Shayna Cohen Literature Blog

Neil Gaiman as an author is well known for tackling mythology and reinventing it in many different ways for his own books. In Good Omens, he uses christian mythology to create a love letter to humanity. In American Gods, he asks the question of what exactly is sacred and why when the greek pantheon move to American and adapts to the times. The Ocean at the End of the Lane is no exception in the way that it utilizes the triple goddess from greek mythology and reinterprets it into three very English women who are old enough to remember the old country and do their various chores the old fashioned way. However, the biggest myth that Gaiman decides to break down in this book is the myth of childhood itself. A running theme in this book and quite honestly throughout Neil Gaiman's ethos as an author is that children and adults are not actually as different as we think. The first paragraph of the book brings this idea to light. The narrator tells  the audience the black funeral clothes

Like most people under the age of thirty, I grew up reading the Harry Potter books. I'll admit I wasn't as obsessed with them as many others are. I also wasn't really paying attention to the lessons on life that JK Rowling was trying to impart on me. What drew me to the story was the intricate world building that imparted a sense of whimsy. I too wanted to be told I was special and be sent off to learn wonderful things such as flying, drink delicious sweet butterbeer and eat enchanted chocolate frogs all while making equally special and magical friends. Any little kid wanted their letter to Hogwarts so that they could escape the boredom and disappointments of real life. What I didn't realize until I was older was the complexities and confusion that was present in the real world was equally present in the magical world of Hogwarts. Even in book one, Rowling let the reader know that the magical world of Harry Potter hosted a rising fascist, racist cult of personality not

For this weeks reading, I read Terry Pratchett's short story, Troll Bridge. What I found interesting about this piece is that is decides to follow a hero many years after he's gone through his archetypal journey.  He's washed up with almost no treasure to use to retire because as he put's it he, " Spent it all. Drank it all. Gave it all away. Lost it." The golden hero Cohen The Barbarian who is reminiscent of the typical serial comic adventures of the 50's and 60's seems like the type of hero who you never see age. Every month a new issue in a shiny new land with a new gal by his side and new treasure to seek. He is the archetypal hero who never ages, always cycling through his journey. You usually don't get to see what happens to him after the end, that is until Terry Pratchett decides to make his beginning his end. Cohen the Barbarian admits to his trusty yet sarcastic steed that he "Never thought I'd have an old age."  The now anci