Commercialization and expansion of Narnia? ***BLECH***

[IronParrot]

www.theonering.net/perl/n.../991621905 (http://www.theonering.net/perl/newsview/8/991621905)


"They have struck deals to license plush Narnian toys. The series publisher, HarperCollins, revealed plans to create new Narnia novels by unidentified authors, to the outrage of some devoted readers."
...
"Most striking of all, they have developed a discreet strategy to avoid direct links to the Christian imagery and theology that suffused the Narnia novels and inspired Lewis."
...
"By the fall of 2003 they expected to publish simpler picture books for younger children and a new Narnia novel."


Hellooo? Can anyone say boycott?

Geez, these marketing folks think Narnia is too closely associated with Christianity just because of its evangelically allegorical nature. They seem to think that only Christians read Narnia. And thus, they are trying to take a Harry Potter marketing spin on the Chronicles, which is now regarded as a "franchise", it seems. (I disapprove of Harry Potter marketing anyway - great books, poor commercialization)

What idiots.

[Earendilyon]

I never read the Narnia Chronicles, but I condemn every abuse of an author's legacy. It might be that HarperCollins have the legal rights to the Narnia Chronicles, but the ethical rights belong to CSL, albeit deceased. So, every new book written about Narnia by another author is an desecration of CSL's work.
Therefore, you have my vote for a worldwide boycot in case HarperCollins is really planning to publish new Narnia books by other authors than CSL!

[Finduilas]

I read that they are planning to re-write the books to downplay (ie remove) all the references to christianity.

Granted, I never really liked the Narnia books, (maybe because I read Tolkien's M-E books first) but this is nuts.

[Idril Celebrindal]

that is so screwed up! I don't believe they'd do something like that.

ok, so my firm belief in in the stupidity of humanity in general prompts me to say that yeah, they would, and probably think they're doing us all a favour...

How the hell can they cut out the references to christianity? not only on ethical grounds, but... how can they do that and leave the books making sense? The whole POINT of Narnia, the whole reason the children were taken there, was to learn about christianity. It's wraped up in a series of nice stories, but that is the point. And they're going to cut that out?

And I'm not even saying this from a christian viewpoint, I simply think it's a terrible thing to change someone's work like that. And as for whole new books? no. please no. Don't subject all these poor people who are fans of Lewis' work to this.

[Earendilyon]

Please, everybody, send an angry Email to HarperCollins (http://www.harpercollins.com/hc/aboutus/contact.asp)!

[webwizard333]

Ah good old cooperate business at work, God forbid you leave something as it is. "Ok editors, remove some crucial info from these books, and we'll make a new book to fill in these gaps you'll have made." The new book will probably be called, "Aslan, tell us what we did in the old Narnia" or something equally simple minded. Though I do like the ideas of toys, now I know what to get my cousin for her next birthday. But really, who would be able to write a better Narnia than C.S.Lewis. Oh well I'll probably buy the books anyways and write the cruelest review possible for it (I'll galdly give it to you guys).

[Finduilas]

Haven't they heard the saying "If it's not broken, don't fix it"?

[Darth Tater]

Gotta say, Narnia books aren't the greatest, but still, this is just plain wrong. I'll be surprised if HarperCollins doesn't pay dearly for this

[Idril Celebrindal]

I damn well hope they do:mad:

[Finduilas]

There will probably be a lot of outrage if it actually happens.

[IronParrot]

Bringing this thread back to the top...

I haven't heard about this issue lately. Has this evil, evil idea died off silently?

[galadriel]

I heard about this a couple months back, and I'm still just as angry. I really like the Narnia series, have been reading it since I was about five, and think it's horribly wrong to take an author's work and turn it into something overprocessed and politically correct. You can read the books on both levels, looking at the religious part or ignoring it, but without both parts the story falls apart.

I don't have a major problem with the toys. When you're eight, that sort of thing is fun. Although a stuffed Aslan does seem kind of sacreligious or something....

[Darkhalcyon]

THe Narnia books were my favorites when i was younger! i grew up on the oie of"the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe." (and i'm jewish!) i sawa bunch of the movies and was happy to discover the books, too. (this is whatgot me into fantasy). THey'retotally gonnaruin it for me. leave it to freakin americans to dumb stuff down for their children!and they wonder why education is going down the tubes!

Oh, and FYI, CSL wrote a book aobut Tolkien's work. *forgetting the title* i didn't read it, cuz it didn't pertain to my research paper, maybe i should take it out now ^-^
:D

[Serena]

I heard about this too.


No!!

The chronicles of Narnia are Cool! Just because they have Christian ideals iand references in them doesn't mean that you have to be a christian to read and enjoy them. I have read all 7 of them, but I won't read any new ones. They were written to be a set, so if anything else is added to them, it'll just screw them up.

Of course, in the corperate world, religion has no place, so they think that this is a briliant move . . . . stupid.

I agree with Earendilyon. I will send HarperCollins an e-mail about this, and I'm asking the rest of you to do the same. So many people say they will and don' t that one protesting e-mail or letter, is treated like it has the weight of one-hundred people behind it.

[fireworks19]

I'm ATHEIST and this makes me mad!

How DARE they? The Christian symbolism was EVERYTHING in those books. I loved those books. I have them all! They can't do that....

[Varda]

how are they going to have more books anyway? i mean... i guess this is sort of a spoiler for anyone who has not read all the books, but at the end... narnia is no more and they all go to a different place (the last battle)... or will they be totally separate books? i mean... even if there isnt christian allegory in the story Aslan is a prophet/god and the son of the great emperor beyond the sea... i mean how much do they really plan to change things that are essential to the story? i get the idea of fauns, centaurs and talking beasts fighting evil witches and aslan leading the 4 humans as if they are more like power puff girls or power rangers rather than righteous kings and queens of a magical land... it just seems like it would be really shallow and dumb...

... and about toys, i think that would be fine except that people would ask for toy aslans... and that seems wrong.....

[IronParrot]

If this idea is still in the works (not sure it is, since I haven't heard much about it), I think the plan is to take advantage of the huge time gaps between some of the books.

For example, we don't see a whole lot of the four kids' adventures in Narnia during their actual reign as royalty...

[Varda]

so like the horse and his boy? i guess that could work...... though i think that wasn't really as interesting to me......

[Tessar]

Ok this is a near quote from a comic strip that I like (yes it did have the beep bits in it, no really cussing ;) )



what the *bleep* do thoses *bleep* *bleeps* think that ther *bleep bleep* doing down there!?! if they dont *bleep* the whole thing then I'm gona *bleep bleep*

"I need some more asprin"


well sorry, but it did seem apropret for the situation.

[GoldenMallorn]

WHAT?! Is this the generation we live in? Are FANTASY books written by Christian authors so offending we have to REWRITE them? Aslan would'nt excist because his very ESSENCE is JESUS the LION of Juda. He even says"I am with you in you world. I am only known by a different name" or something like that in the third book when Lucy and Edmund have to leave. There are so many Christian themes in the Narnian chronicles the only things that would be left would be"Once apon a time these kids visited this one place and they had these adventures with animals and then went home. THE END" How exciting. Kids are gonna LOVE the new series.

[mirrille]

I think it's really funny how it's being called a "discreet strategy" to remove the Christian references. :confused: How can this possibly be done in a discreet fashion?
Although when I read the series I didn't know that there was any Christian reference...even though I went to a Catholic school. It's just once you know that it's based on Christianity that these things really pop out, so I wouldn't consider anything all that "direct" a reference.

Honestly, I don't see why anyone would bother to do this. Nobody is going to buy this updated versions as long as the "real thing" is still around. Let's hope harper collins loses massive amounts of money on this. Then maybe they'll have learned their lesson.

[sepulchrave]

In the name of Aslan, and all thats holy in this world and the next, this nonsense, if true, must be opposed by every loyal reader of quality high fantasy. This is censorship in disguise.
Under no circumstances are we to remain idle, or underestimate the enemy. For Harper-Collins and the like, the works of Tolkien and Lewis (they control both to a great degree) are product to be pumped into the gaping maw of the marketplace, fodder shovelled incessantly without regard for content or literary value to the consumer. Gross margins and Profit-Loss statements at quarter-end are the altars at which the wormtongues of commerce worship, and vast publishing firms are no exception.
The elimination of "distasteful" references to the most "unfashionable" faith around are of paramount importance to certain individuals and groups, some of whom have a vested interest in the progress and success of commercial enterprises such as publishing houses, and if the warlocks in control feel that a Christian undertone is either "undesirable" or "politically incorrect", the necessary changes will surely be made. C.S. Lewis is probably looking down and laughing, a read of "That Hideous Strength" or "Perelandra" would soon sort the orcs out.
We have grown to love and treasure these magnificent works as something dear to our hearts. Our battered or pristine copies, hardcover or paperback, falling apart or taped in ingenious ways, do not get thrown away like some other less valuable tomes...memories are wound up in them. Opening a page sends the mindseye over vast distant vistas of lofty peaks, deep haunted woods and suntipped spires barely discernable on the far misty horizon, emblazoned golden with the fading gleam of a dying sun. Will we take the time to do something about this travesty, or shall the glory fade, like the elves were destined to do? Will children pick up a book about Lucy and a Lion, years from now and have that same thrill inside?
I believe that it is up to us now, in this generation, to make a sincere effort to challenge the forces that threaten to unravel the legacy of these great writers in the name of corporate enrichment and shareholder satisfaction. All things that are pure shall be under attack soon in the name of the "recognition of the need to encourage diversity and remove archaic divisive elements" , or "editing where deemed appropriate to appeal to the modern enlightened reader" or some such claptrap. Lewis was more than aware of this danger, and spoke strongly against it in all its forms. The mighty message, partially hidden within the Narnia chronicles, deserves to be protected, for the benefit of generations of young people to come. It was always a great fear of mine as a reader, that Disney would get a grip on The Lord of the Rings or Narnia and twist the life out of them, fortunately that has not yet occured, but this plot is a grave folly, and souls will pay for it, literally.
Reader, please do not disregard this if you value the integrity of these great works, and especially if the message of life within is of importance to you. I encourage people of all faiths, who love these books to email Harper Collins Publishing and express your disapproval of this Wickedness, if indeed they are planning such a diabolical strategy.... Remember Heidi? well the Heidi that your grandparents knew was a very different book to the one available today, and the same can be said for many books in which certain themes became "unfashionable" or "distateful", to those with influence over the texts....

[mirrille]

Hmm...
I'm just amused by thing whole thing. Any idea when they are going to come out.
In the end, I doubt publisher are interested in a sweeping strategy to purge non PC references. They are probably interested in profits. The strategy is probably that by removing Christian stuff, they can sell the book to non-Christian and therefore turn a higher profit. But since lots of non-Christians already read this book and are not terribly offended by it, I don't see the point. (Ok. So even as a child I found the portrayal of the pseudo-Arabian Calormenes a little...umm...skewed. Transparently so. And I didn't know what PC was yet. But in general, it's nothing to get all huffy about.) What will probably happen is nobody will buy the "fake" version, the company will lose money, and it will be a while before anyone tries a stunt like that. These things tend to have a way of righting themselves.

[sepulchrave]

Thankfully, I just recieved this via Email:
Thank you for your note expressing your concerns about the C.S. Lewis
publishing program at HarperCollins Publishers. Much of the recent media
coverage has misrepresented our position, and we value the opportunity to
send you our comments.

The goal of HarperCollins Publishers and the owners and managers of the C.S.
Lewis Estate has always been to publish the works of C.S. Lewis to the
broadest possible audience, and to leave the interpretation of the works to
the reader. And, we have stated clearly that the works of C.S Lewis will
continue to be published by HarperCollins as written by the author, with no
alteration.

HarperCollins is committed to maintaining the integrity of Lewis's works and
has the greatest respect for his legacy. We are privileged to be the
English-language publisher of many of his major works and our respect for
his legacy will continue to influence our Lewis publishing program and any
future related projects.

We appreciate you taking the time to write to us.


-----Original Message-----
From: flypaperforfreaks@shaw.ca [mailto:flypaperforfreaks@shaw.ca]
Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2002 9:28 PM
To: orders@harpercollins.com
Subject: the legacy of Clive Staples Lewis

I have heard that your firm has plans to alter or rewrite the Narnia
Chronicles to eliminate the references to Christianity. This idea, you will
dearly pay for. Such a ridiculous and, dare I say, EVIL concept will not
prosper. I was concerned when you swallowed George Allen & Unwin, as to what
your plans were for Tolkien, and when you got your slimy claws on Lewis I
knew such a travesty could not be far away. Perhaps it would enlighten you
to actually read "That Hideous Strength" to educate yourselves about the
works of darkness, and how you as a publisher are apparently in the vanguard
of such base corruption. You have a responsibility to the legacy of a great
man to refrain from this abomination, and leave great works alone, to stand
by themselves, unaltered. I heartily warn you that if this diabolical plot
is carried out, no books published by you or your affiliated publishing
houses will ever cross my threshold, and I will do all in my power to
dissuade everyone I know from giving you any custom whatsoever. This is a
profoundly wicked plan, and the individuals responsible should be ashamed of
themselves. If carried out, My prayer is that the souls of such decievers
shall find no rest, in this world, or the next. Please feel free to respond.
yours with trepidation under the mercy, GJ Parker

[mirrille]

Oh good.
:)
So now I wonder where the media got it's information that it misrepresented.
But I was right about trying to sell to as many people as possible. hehe..
Thanks sepulchrave! That things up for now.