illustration of an open wardrobe door with a castle and lion visible in through the door and an outline of a young girl standing on the opposite side of the door

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

by C. S. Lewis

Start Free Trial

What would be considered the fall of man in "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"?

Expert Answers

An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

The Fall of Man is symbolized by the fall of Edmund.  the White Witch tempts him with Turkish Delight, but also with power.  That power is centered on the notion of revenge, on being shut out by his siblings, specifically Peter, and denied his "rightful" place. 

In the same way, Eve was tempted by Satan with the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, but also with power of deciding between what is good and what is evil, which had been denied mankind by God. 

In both cases, the fall occurred when the individual felt that he/she was owed something and was offered an easy way to get it.  In the case of Edmund, however, he did not know the full consequences of his actions as did Eve, who had been warned by God.  Still, he knew his actions were wrong, but decided to do it anyway. 

Both Edmund and Even chose sin, but they also chose the consequences.  To them, the consequences were worth it, just so long as they got to do what they wanted.

See eNotes Ad-Free

Start your 48-hour free trial to get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and more than 350,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts.

Get 48 Hours Free Access
Approved by eNotes Editorial