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Summary
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Silver Chair, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Deception and Illusion
Freedom and Imprisonment
Temptation
Courage
Summary
Analysis
On an unimpressive autumn day, Jill Pole stands behind her school gymnasium and cries. Jill attends an English school called the Experiment House, which allows students to do as they please. Unfortunately, what many of the students like to do is bully, and Jill is crying because some of the other students were bullying her. As Jill cries, a boy in her class named Eustace Scrubb walks around the back of the gym and accidentally bumps into her. At first, Jill is annoyed and tells Scrubb to watch where he is going. When Scrubb sees Jill is upset, he apologizes and tries to comfort her.
C. S. Lewis—the author of the Narnia series—famously advocated for a return to more traditional modes of education that fostered Christian ethics. He believed schools like the Experiment House resulted in undisciplined and immoral students. Lewis uses the Experiment House and its moral failures as a point of contrast for his magical realm of Narnia, which is a place where children learn moral lessons that align with Lewis’s Christian beliefs
Themes
Jill tells Scrubb that something about him has changed recently because he has become much more friendly. Scrubb confirms Jill’s sentiment. He feels he has changed because of some strange experiences he has had. At first, Scrubb does not go into specifics because he does not know if Jill will believe him. However, after assuring Jill he is telling the truth, Scrubb says he is a changed person because he traveled to a magical realm with his cousins during the holidays. While in the magical world, Scrubb claims to have encountered many different types of magical creatures, including someone named Aslan.
The events that Scrubb alludes to in this section are detailed in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the third Narnia book in publishing order. Indeed, there are several important characters from that novel, as well as other Narnia novels that appear in The Silver Chair. Notably, Scrubb became a better person after his visit to Narnia, which demonstrates the value of the moral education one can receive in Narnia.
Themes
Jill asks Scrubb whether it is possible for her to enter this magical realm. Scrubb says that it might be. Last time he was there, Aslan told his cousins that they were not allowed to return because they had already entered the realm three times. However, Scrubb has only been there once, and Aslan did not say anything to him, so he assumes he can go back.
Scrubb’s cousins are the Pevensie children, who appear in the majority of the Narnia novels. Additionally, the number three—the number of times someone can go to Narnia—is a number of great significance in the Christian tradition; a number that represents divine harmony completeness.
Themes
In order to get to Narnia, Scrubb leads Jill through a ritual that involves lifting their arms out in front of them and repeating Aslan’s name. However, before they can get anywhere, Jill hears one of her bullies coming in their direction. Jill and Scrubb scramble up a hill and open a door that they think leads to the outskirts of the school. However, when they step through the door, they find themselves staring out at a land they do not recognize full of sunshine and blue skies. Jill is equal parts excited and terrified. She is happy to be away from her bullies and in a beautiful land, but she does not know where she is. When she looks over at Scrubb, she notices that he looks frightened as well.
The sunny, bright skies of this new world exist in sharp contrast to the dull autumn day that opens the novel. This shift in natural imagery signifies that there is something alive and vibrant about this new land that did not exist in Jill and Scrubb’s world. However, although the setting is beautiful, it is also terrifying. In every Narnia novel, the protagonists enter Narnia through an unassuming doorway. Still, the look on Scrubb’s face suggests that he does not know where they ended up, meaning they may not be in Narnia.
Themes
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Scrubb shuts the door behind them so no one else can come through, and together Jill and Scrubb set out to explore this new world. At first, all they can see are large trees all around them. They are in a forest that is vast but feels empty. Suddenly, Scrubb yanks Jill backwards because he notices they are close to a cliff. Annoyed with Scrubb for trying to protect her, Jill stands on the precipice of the cliff to prove her bravery.
Here, Jill walks a fine line between two the novel’s primary thematic concerns: temptation and bravery. Because she feels Scrubb is being over-protective, she tempts fate by walking near the edge of the cliff. Her behavior requires courage, but it is also shortsighted and childish because she does not think about how she is putting herself in danger.
Themes
However, when Jill turns around and looks over the edge of the cliff, she begins to panic. The cliff is much larger than she could have imagined—its heights far greater than anything found on Earth. As she peers over the edge, she sees things that look like sheep, which she quickly realizes are clouds. Far, far below the cliff, Jill can see that something else exists, though it is too far away for her to be able to tell if it is land or water.
Here, Jill realizes her mistake as she is treated to a sublime view that she struggles to comprehend. Although she seems to have found herself in a majestic new land, it is as terrifying as it is beautiful. Unfortunately, as far as Jill can tell, it does not map on to Scrubb’s previous description of Narnia.
Themes
Looking over the cliff makes Jill dizzy, and she starts to fall. Scrubb attempts to grab her and help her back to safety, but Jill struggles and ends up knocking Scrubb off the cliff. Jill manages to keep her balance but watches in terror as Scrubb falls down toward the clouds. As Scrubb falls, a lion shows up next to Jill on the precipice and blows strong gusts of air in Scrubb’s direction. The air moves Scrubb in the opposite direction from where Jill is standing. Eventually, Scrubb moves so far away that he is nothing but a tiny speck on the horizon.
Scrubb pays the consequences for Jill’s behavior and would have died if not for the lion and his magical breath. Scrubb shows great courage in attempting to save Jill, a trait he gained from his previous trip to Narnia. However, Jill now finds herself in a precarious position; she is on her own in a land she does not recognize, standing next to a lion. Although Scrubb previously told Jill about Aslan, she does not know if this is the same lion.
Themes
