A Lioness? Why Aslan’s Mane Is Important to ‘Narnia’ | Opinion

Opinion by Icarus

The following opinion piece has been adapted from a thread on the NarniaWeb Discussion Forum and features inputs from multiple forum contributors.

Lucy buried her head in his mane to hide from his face. But there must have been magic in his mane. She could feel lion-strength going into her.

Prince Caspian (Chapter 11)

With the recent news that three-time Academy Award winning actress Meryl Streep is in talks to play Aslan in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of the Magician’s Nephew, it raises the possibility that Aslan will, for the first time in any filmed adaptation, be portrayed as a female Lioness, rather than a male Lion.

A switch of this nature therefore raises numerous potential implications for any future Narnia adaptations in the series, due to the fact that female Lions, unlike male Lions, do not have manes.

Female lions apparently can, in certain exceptionally rare circumstances grow manes in nature, but in general, Lions are one of many creatures where the males and the females of the species look significantly different from one another.

Below we discuss some of the key impacts that a mane-less Aslan could have for the series.

1. Iconography

First and foremost, the image of Aslan with his radiant mane, is perhaps one of the most iconic and enduring pieces of visual imagery, not just within the Chronicles of Narnia itself, but also within children’s literature as a whole.

It is quite literally the cover image for the majority of the Narnia collected edition books, and in terms of wider popular culture, it is probably up there alongside the Wardrobe and the Lamppost as one of the single most quintessentially Narnian visuals.

It is difficult therefore to fathom what could possible be gained from discarding such a potent and highly marketable symbol, one that for many people is the single most important and defining visual image of the entire series.

2. The Stone Table

In one of the most pivotal scenes of probably the most important book of the entire series, the villain Jadis, quite literally strips Aslan of his mane, in a powerful and symbolic demonstration of evil triumphing over good.

“Stop!” said the Witch. “Let him first be shaved.” Another roar of mean laughter went up from her followers as an ogre with a pair of shears came forward and squatted down by Aslan’s head. Snip-snip-snip went the shears and masses of curling gold began to fall to the ground. Then the ogre stood back and the children, watching from their hiding-place, could see the face of Aslan looking all small and different without its mane. The enemies also saw the difference.” 

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chapter 14)

There is of course a certain irony in the director of any Narnia adaptation coming to embody the actions of its primary villain by quite literally depriving Aslan of his mane, but there are also significant cinematic ramifications as well.

In a visual medium such as film, the symbolic act of shaving Aslan’s mane allows you to convey so much information to the audience with such a simple and striking visual moment. The Walden films in particular really leaned into the iconography of this moment by having the White Witch subsequently wear Aslan’s discarded mane into battle.

3. The Prophecy

In a less pivotal, but still no less memorable part of the book, Mr Beaver recites the words of prophecy to the children, which had been passed down between generations of Narnians, and which sets into motion the events of the story:

Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again

The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chapter 8)

This is again something which the Walden movies actively leaned into with their production design, by having the final line of the prophecy engraved down one side of Peter’s sword, Rhindon.

Whilst it may be easy enough for a good writer to work around this issue, it is none-the-less a frustratingly unnecessary change caused by any switch from Lion to Lioness.

4. Riding on Aslan’s Back

Another hugely iconic scene from ‘The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe’ features Lucy and Susan holding onto Aslan’s mane as they ride on his back to join the battle following Aslan’s dramatic resurrection.

Not only does this image feature on numerous book covers, and stage play posters, but it also features as the cover illustration for the very first published edition of ‘The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe’ from 1950,

Whilst it is no doubt theoretically possible to ride on the back of a Lioness without having a mane to hold onto, the lack of one undoubtedly makes it much harder for an audience to suspend their disbelief over the matter, and just makes what is already a visually complex scene ever so slightly more difficult to bring to life on the big screen.

5. Characters Burying Themselves in Aslan’s Mane

At several key points, across multiple stories, there are fairly crucial scenes in which the characters bury themselves in Aslan’s mane for comfort.

She felt her heart would burst if she lost a moment. And the next thing she knew was that she was kissing him and putting her arms as far round his neck as she could and burying her face in the beautiful rich silkiness of his mane.

Prince Caspian (Chapter 10)

Further, when Aslan is going to meet the White Witch at the Stone Table, he asks Susan and Lucy to hold on to his mane in the midst of his own despair:

“Aslan! Dear Aslan!” said Lucy, “what is wrong? Can’t you tell us?”

“Are you ill, dear Aslan?” asked Susan.

“No,” said Aslan. “I am sad and lonely. Lay your hands on my mane so that I can feel you are there and let us walk like that.”

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (Chapter 14)

As well as the pure symbolism of these moments, they also make for great cinematic visuals which are rich with emotion. By having a mane-less Aslan, you needlessly deprive yourself of these intimate and visually compelling character moments.

6. Aslan as a Metaphor for the Sun

One of the strongest visual motifs of ‘The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’, and a central argument of Dr Michael Ward’s ‘Planet Narnia’ theory, is the idea of Aslan as a metaphor for the sun.

This visual iconography, which associates Aslan’s golden radiant mane with that of the sun, was even used a the central image on the sail of the Dawn Treader ship in the BBC TV adaptation from 1989.

For such a powerful visual motif, which perfectly encapsulates the notion of sailing East towards Aslan’s Country and the rising sun, removing Aslan’s mane yet again deprives you of another iconic thematic image around which to structure your visual storytelling.

7. Shift’s Entire Plan in ‘The Last Battle’

Possibly one of the biggest narrative problems which arises from Aslan not having a mane is Shift’s entire plan in The Last Battle. The central conceit of the plot revolves around Shift the Ape finding a Lion’s Skin, complete with mane, floating in the river.

By dressing up his donkey accomplice Puzzle in the Lion’s mane, he manages to convince the creatures of Narnia that he is Aslan, leading to an apocalyptic sequence of events which ends in the destruction of Narnia itself.

Without the transformative effect that the Lion’s mane provides in changing Puzzle’s overall visual profile and appearance, particularly when viewed in silhouette by the dim light of Stable Hill, it is difficult to imagine how Shift could possibly pull off this plan in a universe where Aslan doesn’t even have a mane in the first place.

The idea of merely draping the skin of a Lioness over the frame of a donkey would likely be of insufficient visual impact to set him apart him from any other common four-legged animal.

Even just putting aside the plot mechanics here though, the use of the mane in this story is not just a convenient plot device, but it is also a pivotal thematic symbol of Aslan himself, and a crucial piece of cultural iconography, both to the reader of the book, and to the inhabitants of Narnia within the story.

8. The Lion as the “King of Beasts”

Perhaps the main reason that C.S. Lewis chose a Lion to represent the most important character in the world of Narnia is the reputation that Lions have as being the “King of Beasts”.

More so than any other big cat or apex predator in the wild, Lions throughout history have been revered as the Kings of the animal world. This is at least in part due to the majestic and regal appearance of a fully-maned Lion, which evokes the idea of golden halo or aura around their face.

It is therefore difficult to imagine the character of Aslan having the same awe-inspiring visual impact as he does without his mane.

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