“It is at any rate essential to a genuine fairy-story … that it should be presented as ‘true’.”
- Tolkien, On Fairy-Stories
Lewis is a master at placing the reader in the story. First he opens his myth on earth in a familiar location, such as near London in “Out of the Silent Planet.” However he does not stop there. The opening lines of the book put un in the story. We can feel the struggle of the traveler (Ransom) as he searches for a place to say. We can feel the heavy shoulders and sense the darkness. Lewis does this through his perfect description targeted not just at the sights, but also the sounds, emotions and smells. He places you in the story as if you are the character or as if you are at least observing the events take place. This makes the story come to life, captivating the reader. This gives the story so much more tangibility than a “once upon a time” or “in a galaxy far far away” these famous, but problematic beginnings have already alienated the reader. Lewis starts with the real and leads to the fantastical, where the character is just a surprised at the events as the reader. The realness of Lewis’ stories, helps to engage the reader and add excitement to the story.
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