vilakins | Prince Caspian and Lost

It seems that some people were concerned about the Telmarines in Prince Caspian being dark and rather Arab-looking. I knew they were in fact part Pacific Islander (though we're not told that in the film, sadly), so I looked it up. (No spoilers for the film, just where the Telmarines came from centuries before.)

Aslan says:

Many years ago in that world, in a deep sea of that world which is called the South Sea, a shipload of pirates were driven by storm on an island. And there they did as pirates would: killed the natives and took the native women for wives.

Huh, what a euphemism! Anyway, they got drunk and fought etc, and six fled with their 'wives' and found the cave and the door to Narnia's world. So they'd be half Pacific Islander, and it's not a stretch that the pirates could hae been Spanish or some race other than English. The medieval Spanish feel in the film was a nice, slightly foreign touch, and the Wikipedia says that they deliberately used Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese actors.

Anyway I read on and book Aslan tells the Telmarines more about the island:

It is no bad place. The race of those pirates who first found it has died and it is without inhabitants. There are good wells of fresh water, fruitful soil, timber for building, fish in the lagoons, and the other people of that world have not yet discovered it.

Aha, I said, it's the Lost island, and now we know who the Others are (and perhaps how Ben gets around in space and time).

;-)

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That's a fascinating crossover thought! Btw, "fish in the logons" is a priceless typo, don't edit it....)

Eny fule kno that when CS Lewis wants to be racist about Arabic peoples, which he quite often does, he uses the Calormenes. Folk concerned about the Telmarines in that context haven't been paying attention....

Noooo, I have to change it! :-P

We did have rather a good discussion elsewhere about 'The Horse and His Boy' which I loved best as a child. The sexism annoyed me a lot more though, with young girls being married to rich old bastards. Aravis's bravery made up for some of that, and I think they could do it as a standalone film at the end and perhaps change the offensive stuff by having Aravis and her friend be older. The rest though is 19C Arab culture, isn't it? Even now, women have no more rights than Aravis had.

But yes, I'm sure Lewis considers the English to be Best, especially if they're male.

I think they were more concerned about modern film-makers using Arab-like people as baddies.

Well, the marrying of young girls used to be standard: eg Margaret Beaufort married at 12 and gave birth to the future Henry VII at 13. Lewis makes it quite clear he doesn't approve of it, and that Narnians and Archenlanders don't marry early - so I think the problem for the film-makers is whether depiction in a fantasy world of a custom that used to be common practice implies that certain modern societies continue to do it, thus bringing them into disrepute with those who consider it immoral.

I can see there's a logic in making the Telmarines dark, but I think it would throw me as the whole set-up of Miraz's court always screamed Elsinore to me.

It's part of the Muslim-like Calormene culture, yes, but I was also very uncomfortable with Susan (and Lucy?) considering marriage when they later revert to children. I never really thought that Lewis despised the culture though, just some members of it. I loved the book and still do for its exotic and colourful setting.

I'd never thought of Elsinore! I really liked the old Spanish feel they were given in the film. It's a pity we didn't get some background about them and where they were going though.

I liked Aravis, and she got to do stuff, which was unusual for girls on books then. But oddly enough I also ended up liking her girly pal Lasaraleen, whom I was clearly meant to despise and normally would have; I think I was reacting to the fact that Lewis so plainly despised her (she's a precursor of poor Susan, who made the mistake of growing up). He really did, like so many university men of his day, spend his life wondering why a woman couldn't be more like a man...

I loved Aravis and felt sorry for Lasaraleen; I suppose she made the best of a horrible life. As I spent my childhood being a virtual boy--they have so much more fun--I had little sympathy for her, and still don't care for shopping and shoes and all the stuff I'm supposed to like.

Cool, thanks for looking that up. HA, I love that it's the Lost island.

Ben can only use the portal to go elsewhere on Earth. He is banned from Narnia for the kidnapping of talking polar bears.

The British police shot an Argentinian because he looked "a bit Arabic"!
Evidently it's an easy mistake to make!!!!Headdesk!!!!!
I like the tying in of the two genres even if I've never seen Lost.

It's funnier if you have. :-)

Prince Caspian and Lost

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