I think they will make the Calormene populace more sympathetic, with an emphasis on a handful of corrupt nobility only.

I think they will make the Calormene populace more sympathetic, with an emphasis on a handful of corrupt nobility only.

That would be great, but what about the Calormen religion? perhaps they could make Tash the main religion of the Tisroc and the Tarkaans, while the other gods Azaroth and Zardeenah could be the sympathetic gods of the country folk, and that the religion of Tash was forced upon them by the Tisroc's arrogant claim to be descended from.

Wow, kinda like of a Messiah complex there.

This was discussed a little while ago on the HHB What the filmmakers need to know, and your thoughts threads... not sure if this is exactly what you're looking for, but i don't think it hurts to post it

their religion sounds like the medieval view of Islam.

We've discussed the issue of Calormene culture (dress, etc.) as well as racial features in minute detail on the other thread, but not the potential offensiveness of the religion of Tash-worship, unless I missed something. Could you explain how the religion of Tash-worship bears any resemblance to Islam? I don't see it. It does, however, have a striking resemblance to the religion of Baal-worship. This was the religion of the ancient Canaanites, a dead religion.

The Calormenes are also polytheistic (believing/worshiping multiple gods), and Islam is a religion that strictly worships only one god, Allah.

The Telmarines in PC were portrayed as having Latin or Hispanic descent and I didn't hear very many complaints from critics (besides one review) that said the filmmakers were being racially insensitive. So, I think the filmmakers would be safe to portray the Calormenes as a Middle Eastern influenced culture in appearance. However, it would be important to emphasize their polytheism and other qualities that are separate from Islamic beliefs.

At the end of the day, I think us fans are over-thinking this. Sure, it's something that needs to be handled correctly, but I don't feel it will be all that difficult.

We've discussed the issue of Calormene culture (dress, etc.) as well as racial features in minute detail on the other thread, but not the potential offensiveness of the religion of Tash-worship, unless I missed something. Could you explain how the religion of Tash-worship bears any resemblance to Islam? I don't see it. It does, however, have a striking resemblance to the religion of Baal-worship. This was the religion of the ancient Canaanites, a dead religion.

Perhaps I have been listening to too many critics, but when reading the HHB and the LB, you can't fail to realize that Lewis could have been inspired the Crusades and the Saracens; in medieval Christian belief, they thought the Saracens worshiped Termagant and Mahoun.

Even I have studied Classical & Medieval literature.

They probably will change the Calormenes just to avoid controversy, but I don't think they should. That's the way Lewis wrote them. They're not Muslim. They're Calormene.

But then, maybe Lewis did mean for them to resemble Muslims. You never know. A lot of people say that in the end times, there will be a war between Muslims and Christians. The Narnians represent Christians. LB represents the End Times. So I guess it's not too far-fetched. I still don't see why that would be a reason to censor it though. After all, they don't censor the people who say there will be a war between Christians and Muslims. So if the real-life instance is fine in the media, I don't see why a representation would be any different.

To me they remind me of Arabian Nights. It gives the country a more desert feel to it. It doesn't have to be an issue of discrimination or prejudice.

I think it's sad that so many people nowadays get up in arms over such trivial things, demanding apologies, that filmmakers have to watch every move they make. If a caucasian person is shown as a bad guy, then everyone thinks of it as normal. But you make the bad guy any other color or look, and suddenly you're in a danger zone. I just think it's unnecessary.

~Riella

Medieval view of Islam? Perhaps some people were confused back then. But Islam is a monotheistic religion. By the 20th century, most people were aware of that- and C.S. Lewis was a very highly educated man. As many people have pointed out, the Calormene religion is clearly polytheistic. Calormen can be paralleled to ancient Egypt or ancient India. Middle Eastern does NOT automatically equal Muslim- and a great proportion of Muslims are not even from the Middle East.

I'm with Aravis on this. Medieval misconceptions about Islam have no relevance in modern cinema. When it comes to attitudes on Islam I think the modern movie-goer falls into one of two categories:

1. People who understand that Islam is a monotheistic religion with roots in Judaism. This group will instantly recognize that Tash worship has nothing in common with Islam.

2. People who neither no nor care anything about Islam. These people won't make the connection in the first place.

HHB isn't the one we need to worry about with racism. We need to worry about LB, which I'll admit is racist. HHB isn't racist at all, however.

I don't think they should change it, but if it gets made, I'm pretty sure they will.

In Lewis' defense, I don't hold him to the same standards as today. That doesn't excuse some of the stereotypes found in the books but I can understand how an author wouldn't have the insight back then as they would now. Just look at some of the old Popeye cartoons and you'll see ethnic jabs that you would never see today. But those unfortunate references don't ruin it for me. Times change and in some cases, society today has now been kinder and more respectful to people of different cultures. Judge the art in the time period it was produced.

Besides, if he were truly a racist toward Arab cultures, he wouldn't have included such admirable characters like Aravis and Emeth.

Just some food for thought concerning the Calormenes and why Lewis may have written them the way he did.

I remember reading that C. S. Lewis dislike Arabian Nights as a kid (I'm sorry I don't remember where). So this would make Narnia and the Calormenes not about the North West vs. the Middle East but about stories he liked and stories he didn't like as a child. Narnia has all the talking animals and knights that he loved and faced them against characters he really didn't like. It would be like me having Latino gangsters as villains in a story I wrote. I had to read a book about them in school and really disliked it. Would this make me racist against Latinos even if I had two very honourable Latinos in my story?

One more thing I've noticed is that the Calormenes vaguely resemble another group that people never seem to bring up: the ancient Israelites. Maybe he wrote the Calormenes the way he did to say that the ancient Israelites weren't perfect- they could in fact be diabolical. He could make us see a culture of God-fearing people (Narnia) with all the cultural trapping of ancient Israel removed and showed us some of those trappings for what they really are in a separate culture (Calormene).

I'm not saying these are the reasons Lewis wrote the Calormenes the way he did, but they were thoughts I had. Either way I'd be very hesitant to say Lewis was racist because, like Skilletdude said, the Telmarines in movie-Prince Caspian were mediteranean-based and no one cared. It's only because it's a sensitive issue that people care. I've seen plenty of Christian and caucasian bashing that no one cares about because it isn't a sensitive issue.

It's easy to chalk the portrayals up to racism. Like Skilletdude and Reepicheep775, I think racism is not the case.

Like Reep said, Lewis didn't like the Arabian Nights very much (it was in Surprised by Joy). The Calormenes are very much in the tradition of the Arabian Nights, and like them you have very cruel characters and very heroic ones. We don't call the Arabian Nights racist because we know that they come from the traditions they portray. The fact that Lewis tried to add on to this tradition has opened him to criticisms of racism because...well, it's just simpler to explain it that way.

But I've read a LOT of Lewis. In Surprised by Joy he makes it clear that he never partook of the jingoistic, zealous kind of patriotism and imperialism. He condemns imperialism in an essay from the collection "The World' Last Night" (Harcourt). He also makes it evident in The Last Battle that one thing that is OK in one culture is not ok in another. Remember when Tirian, Eustace, and Jill disguise as Calormenes? Disguise is viewed OK in Narnian culture. But in Calormene culture it is apparantly frowned upon. Emeth says that when he and other warriors were commanded to disguise as merchants and "work by lies and trickery" he became disillusioned with their mission.

In a movie it is a lot easier to seem either too callous with race (witness the terrible Sean Connery movie The Wind and the Lion), or overly sensitive. But I think Prince Caspian handled it vey well (heck, the whole book hinges on a Telmarine saving Narnia). And yes, the Calormenes wouldn't be such an issue if the Middle East wasn't such a prominent part of our news and culture today. I really think the best way is to play it straight.