Sorry for the delay in replying here. And... Hamlet. :) I don't suppose Lewis was trying precisely to draw a parallel in Prince Caspian but I'm guessing that he was well aware - not so much of echoes, but of what might later echo for his presumed child audience. He is explicit about the resemblance of Rilian to Hamlet in TSC (where there's also echoes of madness, of course).
What you say about Peter is a lovely thought-starter! I disagree (but that's three-quarters of the fun of such exchanges, isn't it?) that Lewis didn't know what to do with him, but I agree that he set himself a very hard task, (now in the hands of the fanficcers!) in setting up an adult male character defined very largely by straightforward goodness and valour.
Re: head-canon collision
And... Hamlet. :) I don't suppose Lewis was trying precisely to draw a parallel in Prince Caspian but I'm guessing that he was well aware - not so much of echoes, but of what might later echo for his presumed child audience. He is explicit about the resemblance of Rilian to Hamlet in TSC (where there's also echoes of madness, of course).
What you say about Peter is a lovely thought-starter! I disagree (but that's three-quarters of the fun of such exchanges, isn't it?) that Lewis didn't know what to do with him, but I agree that he set himself a very hard task, (now in the hands of the fanficcers!) in setting up an adult male character defined very largely by straightforward goodness and valour.