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| Edition: | HarperCollins (Paperback) |
| Author: | C. S. Lewis |
| Published: | May 2005 |
| Pages: | 320 |
| ISBN 10: | 0060764945 |
| New: | $0.01 (27) |
| Used: | $0.01 (82) |
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Eustace Clarence Scrubb is an unpleasant and arrogant child. His parents, Harold and Alberta, advocates of the ‘free-thinking philosophy’ of the 1940’s, are equally self-centered and self-righteous. Intelligent, precocious, and seemingly well educated in a variety of subjects, Eustace attends a ‘Progressive School’ that employs many of the most faddish of psychological theories. Eustace, like his parents, is an uptight prig—cruel, patronizing, and narrow minded without realizing it.
Edmund and Lucy Pevensie are Eustace’s cousins and have come to spend the summer with Eustace and his parents. Edmund and Lucy have also twice visited the magical land of Narnia and had very grand and very true adventures there. Uncomfortable and unhappy in the Scrubb’s household, they often find solace by reminiscing about their time in Narnia. Eustace, being sly and meddlesome, eventually overhears their conversations and begins to constantly tease them about their ridiculous fantasies.
One afternoon, Lucy and Edmund are taking refuge from Eustace in Lucy’s room Lucy comments that the painting of a ship hanging on her wall seems to be the only beautiful object in the Scrubb household and further remarks about how Narnian the ship seems to be. Eustace, who had been listening at the door, saunters into the room, and again begins berating Lucy and Edmund’s childish beliefs. Edmund and Lucy attempt to ignore Eustace and begin describing the picture—how the waves seem to truly be peaking and the boat truly seems to be rolling on the sea. Suddenly, the children find themselves embraced by an ocean breeze, salty and fresh, and are inexplicably drawn towards, and eventually into and through the picture. They find themselves immersed in a rolling ocean with the vessel portrayed in the painting floating nearby. Ropes are cast down from the vessel and with the help of a crewmember, Edmund, Lucy, and a thoroughly disgusted Eustace are brought aboard.
Once on deck, the Pevensies’ are surprised to see none other than King Caspian, whom they had helped restore to the throne of Narnia during their last adventure in Narnia, and engage in happy hugs of reunion. Eustace, not yet realizing that he is in another world altogether, demands to see the Port Authority. He is further horrified when he is approached by Reepicheep, a rapier bearing talking mouse of Narnia.
After providing dry clothes and wine and surrendering his cabin to Lucy, Caspian introduces the children to Lord Drinian, Captain of The Dawn Treader. Over a meal, Caspian relates what has happened since the Pevensies’ last visit. Although only one year has passed in England, it has been three years in Narnia. Caspian explains that he has left Narnia in the competent hands of the dwarf, Trumpkin, and embarked on a quest to find the seven lost Lords, friends of his father who fled Narnia when Miraz usurped the throne. The ship and crew had just passed the Seven Isles and was heading to the Lone Isles, a protectorate of Narnia. Beyond the Lone Isles, the sea is unknown, but valiant Reepicheep fervently desires to continue to sail to the end of the sea where he believes he will find Aslan’s Land.
Eustace begins to suffer from seasickness and he and Lucy go down to the cabin he is to share with Edmund and Caspian. Believing it might be useful, Caspian had brought Lucy’s healing cordial on the voyage. Eustace immediately begins to feel better after taking a drop of it, but continues to make demands and complain.
The following day, Eustace, thinking to have some malicious fun, takes Reepicheep by the tail and begins to swing him in circles. Reepicheep, disconcerted but thinking clearly, draws his rapier and thrusts it into Eustace’s hand. When Eustace drops him, Reepicheep proceeds to chase Eustace across the deck, demanding vengeance for the offense to his honor. Shocked, Eustace realizes that everyone is taking Reepicheep’s call for a duel seriously—offering their weapons as well as advice. He gives a sulky apology to Reepicheep and emitting waves of self-pity, departs to his bunk.
The following morning, the Dawn Treader arrives at Felimath, the first of the Lone Islands. Small and mostly uninhabited, it is covered with a luxurious turf that Lucy longs to walk on. Caspian, appreciating her desire, arranges to have the ship land, allow him and the children to disembark, and subsequently meet them on the other side of the island. Reepicheep joins the group and they set off.
Shortly into their walk, the group encounters several men under a tree. Caspian quickly advises that they keep their identities secret until he could ascertain the situation. The men genially offer the travelers a drink and Caspian takes the opportunity to ask them about the Islands. As he speaks to their leader, several of the gang attack and bind them. The leader informs them that they will be taken to Narrowhaven and sold as slaves. Thoroughly amazed by Reepicheep’s ability to speak, the leader is convinced that he will receive a princely sum for the mouse.
Caspian, Reepicheep, and the children are taken to a cove where the boat of the slaver, Pug, sits at anchor. There they encounter a handsome man who fixates on Caspian, purchases him, and leads him away. Edmund, Eustace, Lucy, and Reepicheep are put in the hold of the boat for the journey to Narrowhaven.
Caspian is desperately afraid for his friends but is reassured when the man explains that, although he abhors slavery, he felt compelled to purchase him as he reminded him of his old friend, Caspian, King of Narnia. The man is Lord Bern, one of the seven lost Lords. Caspian immediately reveals his identity and Bern offers his allegiance. Together they formulate a plan to rescue the others.
The following morning, Caspian, Lord Bern, the Dawn Treader crew, and Bern’s loyal men, all armed and dressed in bright armor, proceed to Narrowhaven and Governer Gumpas' residence. The door is answered by an unkempt guard in filthy armor who mumbles out the proper times and dates for meetings with His 'Sufficiency, the Governor. Pushing past the gate guard, Caspian orders the Captain of the Guard to have his men properly attired and assembled in the yard at noon the following day. Caspian, Bern, Drinian, and four crewmen enter the castle to confront Gumpas.
Finding Gumpas in the throne room, Caspian announces himself King of Narnia, protectorate of the Lone Islands and demands fealty and payment of tribute, explaining that this small item had not been paid in over 150 years. He further announces that the practice of slavery shall cease and the slave markets dismantled. Gumpas, more than a little afraid of these armed and noble men, attempts to whine his way to a compromise, explaining both the meagerness of his treasury and the severe upset the loss of the slave trade would be to the economy. Caspian stands firm, relieves Gumpas of his position, and declares Lord Bern the new governor of the Islands. The group proceeds to the slave market where they find that Lucy, Edmund, and Reepicheep had been sold but remain on the premises. Eustace, who had been so sulky and miserable, had not yet been sold—a situation that, ironically, made him even more sulky and undesirable. Pug is forced to return the money he received for the sales, and Caspian officially closes the slave market.
The Dawn Treader is repaired and provisioned and soon sets sail for the uncharted waters beyond the Lone Isles. At sea, the ship encounters a storm that continues for nearly two weeks. As the ship is tossed in the gale, several casks of fresh water break free from their restraints and are broken. The remaining water is strictly rationed. The situation is worsened when not only the storm ends, but the wind as well. The men are forced to row the Dawn Treader. Eustace, having never known want or deprivation, is convinced that he is receiving less water than the others are. Pleading illness, he demands more. Finally, late one night he convinces himself he is feverish and will die if he cannot have just a small cup. Sneaking down to the hold, he is dismayed to find Reepicheep guarding the casks.
Within a few days, land is spotted and the Dawn Treader is anchored. The crew disembarks to find provisions and materials to repair the damage done by the storm. Eustace, attempting to avoid working, sneaks away from the camp and begins to explore. Climbing a steep mountain and accidentally slipping into the valley on the far side, he heads for a small stream ahead of him. He stops, terrified, when he sees a dragon emerge from a cave and approach the stream. As it reaches the water, it falls on its side and dies. Suddenly it begins to rain and Eustace runs for shelter in the dragon’s cave and tumbles onto a mound of treasure. His prior fright forgotten, he shovels gold and jewels into his pockets. Finding a large bracelet on top of the pile, he pushes it far up his arm to keep it from falling off. Lying back on the huge mound of gold, Eustace gives way to his imagination—thinking of various ways to use his wealth to carry out his revenge on Caspian, Edmund, Lucy, and especially Reepicheep for the unfair way they had treated him. Eustace soon falls asleep.
Eustace wakes with a pain in his arm. Looking over to it, he realizes that there is a dragon claw right next to him and he becomes aware that dragon smoke is roiling about right in front of him. Terrified, he holds his breath. The dragon smoke stops. Berating himself for not thinking that there would be a second dragon but too frightened to control his reaction, he frantically tries to get away from the dragon. As he scrambles he realizes that the dragon is right beside him the entire way out of the cave. Unable to stop, although wondering why he is on all fours, he finally stops at the pool in the stream. There he sees his reflection and finally understands that HE is the dragon. Sleeping on a dragon’s hoard has transformed him. Looking to his arm, he further understands that the pain had been caused by the bracelet—too large for a small boy and substantially too small for a dragon’s leg.
Feeling desperately alone, Eustace begins to comprehend that Caspian and the others had actually been quite nice to him despite his attitudes and actions. He also grasps the fact that while they might have accepted him as a boy, they would never accept a dragon. Heaving with despair, Eustace the dragon, climbs to the top of the hill he had fallen down, he flings himself off it, fully intending to solve the problem by dying when his dragon instincts take over and he finds he can fly. Unsure of what to do, he lands on the beach by the Dawn Treader camp.
Alarmed, Caspian orders his men to arms and they approach the dragon. The dragon, however, scuttles away and begins to cry large tears that steam into the surf. Lucy, ever the compassionate one, runs over and flings her arms around the dragon. By questioning (and answers by nods and shakes) and Eustace awkwardly trying to write his name in the sand, the company eventually understands that the dragon is Eustace transformed.
Transformed, Eustace is, both physically and spiritually. Overhearing some of the crew trying to visualize a dragon on the deck of the Dawn Treader, he eagerly tries to find ways to be helpful and congenial. He helps to maintain the fires during the rains; provides a warm backrest for the tired company during the night; and in a glorious effort of strength, he flies to the heart of the island and brings back a mighty tree to replace the broken mast of the Dawn Treader.
Still, Eustace is sad. Despite many suggestions as to how to accommodate him in his dragon form, he realizes that it is impossible and the Dawn Treader will have no recourse but to leave him behind. All of the company are kind and understanding, but Eustace is amazed, and more than a little ashamed, that it is Reepicheep who spends long hours with him, telling him stories or just being nearby to comfort him.
Late one night, one of the few when Reepicheep was not at his side, and gnawing uselessly at the painful swelling caused by the bracelet on his leg, Eustace sees and is beckoned by a great Lion on the beach. Following him down the beach and finally into what seems to Eustace an entirely different land, the lion leads Eustace to a deep pool of clear water. The Lion, who is of course, Aslan, tells Eustace to take off his skin. Eustace scratches and scratches and finally peels off his skin. The Lion tells him to do this three times and finally approaches Eustace, draws out an alarmingly long claw and rips deeply into Eustace’s flesh, painfully pulling off a thick layer of dragon skin. Tossing Eustace into the pool, which burns and scorches his tender flesh, the Lion gently bathes him and then provides him with clothing human boy clothing. Eustace is once again a boy. The bracelet, so painful for a dragon, slips loosely to the ground. As they return to the Dawn Treader camp, Aslan speaks long with Eustace—a speech Eustace shares only with Edmund.
Eustace brings the arm ring to Caspian who identifies it as belonging to Lord Octesian, one of the seven lost Lords. It is decided that Lord Octesian did not survive past this island.
The Dawn Treader sets sail again, stopping at a small island where Reepicheep finds a small coracle that he takes on board the ship. At sea, the ship is briefly attacked by a sea serpent that Eustace, in a valiant act of bravery, attempts to battle but he succeeds only in breaking Caspian’s second best sword. Several days later, the crew sights land, anchors in a small harbor and goes ashore to renew the water supply of the ship.
During their exploration for a water source, Edmund discovers the remains of Narnian armor, a sword, and Narnian coins. The group collectively agrees the equipment was probably the property of one of their missing lords. Ahead of them, they discover a pool of clear water and are amazed by what seems to be a golden statue of a man at the bottom of it. Taking a spear and putting it into the water to test its depth, Edmund suddenly releases the spear exclaiming that it had become so heavy he could not hold it. He then leaps back from the bank, quickly and forcefully ordering everyone to back away from the pool. He shows them the tip of his boot, which had briefly touched the water. It had become solid gold. It becomes clear to the company that the statue in the pool had actually been a man who had stripped off his armor, plunged into the pool, and had been transformed to gold.
Caspian, greed overcoming reason, claims the island for Narnia and swears all to secrecy on pain of death. Edmund denies his allegiance to the Crown of Narnia and the two boys begin to fight. Lucy tries vainly for them to stop but it is not until the image of Aslan appears the boys cease to battle. Ashamed and contrite, Caspian, Edmund, and the rest leave the island which is named Deathwater by Reepicheep.
Further east, the Dawn Treader again makes landfall and the crew again goes ashore to provision the ship. Lucy, feeling a stone in her shoe, stops to remove it and falls behind the rest of the group. Suddenly she hears the very loud sounds of thumping and stomping—and voices. Looking around she can see nothing but the path and the wood. The voices, after much inane conversation, indicate that they will fall back to the beach and ambush the ship's party. Lucy runs to catch up to Caspian to tell him of the danger. After much discussion, it is decided that they will return to the beach to face their unknown adversaries.
Arriving back at the beach, which seems devoid of attackers, a voice commands them to halt. Realizing that the creatures are invisible, Caspian engages them to state their business. With much interruption from other members of the unseen group, the invisible leader explains that they need a little girl (Lucy) to brave the evil magician’s home and reverse the spell the had made them invisible. Apparently, this same evil magician had ‘uglified’ them when they had refused to do his bidding. Disgusted with their appearance, they had sent one of their own little girls to find and speak an invisibility spell from the magician’s book of magic. More unhappy with being invisible than they are of being ‘uglified’, they decided that another little girl must save them.
Lucy agrees despite the concern of Caspian and the others and they are all taken to a large house where they are fed and provided with sleeping accommodations. The following morning, Lucy climbs the stairs to the magician’s lodgings and after much curious looking, she finds the room that holds the book of magic. The book is large and while searching for the spell she needs, she finds a spell that would make her beautiful “beyond the lot of mortals.” Lucy, who had always been slightly jealous of the attention Susan received for her beauty, begins to read the spell but as Aslan’s visage appears on the page, she quickly turns it. Several pages after she comes across a spell that would allow the reader to know what others where thinking of her. Still mildly miffed that she could not become prettier than Susan, Lucy quickly reads the spell. On the page, as if it were a motion picture, there appeared two of her schoolmates. Lucy finds that their conversation is about her and is not at all flattering. As tears fall from her eyes, she turns the page to find a story so beautiful and uplifting that, although she never remembered exactly what it was about, it healed her sorrow and filled her with joy. Continuing further into the book, Lucy finds and reads the spell for making the unseen seen. Looking up from the book, Lucy sees Aslan in the doorway.
Scolding her mildly for eavesdropping on her schoolmates and reminding her that she must not think too harshly as her friend had been intimidated by the older girl, Aslan takes Lucy to meet the magician, Coriakin. Coriakin, who is not evil at all, provides Lucy with lunch and then takes her to the window so she may look upon the Dufflepuds—the creatures she has made visible.
The Dufflepuds are reminiscent of dwarves but instead of two legs have one thick leg supported by an enormous foot. As Lucy watched, they moved about the yard in five-foot long bounds that ended with very loud thumps. Coriakin explained the Dufflepuds as not being very bright and gave Lucy examples such as their planting baked potatoes so as to save cooking time. Finally, much to the relief of the others who are anxiously awaiting her return, Lucy bids goodbye to Coriakin and descends the stairs to tell of her adventure.
Coriakin repairs the damage the Dawn Treader incurred during the battle with the sea serpent and provides Caspian with a magical map that not only plots the seas and lands the Dawn Treader has encountered in its voyage but will continually update itself as the ship continues east. He also tells Caspian of a Narnian ship that had stopped at the island seven years prior with the Lords Revilian, Argoz, Mavramorn, and Rhoop aboard. Caspian realizes that the man at Deathwater Island must have been Lord Restimar.
Once again, setting to sea, the Dawn Treader sails for a fortnight before sighting a mist-shrouded island. Entering into the increasingly darkening shadow, all but Reepicheep begin to feel foreboding and fear. Suddenly, they hear screams and splashes approaching the ship. Realizing it is a man, Caspian orders his men to help him from the water. With matted hair and wearing rags, the man hysterically begs Caspian to turn about and leave the cursed place. He screams it is a land where dreams come true. For a fleeting instant, Caspian visualizes pleasant thoughts of Narnia, only to have it almost immediately replaced by the most frightening aspects of his most horrible nightmare. Around him, the crew is also seeing the manifestations of their most terrifying dreams and is frantically trying to maneuver the Dawn Treader around.
Reepicheep, seemingly the only one unaffected, lambastes Caspian for cowardice. Caspian, desperately trying to control his fear, explains to Reepicheep that there are some things no man should be made to bear. Despite hard rowing, the darkness seems endless and the men, convinced they are lost in the mist, begin to despair. Looking up, Lucy spies a glow; it is an albatross slowly flying just to the prow of the ship. With new hope, Caspian steers the ship to follow and moments later the Dawn Treader bursts from the darkness into the sun. The man brought aboard identifies himself as Lord Rhoop and falling to the deck, sobs his gratitude to Caspian. Caspian, also full of gratitude for the albatross who was Aslan, looks back to the island only to find it is no longer there.
Days later, land is again sighted and the Dawn Treader is anchored. Caspian, Edmund, Eustace, Lucy and several others go ashore and find a glade where tables had been set between two rows of columns. Seated at the table, which has been set as for a feast, are three sleeping men. Attempting to wake them, Caspian is only able to elicit a few words from each—words of Narnia and sailing east. Surmising that they must be the three remaining Lords, Caspian also comprehends that their sleep is enchanted as their beards and hair had grown long and tangled amongst the settings of the table.
Although he is unsure as to how to break the Lord’s enchantment, Caspian, nevertheless, declares the voyage complete—all of the Lords have been accounted for. Reepicheep, seeing his dream of sailing to the World’s End countered by Caspian’s declaration, adamantly protests. Caspian, unnerved by the sleeping Lords and exasperated by the mouse, sharply rebukes Reepicheep.
As dusk begins to fall, the group decides to return to the Dawn Treader. Reepicheep, however, pronounces that he shall remain at the table for the night to discover the mystery of the Lord’s sleep. Caspian, Edmund, Eustace, and Lucy decide that they, too, shall spend the night at the table.
In the grayness before sunrise, the tired and hungry watchers see a door open in the hillside near the table and a women step out and approach the table. Opening her arms to the feast of food, she asks them why they have not partaken of it. Caspian, rather bemused by her beauty, tells her they thought the food enchanted and nods in the direction of the sleeping Lords. The woman tells Caspian that the three had never tasted the food. They had sat at the table and begun to argue the course of their future—return to Narnia, remain on the island, or to continue to the end of the world. Gravely the woman points to a stone knife resting on the table next to the hand of the nearest Lord and tells Caspian the man had touched that which he should not have and all three were enchanted. The knife, which Lucy almost thinks she recognizes, is the same that had been used to kill Aslan at the Stone Table many years ago.
Reepicheep, disregarding the other’s gasps, raises a flagon and drinks to the beauty of the woman. The others, convinced of the woman’s veracity, hungrily begin to eat.
The doorway in the hillside opens again and the Narnians see an extremely old man approach the table. As the first rays of sun break the horizon, both man and woman turn to the east, hold arms outstretched, and begin to sing. The new day slides over the ocean towards them. Out of the center of the sun flows a shape that, as it approaches the table, the children realize is a flock of snow-white birds. The birds settle onto the table and begin to eat the remains of the feast. One bird, however, hovers over the old man and drops what looks like a red-hot coal into his mouth. The food gone, the birds rise into the air and soar back over the sea to the sun. The old man, lowering his arms and turning towards the Narnians, introduces himself as Ramadu, a former star of the heavens.
Ramadu enlightens the astonished children with a brief explanation of the great celestial dance; that over time a star weakens and becomes dim and must retire to the firmament to become renewed. Each morning a firebird brings him a piece of the sun so that in time he will be strong enough to rejoin the dance. Ramadu introduces the woman as his daughter and then turns his attention to the three sleeping Lords. He tells Caspian that he must sail the Dawn Treader as far East as possible and before returning, leave one of his company behind. Ramadu then bids Caspian to have Lord Rhoop brought ashore so that he may share a much needed dreamless sleep with the other Lords until such time the Dawn Treader returns.
Unlike Reepicheep, who is thrilled that the culmination of his dream is nigh, not all of the crew of the Dawn Treader are enthusiastic about sailing further into the unknown. Caspian, after conference with Drinian and Rhince, formulates a plan. Assembling the crew and informing them of his intention to sail the Dawn Treader to the end of the world, he indicates that not all shall accompany him—only the bravest and truest of heart shall be considered worthy enough for such a voyage. The crew, most of whom had been reluctant, suddenly began to feel ashamed and self-conscious of the fact that maybe they were not brave enough. One by one, the crewmembers sidle to Rhince and Drinian asking to be included. The first few ask because they are brave and true, but as the numbers dwindle, the last few beg because they fear being left behind. In the end, only one man is left on the island and he had a thoroughly miserable time having to spend his days with Ramadu and his daughter and his nights in the eerie company of the sleeping Lords.
The following morning, the Dawn Treader set sail for the East. As it progressed, the sun seemed larger and brighter each morning. One morning, as they sailed into the sunrise, Drinian realized that although there was no wind, the ship was continuing to speed towards the East. He realizes that the Dawn Treader is running in a current and did not require the wind. Despite the current that carried them, the water seemed perfectly calm and clear. Lucy, while staring into it, noticed the rise and fall of the landscape beneath the water. She amused herself by imagining that there was an entire civilization that lived there, albeit opposite of civilization above the sea. Where mountains were cold and inhospitable in her own land, she imagined the sea people would find them warm and sunny—their valleys cold, dark, and unwelcoming. Lost in her daydream, she is startled to see people beneath the water. Some wearing crowns and carrying tridents, she realizes that it must be a royal hunt as she and her sister and brothers would engage in when they were Kings and Queens of Narnia. Calling to Edmund and Drinian, she points out the sea people to them. The male with the largest crown, apparently noticing her, rose through the water and shook his trident at her, but the current was already taking the Dawn Treader past the hunting party. Lucy hears a splash and leaps to her feet, realizing that Reepicheep had probably seen the hunting party as well and had certainly jumped into the water to answer the Sea King’s menacing challenge.
Drinian quickly brings Reepicheep back onto the deck, fully prepared to restrain him physically because he fears that his crew may become enraptured with the beautiful sea women and drown in their desire to be with them. He need not have worried for Reepicheep could only sputter the word ‘sweet’ over and over again. He then recites a rhyme he learned while still in the cradle:
Where sky and water meet, Where sky and water meet, Where the waves grow sweet, Doubt not, Reepicheep, To find all you seek, There is the utter East.
Putting a bucket over the side, Drinian pulls up some of the water and tastes it. It is sweet—cool and pure as fresh spring water. Each in turn, everyone on board drinks deeply of the water, each expressing a renewed invigoration and sense of strength.
The Dawn Treader sails on. Each morning the sun rises stronger and brighter but as each person imbibes of the water from the sea, they become more tolerant of its intensity. Gradually, they find the need for food or sleep is lessened although they feel healthier and stronger than they ever had before.
One day, Drinian and Caspian spy what looks to be ice on the horizon. Considering the speed at which the Dawn Treader was traveling and fearing an imminent collision with the ice, Drinian orders the men to turn the ship in order to slow her down. This maneuver brought immense relief to Drinian and the crew as they found that the current was confined to a channel only 40 feet wide. They had been dreading having to row against the current on the return journey. Once outside of the current, a small boat was lowered to investigate and the white phenomena turned out to be millions and millions of lilies—miles of them as far as the eye could see.
Steering the Dawn Treader back into the channel of current, Drinian continues the voyage East through the flowers. As the days pass, it becomes evident that the water is becoming shallower and eventually the Dawn Treader is unable to proceed. Calling the crew together, Caspian order Drinian to return to Narnia where the Regent Trumpkin will select a new king. Told by Edmund that he cannot abdicate and by Reepicheep of his promise to allow him to find the Utter East, Caspian, in a fit of anger, declares that ALL shall return Narnia and that he will not be dictated to by a mouse. Storming into his cabin, he leaves the crew bewildered and concerned.
A short time later, a contrite Caspian returns to the deck to tell the children and the crew that Aslan had appeared in his cabin and spoken to him, telling him his duty and destiny lay in Narnia. Aslan had further instructed him to tell Edmund, Eustace, Lucy, and Reepicheep that they are to take the small boat and continue the journey East. After many tearful farewells, the children and Reepicheep, along with Reepicheep’s coracle, sadly leave the Dawn Treader and enter the eastward flowing channel of current.
They remain in the current until the boat grounds itself and can go no further. Ahead of them is a great wave of water rising upward—not moving but ever flowing. Reepicheep climbs into his coracle and paddles towards it. The coracle is swept up into the wave and as the children watch, reaches the top, gently rolls over the rim, and Reepicheep is never seen in Narnia again. The children step out of the boat and wade through the lilies towards the land to the side of them. There, they walk across a beautiful meadow where they find a lamb laying in the green grass who beckons them to come and eat with him.
As they approach the lamb, the children ask it how they may find Aslan’s country. As the lamb rises from the grass, it is transformed, and the children find themselves before Aslan, the Great Lion. He tells the children that for their entire lives, he will always be guiding them to His country. Lucy, understanding that they must return to England, inquires if she will be able to return to Narnia. Aslan, breathing softly onto her, tells Lucy and Edmund that they have grown too old for Narnia, and like Peter and Susan before them, they must find their way to Aslan’s country through their own world. Aslan opens a window in the sky, and as each child steps through, each finds themselves back in the guest room of the Scrubb household.
Caspian and the Dawn Treader returned to Ramadu’s island where they found the Lords awakened and ready to return to Narnia. Caspian, having fallen in love with Ramadu’s daughter, asks for her hand. She travels to Narnia, marries Caspian, and becomes Queen.
In England, summer ends. Edmund and Lucy return to their parent’s home. Eustace returns to his progressive school and although he sometimes reverts to his old ways, he is very definitely a changed child—considerate, kind, and helpful. His parents, Harold and Alberta, displeased with the changes, blame it on the influence of “those Pevensie children.”
