Michael Hemmer: Anticlimax and the Overwhelming Power of God

 Throughout C.S. Lewis' works, there are a number of moments in which the story is building up to a great clash between the forces of good and evil. Yet when the conflict actually occurs, it is started and finished in only a few sentences. If you blinked you might miss it. I first noticed this in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, but it is equally present in That Hideous Strength, and other books. I will be looking at The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in this post. 

Throughout The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the Witch seems to be an almost indomitable foe. The book all leads up to the great battle in which she is defeated. Yet we hardly even catch a glimpse of the battle. Most of what we learn from the battle is explained to the reader through the reflection of characters after the battle is over and the tension is diffused. Rather than let the tension build up to a truly climactic moment in battle, we are given five sentences in which Aslan arrives and the battle is won. Five sentences! At first I was somewhat taken aback by the abrupt nature by which this great conflict is described, but upon further reflection, it makes a strange amount of sense. The character of Aslan shifts the focus of the conflict away from what one might typically expect of a story. In this example, the climax does not occur alongside a great battle, but in the sacrifice and subsequent return of Aslan. Aslan alone is sufficient to overcome the opposition. His power is pervasive and cannot be resisted. None can stand against him. 

For Lewis, I think that writing a God like figure naturally demanded this overwhelming power. It might have made the battle more interesting, but it would have lessened the attributes of Aslan if he had participated in a drawn out conflict. Aslan's presence is all that is needed for victory. The abbreviated nature of the final conflict testifies to that truth.