Narnia by Aslan, and shares the monarchy with her brothers Peter and Edmund and her sister Lucy. She later becomes known as Queen Susan the Gentle. The period of their reign is considered the Golden Age of Narnia.
Throughout the book, Susan is the voice of caution and common sense. Even at the end, after a number of years in Narnia, she counsels against pursuing the White Stag, fearing the upset to the established order she and her siblings all sense the pursuit might bring.
Prince Caspian
Susan's magical horn plays an important part in the adventures of Prince Caspian. The horn is an ancient relic given to the future King Caspian X by his tutor, the half-dwarf magician Doctor Cornelius. When the Prince's life is threatened by King Miraz the Usurper, Caspian blows the horn and the Pevensies are magically transferred to Narnia from a railway station in England. Using the bow and arrows she has retrieved from the ruin of Cair Paravel, Susan proves her legendary prowess at archery by defeating Trumpkin the dwarf in a friendly competition. She denounces Lucy's belief in Aslan's presence although she later admits to having known deep down that it was true. Aslan tells Susan that she has "listened to fears", but his breath soon restores her faith and she immerses herself in their adventures as deeply as in the first book. She later accompanies Lucy as Aslan revives the forest and river spirits of Narnia. By the conclusion of Prince Caspian, Aslan says that she and Peter will never enter Narnia again because they have grown too old.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Susan accompanies her parents on a trip to America, while Peter is being tutored by Professor Digory Kirke, and Edmund and Lucy have to stay with their relatives, the Scrubbs. Susan is considered "the pretty one of the family", which makes Lucy insecure. Lucy is strongly tempted to recite a spell which she finds in Coriakin's magic book, which will make her beautiful "beyond the lot of mortals", and she pictures a plain-looking Susan jealous of her beauty.
The Horse and His Boy
In The Horse and His Boy, set during the Pevensie siblings' rulership of Narnia, Susan plays a minor part. She is described as a gentle lady with black hair falling to her feet. Shasta finds her to be the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. As Queen Susan, she is asked to marry the Calormene Prince Rabadash. Her rejection of him and her subsequent escape from Calormen lead the Prince to seek the secret approval of his father, the Tisroc, for his plan to attack Archenland, as a means of capturing Susan, and in the hope of conquering Narnia at a later date.
The Last Battle
In The Last Battle, Susan is conspicuous by her absence. Peter says that she is "no longer a friend of Narnia", and (in Jill Pole's words) "she's interested in nothing now-a-days except nylons and lipstick and invitations". Similarly, Eustace Scrubb reports that she says, "What wonderful memories you have! Fancy you're still thinking about all those funny games we used to play when we were children." Thus, Susan does not enter the real Narnia at the end of the series. It is left ambiguous, however, whether or not Susan's absence is permanent, especially since Lewis stated that "The books don't tell us what happened to Susan. She is left alive in this world at the end, having by then turned into a rather silly, conceited young woman. But there's plenty of time for her to mend and perhaps she will get to Aslan's country in the end... in her own way." (From Lewis’ Letters to Children, 22 January 1957, to Martin).
Other Appearances
In fantasy author Neil Gaiman's 2004 short story "The Problem of Susan", the protagonist, Professor Hastings, is depicted dealing with the grief and trauma of her entire family's death in a train crash. The woman's first name is not revealed, but she mentions her brother "Ed", and it is implied that this is Susan Pevensie as an elderly woman. In this way, Gaiman presents, in fictional form, a critique of Lewis' treatment of Susan. Gaiman is a featured author in the collection Flights: Extreme Visions of Fantasy Volume II edited by Al Sarrantonio, and the story can also be found in the Gaiman anthology Fragile Things. "The Problem of Susan" is written for an adult audience and deals with sexuality and violence. (Gaiman 2004, pp. 151ff)
In the 2005–2006 comic book series The Oz/Wonderland Chronicles, Susan is portrayed as sharing an apartment with Alice from Alice In Wonderland, Dorothy Gale from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Wendy Darling from Peter Pan.
Susan and her siblings are spoofed in the 2007 film Epic Movie.
Portrayals
- In the 1979 Warner Bros. TV movie adaptation, she is voiced by Susan Sokol.
- In the 1988 BBC production, Susan is portrayed by Sophie Cook.
- In the 2005 Disney film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Susan is portrayed by British actress Anna Popplewell in child form and Sophie Winkleman as an adult.
- In the 2005 audio dramatization, Focus on the Family Radio Theatre cast David Suchet's daughter Katherine as the young Susan, while Sally Ann Burnett played her as an adult.
- In Epic Movie, Susan is played by Faune Chambers.
Notes
References
External links
- Chronicles of Narnia - Susan Pevensie. Analysis of the character Susan within the context of the series. Aimed for younger people.
- Christian response to criticisms of Lewis
