About Christopher
Snarky, flippant, and supremely unconcerned with just about everything, Chrestomanci is one of the most fun characters in the book. He constantly dresses well, is apparently quite attractive, and rarely shows his hand, which is why we don’t realize just how powerful he is until the latter half of Charmed Life. Like Cat, he has nine lives (though he only has two left, whereas Cat has three) and a considerable amount of magical talent. Though a bit distant from our heroes, Chrestomanci is immediately likeable and fascinating in a quirky, eccentric way. It’s no surprise, then, that he’s had the audacity to pop up in a lot of Jones’ work, and also appears to be a forerunner for Jones’ other foppish wizard, Howl Jenkins, from Howl’s Moving Castle.
Chrestomanci makes a great show of being completely spacey and uninvolved most of the time, which really seems to be a cover for just how non-spacey and very involved he truly is. He does not respond to any of Gwendolen’s cries for attention, and even leaves Cat quite alone, despite knowing how important Cat is. And yet, when Cat overhears Chrestomanci talking to Michael, he realizes Chestomanci is much more worried about the situation in the Castle than he’s letting on. And given his job description, Chrestomanci has an awful lot to be worried about: he is personally in charge of overseeing the use of magic not only in his world, but in every world (and there are quite a few). While this means that he has an excellent excuse to cameo in all sorts of stories, it does make one wonder how he can possibly have time to take care of his own family, let alone look after Cat and Gwendolen. The sheer weight of his duties probably explains why, although he is definitely a focal character in the book, Chrestomanci remains somehow separated from the rest of the cast, as much as he seems to delight in interacting with most of them. Or maybe he just remains separate on purpose to add to his mysterious air. It’s not exactly something you can put past him….
It is interesting to note that we never learn Chrestomanci’s real name or much about his background in Charmed Life. Most of Chrestomanci’s history--and the simple fact that he’s called Christopher Chant--is explained in the prequel The Lives of Christopher Chant. I won’t go into too much detail about that book here except to say that it seems that Christopher’s introduction to the Chrestomanci position and the Castle was very similar to Cat’s. He had very little magical background, no interest in being the next Chrestomanci, and spent much of his time bemoaning the fate which sent him to the Castle, where he was lonely and unhappy. But circumstances forced him to take a leadership role, and the more Christopher came into his powers, the more he seemed capable of fitting into the Chrestomanci shoes. It’s still a bit hard to see how the mopey, put-upon child became the debonair, well-groomed Chrestomanci of Charmed Life, (though the second prequel, Conrad's Fate, is an excellent look at a teenaged Christopher), but suffice it to say that he’s grown up quite well, which gives me great hope about how Cat will turn out in the long run.
About the Family
Chrestomanci’s immediate family by marriage consists of his wife Milly and his two children, Julia and Roger; however, at Chrestomanci Castle there’s a larger group referred to as the Family, who are all somehow related in duty, if not by blood. Much of the staff, including Michael Saunders, the children’s tutor, are a part of this Family, which seems to have a lot to do with Chrestomanci’s power and organization. When fighting the hedge wizards at the end of the story, Chrestomanci maintains that he would not have been able to win had he not been freed of the silver by Cat and thereby able to call the Family into the secret garden to help him. When his powers are combined with that of the Family (including his young children and eventually Cat himself), Chrestomanci is able to strip the hedge wizards of their magic, thereby eliminating them as a threat. So although Chrestomanci is set apart from the other wizards in his midst, he’s also absolutely dependent upon them.
About a Heart
When Gwendolen initially writes Chrestomanci and crows over her ability to wring his heart with her sad tale of orphans, Mrs. Sharp tells her that Chrestomanci doesn’t have a heart to wring. Granted Mrs. Sharp is a bit put out at the time by Gwendolen’s obvious hopes to move up in the world and forget all about Mrs. Sharp, but she does bring up a good point: does Chrestomanci have a heart, and if so, what is necessary to really wring it? His first encounter with Cat does lead Cat to believe that Chrestomanci pities him; but Cat also suspects that he has somehow insulted Chrestomanci before he’s actually done much other than show him into the parlor (perhaps this is because of the nasty letter exchange Chrestomanci had with Gwendolen’s and Cat’s father years before). So just where is Chrestomanci’s heart, and why is it in hiding?
Throughout Gwendolen’s pranks, Chrestomanci remains unmoved and distant in public. The few times we see him react in semi-private, he seems more annoyed and angry than particularly sympathetic (though granted, Gwendolen is a hard person to feel sympathetic toward). But even with Cat, Chrestomanci is still rather cold--probably because he doesn’t know whether or not Cat is in league with Gwendolen. It’s not until Gwendolen has left for her new world and Cat has been saddled with the responsibility of looking after Janet and keeping her presence a secret that Chrestomanci begins to show real concern. Actually, it takes a near disaster--Cat inadvertently loses one of his lives by being pretty darn stupid--to make Chrestomanci show some real emotion. He does this first by yelling at Janet and then at Cat for being idiots; however, he also immediately springs into action to help and protect Cat, whom he calls by his nickname for the first time. There’s nothing quite like dumping your young ward in the bathtub after he’s caught himself on fire to prove you care about him, even if you’re doing a bit of yelling at the time.
So it’s perhaps a bit callous to refer to Chrestomanci as heartless, since he’s willing to douse a burning ward and world-jump another, when the situation calls for it; however, he does seem to be quite adept at keeping that heart of his securely hidden most of the time. I would suggest that this is because of the betrayals he experienced as a child (see The Lives of Christopher Chant), but it may also just be that he’s a retiring sort of guy when it comes to the mushy stuff. Being that way no doubt helps his reputed aloof mystique. But turn up the pressure on him or anyone he cares about, and you’ll have on your hands a serious force to be reckoned with. This duality of character--reserved but caring--is one of the most fascinating elements of Chrestomanci’s character.
About a Connection
Jones must really like the foppish, sarcastic, insanely powerful enchanter archetype, because she’s used it at least twice for two of her most memorable characters: Christopher Chant and Howl Jenkins. For your consideration:
1. Both are impeccable dressers who take great pride in their physical appearance.
2. Both are immensely powerful but show next to no sign of magical ability unless prodded by circumstances to do so.
3. Both hop worlds at their own discretion, and both of them have ties to a world which is presumably ours (Chrestomanci’s ward Janet is probably from our England; Howl is originally from our Wales).
4. Both are or were at one time obsessed with a typical British sport (cricket for Chrestomanci, rugby for Howl).
5. Both are offset by strong female foils (Chrestomanci has Gwendolen, Howl has Sophie) who spend a lot of time, whether purposefully or inadvertently, making life difficult.
6. For the nitpickers: Both have assistants named Michael.
Of course, there are plenty of differences too, most notably Howl’s penchant for skirt-chasing (a pastime Chrestomanci does not engage in, so far as we know) and Chrestomanci’s relatively solid sense of responsibility (Howl is much more likely to have an emotional fit--read: green slime attack--when things don’t go his way). But I do think it’s interesting that these two incredibly memorable, charismatic characters have so many similarities.
About Losing a Life
When Cat uses dragon’s blood to open a portal to another world, he worries that he’s lost another life until Chrestomanci assures him that he hasn’t. The way he assures him, though, leads to some interesting possibilities: Cat asks if he lost a life, and Chrestomanci says he hasn’t…which of course implies that someone else did. And the only other character we know of with lives to spare is Chrestomanci himself. So…is he down one life? Or did some other single-lived person die? Unless, of course, there’s another nine-lived enchanter in the vicinity--Chrestomanci implies that although he hasn’t found one in their world, at least one does exist in one of the other worlds, since they were considering pulling him or her in as the next Chrestomanci before they found Cat. (And there’s another interesting question: has there ever been a female Chrestomanci?)
About Words
The real fun, of course, is to read all of Chrestomanci’s quips in context, but this particular exchange is one of my favorites, and I think it says a lot about Chrestomanci as a character, particularly since it takes place the first time we meet him in person:
"What makes you think I’m important?" Chrestomanci asked, still bewildered.
Cat was beginning to want to shake him. "You must be. You’re wearing important clothes. And Mrs. Sharp said you were. She said Mr. Norstrum would give his eyes just for your three letters."
"Has Mr. Norstrum given his eyes for my letters?" asked Chrestomanci. "It hardly seems worth it."
"No. He just gave Gwendolen lessons for them," said Cat.
"What? For his eyes? How uncomfortable!" said Chrestomanci. (p22)
Ah, to have the literal wit of an extremely bored, wealthy enchanter!
