I always got the impression from the end of LWW that the Pevensies hunted. I knew they weren't going to kill the white stag, but it seems to me like they might have killed dumb beast before. As somebody mentioned already, in SC the children and Puddleglum are okay with eating stag until they find out it's a talking beast.

So that said, I don't think it would be out of the question for some of the talking animals to hunt dumb beast in Narnia and for Aslan to partake in some of the feasts with them. I certainly can't see Talking Animals killing for fun, and I think they probably killed quickly, then brought their kills home, cooked them properly with herbs and spices and apples, and had potatoes as a side.

And as long as we're comparing Aslan to Christ, Christ had to eat while he was on the earth. Yes, he went for a supernaturally long time without food while he was in the desert being tempted, but I think he was pretty ravenous after that.

And *gasp* I agree with glumPuddle on the passage about Aslan "swallowing up" girls and boys,women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms." I took it fairly literally when I read it. Maybe I'm a touch autistic about some human reactions and tend to take things literally, but there was no doubt in my mind when I read the passage that Aslan could literally eat Jill... I figured the those great realms might not have all been eaten by Aslan... at least not in his present form, but that many people did die at his paws and teeth. I find it a little weird that your family laughed at poor Jill for not knowing whether to take Aslan literally Ithel.

Now, I don't want to get into even a friendly debate with you, because you'll clearly win, but I don't think we should take Aslan lightly when he says that he could swallow someone up. Although at the same time, the image that comes to mind where the animals and men that vanished into his shadow to the left in LB, so I suppose it depends on the context for whether I think Aslan is literally eating people.

And I would also like to add that I think Jesus is literally going to be leading the battle and doing all the fighting at his second coming. And Bible is pretty graphic on that front. It talks about birds gorging themselves on the flesh of the armies the rider kills. Not exactly neat and tidy... or tame.

when aslan said "I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors." I do not think that was a source of food. I do not think he needs to eat but sometimes does like when he swallowed up people.

I don't think we should take Aslan lightly when he says that he could swallow someone up. Although at the same time, the image that comes to mind where the animals and men that vanished into his shadow to the left in LB, so I suppose it depends on the context for whether I think Aslan is literally eating people.

And I would also like to add that I think Jesus is literally going to be leading the battle and doing all the fighting at his second coming. And Bible is pretty graphic on that front. It talks about birds gorging themselves on the flesh of the armies the rider kills. Not exactly neat and tidy... or tame.

Just a quick note to clarify. The reason I think the passage is metaphorical is not because I don't believe Aslan is able to eat people. Nor is it because of a belief that Christ isn't capable of holy violence. The reason I don't take that passage literally is because of the context of the passage.

~Riella

If Aslan is representing God, God does not need to eat. He can, but it is not necessary. Therefore, same with Aslan.

I don't think Aslan ever hunted. Aslan, like God, just is. No need for survival things like nutrition.

But yes, he CAN eat, or devour (depending on the situation).

If Aslan is representing God, God does not need to eat. He can, but it is not necessary. Therefore, same with Aslan.

I don't think Aslan ever hunted. Aslan, like God, just is. No need for survival things like nutrition.

But yes, he CAN eat, or devour (depending on the situation).

Agreed. I don't recall him hunting in the books or in the movies. Aslan also represents Jesus, right so if Jesus ate in the New Testament, was there some similar aspect to that in the books? Just curious.

I even can't figure it out....did he sleep or eat??? Didn't they have feasts and he ate with them...IDK. I wish that C.S. Lewis left an explanation of how every character in each of his books did every single day. Did they all have a routine or did they do diffferent things every day. I don't know. It all lies in the late C.S. Lewis's mind. The world may never know!

Wow, thank you for all the answers. It has been a while since I last came here. Very thought-provoking. I do not even know if C.S. Lewis thought about this- or the implications. All I knew was that when He was talking to Jill about swallowing up people, He was certainly talking in metaphors- like He always does.

I think that since Aslan was represented as Jesus, and Jesus had to eat as he was flesh and bone , I think Aslan did. God was represented as the "emperor" over the sea. So he wasn't God in the books. I don't think Jesus ate after he died and he had a glorified body. So maybe Aslan didn't after he died? Just a thought.

I don't think Jesus ate after he died and he had a glorified body.

Well, he did at least once - when he suddenly appeared to the disciples and they feared that he was a ghost, he asked them whether they had anything to eat. They gave him some fried fish, and he ate it as they watched.

And I guess that when they met him at the sea in Galilee, before he asked Peter three times whether he loved him, he might have eaten with them at the meal they had.

I do not think that he would need to eat anything to sustain that body, so I'm not quite sure why he would eat, other than to demonstrate that he could. Perhaps that was the only reason.

Varnafide wrote
I do not think that he would need to eat anything to sustain that body, so I'm not quite sure why he would eat, other than to demonstrate that he could. Perhaps that was the only reason.

True, I think he did this just to make the disciples more comfortable and to be close to them. Maybe Aslan did this with with the children or his followers.

An interesting qustion.

What he said to Jill is entirely possible, of course. Leweis remarks that Aslan's tone isn't that of a braggart or as a warning meant to scare Jill, so I assume it is the truth. I initially assumed he actually did swallow "cities and realms". While not out of the question (he is Aslan! ) he could, as glumPuddle pointed out, be referring to the population in general.

As puddleglum32 observed 6 years ago,I could see him eating with the Narnians as a sign of his willingness to fellowship with them. After all, he identifies with the Talking Beasts of Narnia, even though he can change forms (or become invisible). So even if he doesn't need to, he might eat just to keep them company.