Class - VII [Raintree Coursebook Theme - 6: Tales of Magic and Wonder] Chapter - 11: The Magical Picture by C S Lewis

Summary: The Magical Picture

The Magical Picture is an extract from the novel The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It is the story
of how Lucy and Edmund find their way back to Narnia.

Narnia is a magical world that you can get to only through Magic. Lucy and Edmund had been
there twice already. They are currently spending their summer with their cousin Eustace who
does not believe in Magic. Lucy and Edmund spend most of their time staring at a picture of
Narnian ship, wishing they could go back. One day, as they stare at the painting, it starts to
come alive!

The waves move up and down and the ship follows. A strong current of wind blows out of the
painting making objects in the room fly and Lucy’s hair whip around her. The noise of the
swishing waves and the roar of the air and water can be heard clearly. You can even smell the
salty scent of the sea.

Eustace is frightened. He thinks Edmund and Lucy are playing some prank on him. He is furious
when a huge wave rises out of the picture and smacks all of them in the face. He rushes
towards the picture and finds himself standing on the frame of the picture. Either he has grown
smaller or the picture has grown bigger. Edmund and Lucy follow Eustace.

After struggling to maintain balance on the frame, the three children fall into the painting and
into the sea. They find themselves in the water near the Narnian ship. Lucy stays calm and tries
to swim but Eustace pulls her down in a panic. A white figure jumps off the ship and rescues
them. A rope is thrown off the ship and pulls the children safely out of the water and onto the
deck.

The white figure is Caspian, the boy king of Narnia whom Edmund and Lucy helped set on the

throne. Caspian, Lucy and Edmund are delighted to see each other again but Eustace is

miserable. He wants to go back, but he cannot. He is sick when he realises he is stuck in Narnia.

The Magical Picture is a story that belongs to the fantasy genre. It contains all the elements that

make up the genre—magic, new worlds, wishes come true, danger, adventures and dealing

with the unexpected. The story highlights just one incident—how Edmund, Lucy and Eustace

enter Narnia—and yet that one incident is narrated such that the reader is thrilled and hooked

on to every single word. The language brings with it a sense of adventure. The language—

especially when describing the magical picture—really tickles the senses of the reader.

Story Analysis

Central Idea: The chapter revolves around the children’s journey to Narnia through a magical picture, where they encounter an adventure that helps them learn about bravery, faith, and the importance of following the right guidance.

Themes:

1. Adventure and Discovery - The theme of exploring new realms and discovering oneself is central to the story.
2. Courage and Faith - The characters learn to have faith and summon courage when faced with challenges.
3. The Power of Imagination - The magical picture transports the characters to Narnia, illustrating the importance of imagination in storytelling and adventure.
4. Self-Transformation - Eustace’s character development highlights the importance of personal growth.
5. Magic and Mystery: The story shows that magic and mystery is associated with the magical picture. 

Message: The story encourages readers to be brave, to trust in higher guidance, and to believe in the power of adventure and imagination. It also underscores the value of personal transformation and growth.

Underlying Message:

• The importance of faith, not just in oneself but also in the guidance provided by others.
• Overcoming personal flaws through self-awareness and inner strength.
• The journey of self-discovery often comes with unexpected challenges but leads to profound rewards.

Characters

• Lucy: Brave, calm, kind-hearted, loves Narnia, and stays composed during their adventure.
• Edmund: Courageous, loyal, sarcastic at times, excited to return to Narnia, supportive of Lucy.
• Eustace: Selfish, sceptical, frightened, unwilling to be in Narnia, miserable at the situation.
• King Caspian: Noble, kind, brave, former ally of Lucy and Edmund, rescues them in Narnia.

Comprehension
A. 8. 6. 2. 9. 3. 4. 7. 1. 5.

Reference to Context 
 B. 1. a. Eustace said these words.
 b. ‘Thing’ refers to the magical picture.
 c. The picture had suddenly come alive and had splashed a giant wave of water onto Eustace and his cousins.

2. a. ‘She’ refers to Lucy.
 b. It means to feel grateful for being lucky.
 c. Lucy needed to swim because she had fallen into the sea inside the picture

C. Think and Answer

1. When the picture came alive, the children were shocked. Lucy’s hair whipped around in the wind

blowing out of the picture. For a few seconds, the children were not sure whether they were

dreaming or not. But when they smelled the briny smell of the sea water, they were convinced

it was real. Eustace lost his head completely and panicked. He was angry with the picture and

wanted to break it but got pulled into the picture instead.

2. Lucy was surprised when the picture first came alive but the when she smelled the water, she

knew she was not dreaming. When she fell into the picture, she was shocked but she did not panic.

She was grateful she had been practising her swimming and stayed calm. Eustace was in shock

from beginning to end. He was furious with the picture and when he fell into the sea, he panicked.

He pulled Lucy down under the water with him. When they were rescued by Prince Caspian,

Lucy recovered quickly and was overjoyed to see him and to be back in Narnia. Eustace was very

unhappy and felt sick at the thought of not being able to go home.

3. Lucy, Eustace and Edmund were rescued by Prince Caspian and the crew of his ship. Caspian

jumped off the ship and swam to help the children in the water. In the meanwhile, the crew threw

a rope into the water. Caspian helped the children fasten the rope around themselves. Then, the

crew pulled the children up into the ship using the rope.

4. Eustace did not believe in magic. When he saw magic in the picture, he got scared and angry. We

can see this in the following lines—

 “Stop it,” came Eustace’s voice, squeaky with fright and bad temper. “It’s some silly trick you two are

playing…”’

 “I’ll smash the rotten thing,” cried Eustace.

 Eustace was not calm—he got very scared and worried during an emergency. For example,

when he fell into the water, he got very scared and started going under the water. Eustace was

not very adventurous. He wanted to go home rather than stay in Narnia and have some exciting

times.

D. Answer these questions in detail

The Magical Picture is a classic example of a fantasy story. It contains all the elements a fantasy story

should. The story starts when the picture magically comes alive and transports the children from

their world into Narnia. The journey from this world to Narnia is very unexpected. It comes as a

shock to the children when they see the picture come alive. They fall into the sea in the picture and

almost drown, before they are rescued by Caspian and his ship crew. It is an adventure that they

have in another world. Narnia is a magical world that is outside of our ‘actual’ world. Going back to

Narnia is a wish come true for Lucy and Edmund who had been there twice before and missed it

very much.

E. Know Your Values

I will tell my classmates to keep quiet and not shout at Naina. Then I will help Naina by encouraging

her to slowly come forward and cross the bridge. The group’s behaviour is wrong because they are

being unkind. They are ignoring Naina’s fears and feelings, instead of helping her.

Grammar

A. 2. Anuskha asked, “Will the film release in June?”

3. “How hot is it in Chennai?” asked Jack.

4. “What did you eat for lunch?” Dheeraj asked Becky.

5. “What do you like to read, Mother?” Neeru asked.

6. “What is the price of this book?” asked Kira.

B. 2. Raj asked a passerby what the time was.

3. Father asked us where we wanted to eat.

4. Ini enquired where the princip[al’s office was.

5. The visitor wanted to know how far it was to the beach.

6. Salman wanted to know where I was going.

Vocabulary

1. rarely 2. revealed the secrets 3. tried to remember

4. something you do easily and naturally 5. as long as I want

Listening Exercise
Answers:

1. T 2. NT 3. NT 4. T 5. T 6. NT

Writing

 I was walking around a museum, when I came across a beautiful picture of unicorns. The unicorns

were basking in the warm sunlight and enjoying the cool waters of a lovely stream. It looked like

paradise. When I went closer to the painting to admire it, I thought I heard the gurgling sound of

a brook. I moved closer to the painting and the sound of the brook got louder. I couldn’t believe

what I was hearing. I touched the painting to make sure it wasn’t a dream, but my hand went

through the canvas and touched something wet. I immediately pulled out my hand and saw it was

wet—as though I had put my hand in a brook! I was excited and scared. This time, I closed my eyes

and touched my face to the painting. It went into the canvas. I pushed deeper till my whole body

was inside the painting. I opened my eyes and saw I was standing in the middle of the stream, next

to unicorns and pixies! I thought I was surprised, but the magical creatures were more shocked

than I. The unicorns started neighing in fear and the pixies hid behind the unicorns. I tried to calm

the unicorns but they only got more scared. Suddenly, I heard the sound of hooves thundering

towards me. A knight in armour was riding from the castle towards me. When he reached me, he

pulled out his sword and pointed it to my neck. I immediately put my hands up. “You are under

arrest for disturbing the peace of Terrania!” he yelled. “I will take you to the king who shall decide

what is to be done,” the knight said and tied my hands up. I was terrified. What trouble had I got

myself into?

THE MAGICAL PICTURE

A. Answer in brief.

1. How do you know that the picture was not just a picture but had life in it? (The Magical Picture)

 Ans: A closer look at the picture of the Narnian ship showed that the things in the picture were

moving. The ship started moving up and down spraying sea water. The stern and the deck became

visible. The wind from the picture made an exercise book rise and sail through air, and whipped

Lucy’s hair.

2. How does the author make you believe that Lucy’s experience was not a dream?

 Ans: The author has used words and expressions to touch the different senses like sight, sound

and finally, smell such that it makes one experience what is happening in the picture. With each

sense, Lucy and the others are more and more convinced that it was not a dream.

B. Answer in detail.

1. How did Eustace react to what was happening in the room?

 Ans: For Lucy and Edmund the country of Narnia existed because they had been there before.

But, their cousin Eustace did not believe in either magic or Narnia and he thought that both his

cousins were playing a trick on him. He did not believe in the live picture even when his angry

outburst was silenced by a great cold salty wave that broke out of the picture and smacked them

all in the face. He rushed towards the picture to smash it. Even before he could be stopped, all the

three were almost sucked into the picture. Eustace thought of pulling the frame but the frame

had become much bigger and soon the three were standing on the frame looking at the sea in

front of them.

2. What happened to the three children as they stood on the picture frame? Who rescued them?

 Ans: Edmund, Lucy and Eustace were drawn into the sea by a great blue wave. Lucy was good at

swimming and they were almost near the Narnia ship when Eustace in his panic clutched Lucy

and drew her down into the sea. Both Edmund and Lucy had to hold on to Eustace who was

totally uncontrollable. It was then that a white figure dived off the ship and all the three were

rescued with the help of a rope which pulled them up to the deck of the Narnia ship. The one who

rescued them was a golden headed boy, whom Lucy and Edmund recognised as Caspian, the boy

king of Narnia. They had helped Caspian to sit on the throne during their last visit to Narnia.

C. Read the lines and answer the questions.

1. “It’s some silly trick you two are playing . Stop it – OW!” (The Magical Picture)

 a. Who is the speaker?

 b. What does the person refer to as ‘trick’?

 c. What happened next?

 Ans: a. The speaker is Eustace, Lucy and Edmund’s cousin.

 b. Eustace experienced the cold wind blowing out of the picture along with noise of the

waves. He refers to this as some trick that his cousins were playing on him. He was not

ready to believe it.

 c. He was soon struck by a great cold salty wave.

2. But then Eustace clutched at her in a panic and down they both went.

 a. Who is ‘her’ in the above line?

 b. Where were they?

 c. Why was Eustace in panic?

 Ans: a. ‘Her’ refers to Lucy in the above line.

 b. They were in the sea near the Narnian ship.

 c. Eustace was in panic because all that he was experiencing was unbelievable for him. Till

then he thought his cousins were playing a trick on him. But finally he realised that he

was experiencing everything for real.

D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)

1. Eustace never believed in magic or Narnia but do you think after the experience he had with his

cousins he would change his opinion? Give reason.

 Free response Suggested Ans: The whole experience was frightful rather than fun-filled for

Eustace because he was resisting it till the end. He was keen on getting back home as soon as

possible. With a few interesting and enjoyable experiences like the ones Lucy and Edmund seem

to have had earlier, there is a possibility that his opinion might change.

E. Answer in detail. (Think and answer)

 Eustace wanted to believe that what happened to him was only a dream and that they were still in

Lucy’s room. But actually it was not so. What further adventure do you think the children would have

had thereafter?

Free response