terb’s world: my thoughts on NARNIA

In case you haven’t read The Silver Chair, then you haven’t met my favorite literary character of all time, PUDDLEGLUM THE MARSHWIGGLE, who lives in a wigwam by the River Shribble. Puddleglum had “a long thin face with rather sunken cheeks, a tightly shut mouth, a sharp nose and no beard” and when we first meet him, he was wearing “a high, pointed hat like a steeple, with an enormously wide flat brim.” His hair “hung over his large ears” and was “greeny-grey, and each lock was flat rather than round, so that they were like tiny reeds.” he had a body that “was not much bigger that a dwarf’s, he would be taller than most men when he stood up,” thanks to his “very long legs and arms.” Upon meeting him, the children noticed that “the fingers of his hands were webbed like a frog’s, and so were his bare feet which dangled in the muddy water.” He wore “earth coloured clothes” which hung loosely on his thin body. Puddleglum’s “expression was solemn, his complexion muddy, and you could see at once that he took a serious view of life.”

Puddleglum was a caricature of pessimism, and a model of gloomy fortitude (or “ghastly cheerfulness”). He is not dashing in any way, though he has his own charm. He was not a great warrior (“I am not clever with my sword”), yet he was able to finally break the spell of the Lady of the Green Kirtle. C S Lewis said that the character was modeled after his gardener, Fred Paxford (I’d have loved to meet him!).

Puddleglum had me at hello, with this classic line to greet Eustace Scrubbs and Jill Pole: “Good morning, guests. Though when I say good I don’t mean it won’t probably turn to rain or it might be snow, or fog, or thunder. You didn’t get any sleep, I dare say.” He followed this up with this introduction: “Puddleglum’s my name. But it doesn’t matter if you forget it. I can always tell you again.”

It’s hard to fully explain or describe the charm of Puddleglum if you haven’t read the book, but here are some of my favorite Puddleglum quotations, which will hopefully give you some idea of who he is and what he’s like.

PUDDLEGLUM to Scrubbs and Pole, when Eustace said he shouldn’t come if he thought the quest for Prince Rilian was such an impossible task anyway:

“Don’t you lose heart, Pole… I’m coming, sure and certain. I’m not going to lose an opportunity like this. It will do me good. They all say – I mean, the other wiggles all say – that I’m too flighty; don’t take life seriously enough. If they’ve said it once, they’ve said it a thousand times. ‘Puddleglum,’ they’ve said, ‘you’re altogether too full of bobance and bounce and high spirits. You’ve got to learn that life isn’t all fricassed frogs and eel pie.’ You want something to sober you down a bit. We’re only saying it for your own good, Puddleglum.”

If Puddleglum was more cheery compared to the other wiggles, I’d love to meet them all! Here’s PUDDLEGLUM to the enchanted Prince Rilian, when he told them mockingly that the third sign (the words “under me” written in stone on the ruined city) was actually part of an old saying that had nothing to do with their task:

“There are no accidents. Our guide is Aslan; and he was there when the giant king caused the letters to be cut, and he knew already all things that would come of them; including this.”

Talk about believing in the omnipotence of GOD. Here’s PUDDLEGLUM to Scrubbs and Pole, when they were trying to decide whether to let loose the maniacal Prince Rilian after uttering Aslan’s name, which was the last sign given to them by Aslan:

“That fellow will be the death of us once he’s up, I shouldn’t wonder. But that doesn’t let us off following the sign.”

That’s what I call OBEDIENCE. Here’s PUDDLEGLUM to the Lady of the Green Kirtle, who was trying to enchant them into forgetting their own world (Narnia and the earth) in favor of the witch’s dark, dreary Underworld:

“One word. All you’ve been saying is quite right, I shouldn’t wonder. I’m a chap who always liked to 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 that, 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. And that’s a funny thing, when you come to think of it. We’re just babies making up a game, if you’re right. But four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow. That’s why I’m going to stand by the play world. 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.”

Now that’s what I call FAITH. PUDDLEGLUM to Scrubbs, Pole and Rilian, when the Underworld started collapsing after the death of the Lady of the Green Kirtle:

“I’ll tell you what it is. That witch has laid a train of magic spells so that whenever she was killed, at that same moment her whole kingdom would fall to pieces. She’s the sort that wouldn’t so much mind dying herself if she knew that the chap who killed her was going to be burned, or buried, or drowned five minutes later.”

I know people like the witch in that sense! Finally, here’s PUDDLEGLUM to Scrubbs, Pole and Rilian, when they seemed to be trapped in the Underworld due to its collapse. Prince Rilian said, “Courage, friends. Whether we live or die Aslan will be our good Lord,” to which Puddleglum replied:

“That’s right, sir. And you must always remember there’s one good thing about being trapped down here: it’ll save funeral expenses.”

Talk about seeing the silver lining!