C.S. Lewis’s beloved Chronicles of Narnia series represents one of the most enduring works of children’s fantasy literature, still captivating readers more than seventy years after the publication of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. While the Christian allegory in Lewis’s work has been widely discussed and analyzed, equally fascinating is his rich integration of classical mythological elements, particularly those drawn from Norse and Greek traditions. This literary alchemy – combining Christian theology with ancient mythology – creates the unique tapestry that is Narnia.

Lewis’s Academic Foundation

As a medievalist and Renaissance scholar who taught at both Oxford and Cambridge, C.S. Lewis possessed profound knowledge of classical mythology. His academic background provided him with a deep reservoir of mythological motifs, characters, and narratives to draw upon. Unlike many fantasy authors who might utilize mythology for purely aesthetic purposes, Lewis’s understanding of these ancient stories allowed him to incorporate them on a structural level, creating resonances that enrich his Christian themes rather than contradict them.

Norse Mythology in Narnia

The influence of Norse mythology runs deep throughout the Chronicles of Narnia, appearing in its cosmology, characters, and even specific plot elements.

The End of All Things: Ragnarök and The Last Battle

Perhaps the most prominent Norse influence appears in The Last Battle, where Lewis draws clear parallels to Ragnarök, the Norse apocalypse. In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is preceded by the Fimbulwinter, a devastating winter lasting three years. This finds a parallel in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, where the White Witch has locked Narnia in a perpetual winter—”always winter but never Christmas.”

In The Last Battle itself, we see numerous echoes of Ragnarök:

• The end of the world is marked by moral decay and the breakdown of natural order
• A final battle determines the fate of the world
• The world is ultimately consumed and destroyed
• A new and better world emerges afterward

As research notes, “Norse tradition mythologises a ‘great winter’, known as the Fimbulwinter, said to precede Ragnarök.” Lewis adapts this concept for his Christian framework, presenting a similar apocalyptic vision but one that leads to Aslan’s country—his version of heaven.

Fenris Ulf and Norse Beasts

In the American edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lewis changed the name of the White Witch’s chief of police from “Maugrim” to “Fenris Ulf”—a direct reference to Fenrir, the monstrous wolf of Norse mythology destined to kill Odin during Ragnarök. This connection reinforces the apocalyptic themes that run throughout the series and establishes a link between the White Witch’s regime and the chaotic forces of Norse mythology.

The World Ash Tree (Yggdrasil) also makes an appearance in the American edition, where “the trunk of the World Ash Tree” replaces “the fire-stones of the Secret Hill” found in the British edition. In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is the cosmic tree that connects the nine worlds, much as Narnia connects to multiple worlds through various portals.

Giants and the Frozen North

The Nordic influence is also evident in Lewis’s depiction of the giants and the northern lands of Narnia. In The Silver Chair, Jill and Eustace must travel to the land of the giants, a journey reminiscent of Thor’s adventures in Jötunheim. The harsh, wintry landscapes of northern Narnia evoke the frigid realms of Norse cosmology, while the giants themselves—often depicted as dim-witted but physically powerful—parallel their Norse counterparts.

Greek Mythology in Narnia

While Norse elements lend an apocalyptic and wintry atmosphere to parts of the Chronicles, Greek mythological influences provide much of the series’ Mediterranean warmth and classical ambiance.

Bacchus and the Wild Magic of Narnia

One of the most explicit Greek influences appears in Prince Caspian, where the god Bacchus (the Roman name for Dionysus) and his mentor Silenus make direct appearances. Lewis portrays Bacchus as a force of wild, liberating energy who helps defeat the Telmarines:

“Aslan, accompanied by Lucy and Susan, summons the gods Bacchus and Silenus, and with their help brings the woods to life. The gods and awakened trees turn the tide of battle and send the Telmarines fleeing.”

This incorporation of Greco-Roman deities into a Christian framework is remarkably bold, yet Lewis manages it by positioning them as servants of Aslan rather than as competing divine figures. They represent aspects of the natural order that Aslan (the Christ figure) has created and rules over.

The Garden of the Hesperides

In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Lewis draws inspiration from the myth of the Garden of the Hesperides. As noted:

“Lewis had written as follows on the experience of reading really good poetry for the first time: ‘…It was more as if a cupboard which one had hitherto valued as a place for hanging coats proved one day, when you opened the door, to lead to the garden of the Hesperides…'”

While he used the wardrobe as the portal to Narnia in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lewis incorporates the actual Garden of the Hesperides imagery in The Magician’s Nephew, where Digory must retrieve an apple from a walled garden with golden gates. This parallels Hercules’ eleventh labor, where he had to retrieve golden apples from the Garden of the Hesperides.

The garden in The Magician’s Nephew combines Greek and Biblical imagery, showing how Lewis fused different mythological traditions. It evokes both the Garden of Eden and the Garden of the Hesperides, becoming a sacred space of temptation and divine purpose.

Centaurs, Fauns, and Talking Beasts

The Narnian landscape is populated with creatures drawn directly from Greek mythology: centaurs, fauns, dryads, naiads, and talking animals. Mr. Tumnus, the first Narnian character Lucy encounters, is a faun—a being from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the legs of a goat. Lewis himself noted that the entire series began with his mental image of a faun carrying packages in a snowy wood.

The centaurs in Narnia, like their Greek counterparts, are wise and noble creatures, often serving as prophets and healers. Glenstorm in Prince Caspian and Roonwit in The Last Battle exemplify this portrayal, serving as advisors and seers who read the stars to predict future events.

Transforming Mythology Through a Christian Lens

What makes Lewis’s approach unique is how he transforms these mythological elements to serve his Christian narrative. Rather than simply borrowing mythological creatures as window dressing, Lewis integrates them into his theological framework.

From Pagan Myth to Christian Truth

Lewis viewed mythology not as falsehood but as “good dreams” sent by God to prepare humanity for the “true myth” of Christianity. In his view, the pagan myths contained fragments of truth that reached their fulfillment in Christianity. This perspective appears most explicitly in his portrayal of Bacchus and the other classical deities as servants of Aslan rather than as competing gods.

This transformation is perhaps most evident in Aslan himself, who combines aspects of the Norse god Odin (who sacrifices himself by hanging on Yggdrasil) and various solar deities from Greek mythology, while ultimately representing Christ. When Aslan sacrifices himself on the Stone Table, we see echoes of both Christ’s crucifixion and Odin’s self-sacrifice, yet the narrative is distinctly Christian in its emphasis on redemption and resurrection.

The Deplorable Word and Norse Ragnarök

In The Magician’s Nephew, Lewis introduces the concept of the “Deplorable Word”—a spell that destroys all life except the speaker. This concept parallels the Norse idea of Ragnarök but transforms it into a cautionary tale about human hubris and technology. As research notes, many commentators saw this as a reference to nuclear weapons, though Lewis himself may have been thinking more of the mythical destruction of Atlantis.

By incorporating this apocalyptic element into Narnia’s prehistory rather than its conclusion, Lewis subverts the Norse cycle of destruction and rebirth, suggesting that Christ’s sacrifice (represented by Aslan’s creation of Narnia) offers an alternative to inevitable doom.

Lewis and Tolkien: Different Approaches to Mythology

Both C.S. Lewis and his close friend J.R.R. Tolkien drew heavily from Norse and Greek mythology in their fantasy worlds, but their approaches differed significantly.

Tolkien aimed to create a comprehensive mythological system for England, integrating various mythological traditions into a cohesive whole. His work maintains a consistent internal mythology with its own languages, histories, and cosmology. References to our world’s mythologies are subtle and thoroughly integrated.

Lewis, in contrast, was more eclectic and direct in his mythological borrowings. Narnia openly features figures like Bacchus alongside talking animals and Father Christmas, creating a more diverse mythological landscape. Where Tolkien sought to create a new mythology, Lewis sought to reinterpret existing mythology through a Christian lens.

This difference reflects their theological perspectives as well. Tolkien, a devout Catholic, preferred to keep his religious themes subtle and embedded in the structure of his world. Lewis, an Anglican convert and apologetic writer, more explicitly used his fantasy as a vehicle for Christian themes.

Despite these differences, both authors shared the belief that mythology contained profound truths and that fantasy could communicate these truths to modern readers. Research notes that “The creation of Narnia may also have been influenced by his close friend J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion, which also contains a creation scene driven by the effect of music.”

Character Studies: Mythology Transformed

Aslan: Solar Deity and Christ Figure

Aslan represents Lewis’s most sophisticated blending of mythological and Christian elements. As a lion, he evokes solar imagery common to both Greek and Egyptian mythology, where lions were associated with the sun. His name derives from the Turkish word for “lion,” connecting him to Eastern mythological traditions as well.

Yet Aslan is unmistakably a Christ figure. His sacrifice on the Stone Table parallels Christ’s crucifixion, while his resurrection through the “Deeper Magic from before the Dawn of Time” echoes Christian theology of atonement. By clothing Christ in the symbolic language of world mythology, Lewis suggests that Christ fulfills the “good dreams” found in all mythological traditions.

Jadis: Norse Frost Giants Meet Greek Hubris

The White Witch (Jadis) combines elements of the frost giants from Norse mythology with the hubris common to Greek tragic figures. Her endless winter recalls the Fimbulwinter of Norse apocalyptic tradition, while her claim to be “the Emperor’s hangman” echoes the role of fate and necessity in Greek mythology.

The research notes that “Several parallels are seen between the White Witch and the immortal white queen, Ayesha, of H. Rider Haggard’s She, a novel greatly admired by Lewis.” This literary influence combines with mythological elements to create a villain who represents both primordial chaos (Norse) and prideful overreaching (Greek).

Reepicheep: Heroic Mouse and Questing Knight

The valiant mouse Reepicheep embodies the Greek heroic ideal of aretē (excellence or virtue) combined with the Norse concept of seeking a glorious fate. His quest to reach “Aslan’s country” in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader parallels the hero’s journey common to both mythological traditions, yet it’s transformed into a spiritual pilgrimage.

Lewis describes Reepicheep as “specially” exemplifying the theme of “the spiritual life,” showing how he used mythological heroic tropes to explore Christian spiritual growth.

Conclusion: The Mythopoeic Achievement

C.S. Lewis’s integration of Norse and Greek mythology into his Christian framework represents a remarkable achievement in what Tolkien called “mythopoeia”—the creation of myth. Rather than simply borrowing mythological elements, Lewis transformed them, suggesting that these ancient stories contained fragments of truth that reached their fullest expression in Christianity.

The enduring appeal of Narnia lies partly in this mythological richness. Readers encounter familiar mythological motifs—the hero’s journey, the apocalyptic battle, the sacred garden—but see them transformed through Lewis’s Christian imagination. This transformation doesn’t diminish the power of the original myths but suggests they were always pointing toward deeper truths.

In creating Narnia, Lewis demonstrated how ancient mythology remains relevant to modern spiritual questions. By clothing theological concepts in mythological language, he made abstract ideas concrete and accessible, especially to young readers. The result is a fantasy world that feels both ancient and new, familiar and strange—a world where mythology serves not as an alternative to Christian belief but as a pathway toward it.

As Lewis himself wrote about mythology: “It is not, like truth, abstract; nor is it, like direct experience, bound to the particular.” In Narnia, Lewis created a world where mythological truth and Christian truth could meet, inviting readers to discover both.