The Silver Chair

Jill Pole is the first character introduced in The Silver Chair and one of the primary protagonists. She is a young girl who attends Experiment House, a school where she is frequently bullied. Although she is initially characterized by a quick temper and a degree of immaturity, she is eager to please Aslan when he gives her a quest, and therefore is essentially a “good” person who is desirous of following Aslan’s spiritual guidance despite her many difficulties in maintaining her faith. Over the course of the story, Jill gains confidence and develops strong friendships with Eustace and Puddleglum.

After the first chapter, where she is depicted crying behind the school’s gym, there are several instances when Jill is shown to be afraid or overwhelmed by a situation. When she meets the giant King and Queen at Harfang, for instance, she starts crying because “she had had hardly anything to eat or drink that day; and her legs were aching so that she felt she could not go on standing much longer” (82). Later, in the Underworld, she is afraid to enter the tunnels because “she [hates] dark, underground places” (103), and it is only with support and encouragement from Puddleglum that she is able to overcome her initially childish reaction and forge more courageously ahead.