How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"And look at those other steps—the broad, shallow ones—going up to that doorway. It must have been the door into the great hall."
"Ages ago, by the look of it," said Edmund. (2.2-3)
The first building seen in Narnia is a ruin from the country's golden era. It hints at the current state of Old Narnia before we even get the back story from Trumpkin. Now that's storytelling.
Quote #2
"Caspian the Tenth, King of Narnia, and long may he reign!" answered the Dwarf. "That is to say, he ought to be King of Narnia and we hope he will be. At present he is only King of us Old Narnians—"
"What do you mean by Old Narnians, please?" asked Lucy. (3.48-49)
We talk about the dividing line between good and evil in our "Good vs. Evil" theme. But here we have a similar divider set up. Since Prince Caspian worships the past, you can bet which group of Narnians will end up as the good guys and which will not.
Quote #3
"And there were Dwarfs. And there were lovely little Fauns in all the woods. They had feet like goats. And—"
"That's all nonsense, for babies," said the King sternly. (4.11-12)
The past has been forgotten in all but story and myth, leading Miraz to consider it nonsense. But even the most make-believe stories have some connection to reality and the past. Yes, even the ones with fauns and dwarfs.
Quote #4
"It was your Highness's ancestor, Caspian the First," said Doctor Cornelius, "who first conquered Narnia and made it his kingdom." (4.26)
It's never fully stated whether or not Caspian the First started the horrible mistreatment of Narnians, or if that came later with rulers like Miraz. We've always been curious about that. Wonder if there are any clues to be found elsewhere in the story…
Quote #5
[…] and on the stones, peering in the twilight, Caspian saw strange characters and snaky patterns, and pictures in which the form of a Lion was repeated again and again. It all seemed to belong to an even older Narnia than the Narnia of which his nurse had told him. (7.37)
The further you go into Narnia's past, the more idyllic things become, since it draws closer to Aslan's ideal for the country. Well, except for that whole White Witch thing. That was a bit of a fiasco.
Quote #6
"It is hard for you, little one," said Aslan. "But things never happen the same way twice. It has been hard for us all in Narnia before now." (10.68)
Although returning to the past is ideal in Prince Caspian, it does come with the warning that things cannot be exactly the same. It'll always be different because the past is, well, the past.
Quote #7
"[Aslan] was not always a good friend to Dwarfs by all that's told. Not even to all beasts. Ask the Wolves." (12.38)
Nikabrik's remembrance of the past is a dark mirror compared to the others'. He recalls the White Witch's reign as the idyllic one. Hey, we like winter just fine, but one hundred years? Yeesh.
Quote #8
The sort of "History" that was taught in Narnia under Miraz's rule was duller than the truest history you ever read and less true than the most exciting adventure story. (14.54)
Here, we return to the idea that there are many variants on the past. All of these variants have some flaw in them that make them inferior to the true past. How do you tell the difference? You need to ask the lion.
Quote #9
They were told that Caspian was now King and that Narnia would henceforth belong to the Talking Beasts and the Dwarfs and Dryads and Fauns and other creatures quite as much as to the men. Any who chose to stay under the new conditions might do so; […]. (15.26)
The idyllic past returns to Narnia, but as we saw earlier, it's not the exact same as before. The Telmarines are now Narnians in their own respect, and they can choose to be a part of this new ideal era.
Quote #10
"You came into Narnia out of Telmar," said Aslan. "But you came into Telmar from another place. You do not belong to this world at all. You came hither, certain generations ago, out of that same world to which the High King Peter belongs." (15.30)
In our "What's Up with the Ending?" section, we talk about how the ending is centered on restoring world order. Returning things to a state similar to a past golden era seems to be an important step in achieving that order.