CS Lewis & Narnia — Creative Writing from Belfast
A P4–P7 Literacy and Local History resource on CS Lewis — his childhood in Belfast, the inspirations for Narnia in the Northern Irish landscape, and creative writing prompts based on his work.
Preview
Page count: 2. Print-ready PDF — letter / A4 friendly. Click image to see all pages.
CS Lewis and Belfast
- 1 Born in Belfast (1898–1963) Clive Staples Lewis was born in Strandtown, east Belfast. He lived in the city until he went to boarding school in England aged 9. His childhood Belfast home, Little Lea, shaped his imagination.
- 2 The Mourne Mountains Lewis wrote that the Mourne Mountains in County Down inspired his vision of Narnia. 'I have seen landscapes which, under a particular light, made me feel that at any moment a giant might raise his head over the next ridge.'
- 3 The wardrobe As a child Lewis had a wardrobe in his Belfast home that he and his brother Warren imagined was magical. This wardrobe inspired the most famous portal in children's literature.
- 4 The lamppost In Belfast's Holywood Arches, an old gaslight lamppost stood for many decades. Local legend says this is the lamppost Lucy finds at the edge of Narnia.
- 5 Creative writing prompt 1 Describe a wardrobe — but make every detail real and physical (the smell of the wood, the texture of coats, the feel of the floor). Then describe the moment something extraordinary begins to happen.
- 6 Creative writing prompt 2 Write the opening of a story in which an ordinary object in your school or home turns out to be a portal to another world. Where does it lead? What is the first thing your character notices?
Learning objective
Describe CS Lewis's Belfast childhood and the Narnia inspirations; identify imaginative devices used in his work; and write a creative piece inspired by Lewis's portal-to-elsewhere idea.
About this resource
Narnia and CS Lewis books
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For children
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T The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe — C.S. Lewis
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T The Chronicles of Narnia complete box set — C.S. Lewis
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T The Narnia Code — for older readers — Michael Ward
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