Mr. Tumnus

Last updated

Tumnus
Narnia character
180px-Mr Tumnus-1-.jpg
In-universe information
Race Faun
Nationality Narnian
Mr Tumnus (by Maurice Harron (2016), C. S. Lewis Square, Belfast). Belfast - CS Lewis Square - Mr Tumnus 20230227.jpg
Mr Tumnus (by Maurice Harron (2016), C. S. Lewis Square, Belfast).

Mr.Tumnus is a faun in the The Chronicles of Narnia books written by C. S. Lewis, primarily in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe but also briefly in The Horse and His Boy and in The Last Battle . He is the first creature Lucy Pevensie meets in Narnia and becomes her first friend in the kingdom. Lewis wrote that the first Narnia story, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, all came to him from a single picture he had in his head of a faun carrying an umbrella and parcels through a snowy wood. Tumnus thus became the initial inspiration for the entire Narnia series. [1]

Contents

Description

Lewis describes Tumnus as having reddish skin, curly hair, brown eyes, a short pointed beard, horns on his forehead, cloven hooves, goat legs with glossy black hair, a "strange but pleasant little face," a long tail, and being "only a little taller than Lucy herself."

Tumnus first appears when Lucy arrives in Narnia at the lamp post. He invites her back to his cave for tea, during which, they talk about Narnia, including its glorious past which gave way to endless winter. Tumnus plays an evocative tune on his flute, but when Lucy says that she has to go, he bursts into tears. He confesses that he is in the pay of the White Witch (Jadis), who rules Narnia and has made it always winter but never Christmas. She had ordered him and the other Narnians to hand over any Sons of Adam or Daughters of Eve - humans - should they ever encounter any in Narnia. Tumnus, despite fearing that the Witch will find out and is likely to punish him severely if he disobeys her orders, quickly realises that he cannot bring himself to give up Lucy to the Witch, so he guides her back to the lamp-post to see that she returns safely to her own world.

When Lucy returns to Narnia a few days later, Tumnus is still safe: evidently the White Witch has not discovered his disobedience. However, Lucy's brother Edmund has also entered Narnia and mentions to the White Witch that his sister had visited Narnia before and met a faun - even though he does not name the faun as Tumnus.

When Lucy and her siblings subsequently come to Narnia some time afterwards, they find that Tumnus has been arrested by Maugrim, Chief of the White Witch's secret police, and is awaiting trial on a charge of high treason which involves harbouring spies and fraternizing with humans. Tumnus had spoken to Mr Beaver of his fears not long before his arrest and asked him to guide the four children if he found them in Narnia. The children meet Mr Beaver just after leaving Tumnus's ransacked cave.

Later in the story, when the winter has come to an end and Aslan is preparing an army to take on the White Witch, Lucy and Susan find Tumnus petrified as a statue in the Witch's castle, and he is restored by Aslan. He follows the other Narnians to the battle as the Witch is defeated and killed.

Years later, he is the one who tells the Kings and Queens that the White Stag has been spotted near his home. Their hunt for it leads to their disappearance from Narnia and the end of the Golden Age.

In The Horse and His Boy , Tumnus appears as a royal adviser to the four Pevensie monarchs (fourteen years later, according to Lewis's Narnian Timeline). He devises a plan for escaping from Calormen, thereby saving Queen Susan from being forcibly married to Prince Rabadash, and the other Narnians, including her brother Edmund, from certain death trying to defend her.

He and Lucy eventually meet again in Aslan's Country in The Last Battle .

Portrayals

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Chronicles of Narnia</i> Series of childrens fantasy novels by C. S. Lewis

The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven portal fantasy novels by British author C. S. Lewis. Illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published between 1950 and 1956, The Chronicles of Narnia has been adapted for radio, television, the stage, film, and video games. The series is set in the fictional realm of Narnia, a fantasy world of magic, mythical beasts and talking animals. It narrates the adventures of various children who play central roles in the unfolding history of the Narnian world. Except in The Horse and His Boy, the protagonists are all children from the real world who are magically transported to Narnia, where they are sometimes called upon by the lion Aslan to protect Narnia from evil. The books span the entire history of Narnia, from its creation in The Magician's Nephew to its eventual destruction in The Last Battle.

<i>Prince Caspian</i> Childrens fantasy novel by C. S. Lewis, 1951

Prince Caspian is a high fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1951. It was the second published of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia (1950–1956), and Lewis had finished writing it in 1949, before the first book was out. It is volume four in recent editions of the series, sequenced according to the internal chronology of the books. Like the others, it was illustrated by Pauline Baynes and her work has been retained in many later editions.

<i>The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</i> 1950 childrens fantasy novel by C.S. Lewis

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a portal fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia (1950–1956). Among all the author's books, it is also the most widely held in libraries. It was the first of The Chronicles of Narnia to be written and published, but is marked as volume two in recent editions that are sequenced according the stories' internal chronology. Like the other Chronicles, it was illustrated by Pauline Baynes, and her work has been retained in many later editions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Narnia (world)</span> Fantasy world created by C.S. Lewis, setting of The Chronicles of Narnia

Narnia is a fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as the primary location for his series of seven fantasy novels for children, The Chronicles of Narnia. The world is named after the country of Narnia, where much of the Chronicles takes place.

<i>The Horse and His Boy</i> Childrens fantasy novel by C.S. Lewis, 1954

The Horse and His Boy is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1954. Of the seven novels that comprise The Chronicles of Narnia (1950–1956), The Horse and His Boy was the fifth to be published. The novel is set in the period covered by the last chapter of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe during the reign of the four Pevensie children as Kings and Queens of Narnia. Though three of the Pevensies appear as minor characters in The Horse and His Boy, the main characters are two children and two talking horses who escape from Calormen and travel north into Narnia. On their journey, they learn of the Prince of Calormen's plan to attack Archenland, and warn the King of Archenland of the impending strike.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Witch</span> Fictional sorceress

Jadis is a fictional character and the main antagonist of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950) and The Magician's Nephew (1955) in C. S. Lewis's series, The Chronicles of Narnia. She is commonly referred to as the White Witch in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, as she is the Witch who froze Narnia in the Hundred Years Winter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucy Pevensie</span> Fictional character in The Chronicles of Narnia

Lucy Pevensie is a fictional character in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia series. She is the youngest of the four Pevensie children, and the first to find the Wardrobe entrance to Narnia in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Of all the Pevensie children, Lucy is the closest to Aslan. Also, of all the humans who have visited Narnia, Lucy is perhaps the one that believes in Narnia the most. She is ultimately crowned Queen Lucy the Valiant, co-ruler of Narnia along with her two brothers and her sister. Lucy is the central character of the four siblings in the novels. Lucy is a principal character in three of the seven books, and a minor character in two others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Pevensie</span> Fictional character in the Narnia universe

Peter Pevensie is a fictional character in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia book series. Peter appears in three of the seven books; as a child and a principal character in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, and as an adult in The Last Battle. He is mentioned in The Horse and His Boy, in which he is away on the northern frontier fighting giants, and in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in which he is studying under the tutelage of Professor Kirke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Pevensie</span> Fictional character in The Chronicles of Narnia

Susan Pevensie is a fictional character in C. S. Lewis's The 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 also 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 or Queen Susan of the Horn. She was the only Pevensie that survived the train crash on Earth which sent the others to Narnia after The Last Battle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Pevensie</span> Fictional character in the Narnia universe.

Edmund Pevensie is a fictional character in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia series. He is a principal character in three of the seven books, and a lesser character in two others.

<i>The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</i> 2005 film by Andrew Adamson

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a 2005 high fantasy film directed by Andrew Adamson, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ann Peacock and the writing team of Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based on the 1950 novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published and second chronological novel in the children's book series The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. The film is the first installment in The Chronicles of Narnia film series. It was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media, and distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stone Table</span> Fictional location in The Chronicles of Narnia

In C. S. Lewis's fantasy novel series the Chronicles of Narnia, the hill of the Stone Table, or Aslan's How, is a high mound or cairn, located south of the Great River in Narnia next to the Great Woods. The How was built over the hill of the Stone Table. The word how derives from the Old Norse haugr, meaning hill or mound. In parts of England, it is a synonym for barrow.

The Chronicles of Narnia is a fantasy film series and media franchise based on The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of novels by C. S. Lewis. The series revolves around the adventures of children in the world of Narnia, guided by Aslan, a wise and powerful lion that can speak and is the true king of Narnia. The children heavily featured in the films are the Pevensie siblings, and a prominent antagonist is the White Witch. The franchise also includes short films, digital series, and video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aslan</span> Fictional lion, a deity in The Chronicles of Narnia

Aslan is a major character in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia series. Unlike any other character in the Narnian series, Aslan appears in all seven chronicles. Aslan is depicted as a talking lion and is described as the King of Beasts, the son of the Emperor-Over-the-Sea, and the King above all High Kings in Narnia.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a British children's television drama first broadcast by the BBC in 1988. It was the first series of The Chronicles of Narnia that ran from 1988 to 1990.

<i>The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</i> (1979 film) 1979 animated TV film

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is an animated television program that was broadcast in two parts on CBS on April 1 and 2, 1979, based on the 1950 novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maugrim</span> Fictional character, head wolf in the service of the White Witch (Narnia, book 1)

Maugrim is a fictional character in the 1950 novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. A Narnian wolf, he is the Captain of the White Witch's Secret Police. In early American editions of the book, Lewis changed the name to Fenris Ulf, but when HarperCollins took over the books they took out Lewis' revisions, and the name Maugrim has been used in all editions since 1994.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Narnia:

Magical creatures are an important aspect of the fictional world of Narnia contained within The Chronicles of Narnia book series and connected media originally created by C. S. Lewis. Throughout the seven books of the series, the protagonists encounter a variety of these creatures as they travel throughout Narnia and the surrounding lands and seas, including Archenland, Calormen, and the Great Eastern Ocean.

References

  1. Lewis, C. S. (1982). On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature. p. 53. ISBN   0-15-668788-7.