The Ocean at the End of the Lane

In The Ocean at the End of the Lane, there was a few mythical aspects to find. I was most interested in the powerful sorceresses in the story.

One of the main examples of mythology in Ocean at the End of the Lane was the Hempstock family. After researching more on this peculiar set of females, I found they represented the triple goddess,  by weaving and tying threads to create life. The three faces of the triple goddess are Mother, Maiden and Crone. The Maiden is open to everything and unspoiled, a child of nature, and portrayed as a virgin. It was important for the boy to meet Lettie Hempstock first, as she was a child, which the boy only trusted children because was certain that adults would never listen to him. She is considered powerful by mythology and a successful hunter.

The Mother, the nurturer in the trinity, had the job of taking care of Lettie and Gran. She might not be a biological mother, but in the story she had to be something which the 9 year old boy could understand. Thus she had a very maternal look about herself, offered cucumber sandwiches, and reminded the kids to be careful. She's a quick thinker based on how she would cover up acts of magic, and had lots of power. Her main driving goal is to be taking care of every one, and the boy would feel comfortable with her filling the absence of his own mother.

Finally the Crone, "Gran" or  Old Mrs. Hempstock, is the omniscient, omnipotent, wise old woman. She acts as the savior in various points in the book, and has more abilities than the other two. Her powers are important because although she can solve almost anything, she doesn't intervene unless she has to. I believe this is because she is all-knowing and in a way, knows everything will be alright. Old Mrs. Hempstock also represents death, or a waning moon. The book portrays this as her needing to take long "naps" when she has been magically drained. Due to her old age and power, these naps are a sign of temporary death, because she cannot be awaked.

I enjoyed this novel by Neil Gaiman, his work is a bit dreary at times, but I appreciate how simple and uncomplicated his stories are, but when you go back and look at the motifs, you're able to dig up references to mythology and underlying themes that are truly amazing. I hope to read more of this classic author's works.

Witcher Book Series - Blood of Elves, The Time of Contempt, & Baptism of Fire

In much the same way one might view Harry Potter, Cirilla, in The Witcher is viewed as a "chosen one" of sorts, and has to learn how to harness her intrinsic magical powers. The book follows a collection of stories, separate timelines which do eventually end up coming together. One of the most important being Ciri's development and training. She is forced to learn to fight like a witcher as her father, Geralt. (not by birth, but by gift of surprise, bound by fate) This challenge is forced upon her only as a means of survival. She is hunted by evil characters who want her not only for her royal blood but also her magical abilities.

After she is trained in the ways of the witcher she is taken under the wing of Yennifer where she would learn the ways of a sorceress. Yennifer plays a role as mother figure in the training, using harsh punishment and withheld praise to strengthen ciri. She also experienced this same strong handed during her sword-fighting and agility combat training. The way she is taught first the ways of sleighing monsters and hand-to-hand combat and then pushed into the intellectual side of magic training shows a dramatic shift in lifestyle and challenge.

She is faced with several moral issues throughout the book, the first being when learning magic. Yennifer teaches Ciri the basics of magic and progressively moves onto larger/stronger spells. One example of a moral issue is when Ciri is told to stay away from "fire magic." Not understanding the ramifications of such power, she uses it—given she is in a time of dire need and has no choice—and it causes her to have hallucinations urging her to kill anyone who abandoned her at a young age. After understanding the downside to magic, this challenge causes her to be more careful and avoid all fire magic.

As the series progresses, her powers continues to form her into a force to be reckoned with.

Chinese Ghost Stories - Curious Tales of the Supernatural

Of the Chinese Ghost Stories - Curious Tales of the Supernatural collection, I chose to write of my two favorite stories.

The Legend of Zhi Nü:
One of my major assumptions about the themes of good and evil in this book are that it follows a Biblical sense. The main character, Dong, had a loving father who unconditionally loved his son and spent every penny on his education and well-being. I see this as a parallel to the biblical christian belief that God has given everything to his people, without asking for anything in return. Moving on, when Dong's father passed away, he felt ashamed for not having enough to honor the father's death with a proper funeral. This could also relate to how Christians feel a need to honor their god for all he has provided for them. Then after Dong honors his father, when most of his friends called him crazy. After Dong gets terribly ill and the mysterious magical "goddess" female figure appears, revives, and marries Dong. This could also be a representation of Jesus, as he came down to earth and rescued those who believed. Dong is recognized in the end of the story for his hard work and honor to his father. His good is rewarded with life and freedom. Which is another way of representing the religious values of good and evil. There supernatural elements which are prominent in Chinese and Japanese horror stories are apparent in the "beautiful woman" and her mysterious power, weaving skills, and sudden appearance/disappearance. Western Horror doesn't have mysterious beautiful women of power.

The Soul of the Great Bell:
In this second story, another form of sacrifice is recorded. This story follows the premise of a bell maker who couldn't get his metals to bond properly. He is faced with one final try to get it right or he would die. This ultimatum, which he was destined to fail, is prevented by the sacrifice of his daughter, a virgin. The good in this story can be seen as the daughter saving the life of her father. Much like the last, these Chinese short stories uphold the theme of honoring parents and self sacrifice. The evil in this story is the greed-filled emperor who wanted the biggest and loudest bell in all the land. Something impossible without a blood sacrifice. The story illustrates that sometimes life is challenged by evil and only an act of ultimate sacrifice can fix it. I appreciated these short stories and can now see how they differ from western cultural writing. There is no monster, no heroine in distress, no scary castles and dark nights. Just a sad tale of a sacrifice made by a son/daughter.