Erika Brickley's Blog

Relationship values in Jane Eyre

Everyone in my family is a big reader. Whether they read all the time or only manage to get through one book in a decade, everyone really loves books, libraries, and bookshelves, as well as encouraging their children to partake. So, we had a lot of books in the house that belonged to my parents and not to my sister or me. One of my mother's books was an especially eye-catching volume, although it was so thick that I couldn't imagine getting through it at only 10 years old. I liked looking through the books on the shelf even when I had no desire to read them, and sometimes I asked Mom what they were about and why she liked them. In the same way that she couldn't quite understand why I loved fantasy stories so much, I couldn't understand what drew her to historical fiction.

"Why does this book have gold pages?" I asked, holding it up. The book had a white pleather cover with the profile of a girl on the front with the name Jane Eyre printed below. The pages were gold-edged so that, when the book was closed, the book looked like a block of gold encased in a book cover. "Jane Eye-reh?"

"It's pronounced 'Jane Air'," Mom said. "And it has gold pages because it is one of the best books in the world."

For years and years I was convinced that the books that were the most beloved throughout the world would have the honor of being gilded in gold. I even passed this tidbit of knowledge along to my young friends, although I didn't know how a book was deemed to be one of the best. When I later asked what Jane Eyre was actually about, Mom said it was a period piece following the life of a strong young woman. That didn't sound very exciting to me. I preferred science fiction or fantasy. Mom and my tastes only intersected on Harry Potter and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Nevertheless, I understood that the best books in the world, the ones that became classics, were usually not located in the sections of the library I visited, so I forgot about it.

It wasn't until high school that I finally read Jane Eyre. Rather than everyone reading one book, my teacher had us break into three groups: Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and Frankenstein. Interesting as Frankenstein sounded, I chose Jane Eyre as a sort of life goal finally realized. To my surprise, I absolutely loved it. The plot is a bit like Beauty and the Beast with all its mystery and unlikely romances, which tickled my fancy. There is also a lot of humor to be found in the pages, which makes the characters feel sympathetic in a world of cruelty and wealth.

Jane Eyre is the daughter of a woman who chose to leave her wealthy surroundings to marry a poor priest. Unfortunately, both of Jane's parents died before she could make any memories with them and she was sent to live at Gateshead Hall with her uncle Mr. Reed, who cared for his sister (Jane's mother) despite her estrangement. On his deathbed, he made his wife promise that she would look after Jane as one of the children of the house. Mrs. Reed grudgingly promised to do so, only to tolerate Jane as best she could while doting on her own children: John, Georgina, and Eliza. By the time she is eight, Jane is accustomed to an unhappy life living as the scapegoat, bullied by John, scolded by the servants, and enduring libel from her aunt. Her only happiness is reading. The most traumatic incident of her childhood occurs when she is locked in the "red room" after being unfairly blamed. The red room is the master bedroom where no one sleeps anymore and where Mr. Reed died. No one listens to her hysterical pleas to be released and Jane faints from fear of imagined ghosts. After this, she lies depressed in bed until the doctor Mr. Lloyd is a called, though notably he is not the expensive physician called in to care for Mrs. Reed's little darlings. He is a kindly man and recommends that Jane be sent to school, as life in the house does not seem to suit her. Soon after, Mrs. Reed arranges for a man called Mr. Brocklehurst, proprietor the Lowood girls school, to come have a look at her. He gets along very well with Mrs. Reed, believing every word about Jane being a liar and an evil child, and he assures the mistress of the house that Jane will have the evil beaten from her through strict discipline. Before leaving, Jane has a tender moment with Bessie, the maid who showed her the most kindness despite finding the child to be very odd. Jane also takes a moment to assure Mrs. Reed that she is a horrible woman and that Jane will never call her aunt again as long as she lives. This speech frightens Mrs. Reed terribly; it is Jane's small victory over her abuser. She happily turns her back on her cousins, aunt, and childhood home.

Jane has high hopes for school, but discovers that Mr. Brocklehurst has decided to make an example of her. He stands her up on a stool in the main room and announces to everyone—teachers, staff, pupils of all ages—that she is a terribly evil child who lies and should be avoided. The conditions at the school are horrendous: the building is kept cold, the water basins are all shared, and the food is in short supply and often burned. Mr. Brocklehurst insists this is good for them, yet his wife and daughters live in comfort with fancy clothes. Jane manages to make a friend named Helen and is comforted by Ms. Temple, the superintendent. Unfortunately, before long the whole school comes down with consumption. Helen dies in Jane's arms and Jane mourns the death of a truly good soul who was prepared to meet her maker. (Now and then the book leans heavily into Christian moral lessons.) The silver lining is that this outbreak draws community attention and Mr. Brocklehurst is forced to take a backseat as the conditions are improved by a committee. Jane proceeds to spend 10 years at Lowood, two of them as a teacher. She is relatively skilled in English, French, piano, drawing, and a few other subjects.

At this time, Ms. Temple leaves Lowood to get married. Jane no longer has anyone there who means enough to her to keep her there. She imagines the world beyond. So, she puts an advertisement in the paper and waits for anyone to contact her about becoming a governess. After a while, a response comes from a Mrs. Fairfax of Thornfield Hall looking for a governess for a little French girl. Jane proceeds to make her way from Lowood and the region she grew up in to Thornfield Hall, where she learns that the master of the house is a Mr. Edward Rochester who is currently abroad. The child Adele is his ward and is very superficial, but Jane settles into life in the big, empty hall with her and Mrs. Fairfax's company. One day she decides to take a walk, during which she startles a running horse while leaping out of its way. The rider falls and a huge dog barks, and she goes to the fallen man's aid. The man is not handsome but intimidating, speaking in a commanding voice as he accuses Jane of being a witch or a spirit jumping out at him like something from a folktale. His ankle is hurt, but she gets him back on his horse and he rides off. Upon returning to the hall, she discovers that the rider was in fact Mr. Rochester back without warning. He has Jane come sit with him for a time and they discover that his unusual personality and her stubborn nature make for interesting banter and conversation. Neither one is good looking, yet they have active minds. After that, occasionally Mr. Rochester has Jane come speak with him, with or without Adele there.

Up until now Jane has sometimes heard a strange laugh or cry from the top floor, which she has been informed are the cries of Grace Poole, a servant who has bad dreams. Tragedy almost strikes when Jane awakes to hear terrible cackling and goes out into the corridor to see smoke billowing from Mr. Rochester's room. She wakes him up, and together they put out the flames engulfing the bedclothes. He asks her to stay there for a time, and he goes away to the upstairs, coming back down to ask that she say nothing about the incident. The next day, Mr. Rochester is gone, off to a party somewhere, and Mrs. Fairfax is going on about how lucky it is he woke up after falling asleep with a candle lit. Jane attempts to get some information out of Grace Poole, only to feel interrogated herself. She spends her days wondering why Grace Poole will not be thrown out, why Mr. Rochester is so mysterious, and why she is beginning to become very fond of him.

Some months later, Mr. Rochester has Mrs. Fairfax hire extra help from town and clean up the house for guests. He arrives with a dozen rich friends in tow, including Blanche Ingram and family. It is obvious that Blanche is the most beautiful and talented out of everyone, and comes from a respected family on the lookout for a wealthy husband. However, Mr. Rochester is not with the group when they arrive, having instead sent ahead an old gypsy woman to entertain them by telling their fortunes. One by one the women go in, only to come out looking pale or excited. Jane is finally called in, apparently upon the gypsy's insistence. She sits for the palm reading, dodging questions about the master of the house, only to realize after several minutes that it is the man himself dressed in rags! She scolds him and he chuckles over his game, and they go back to their usual arenas. Mr. Rochester spends most of his time with Blanche as the party stays for weeks. It pains Jane to see all this, but she knows her place. Therefore, she is surprised when Mr. Rochester not only has her bring Adele to meet everyone, but has her stay afterward. Jane does needlepoint in the corner while the festivities continue, listening the Ingram widow go on about her poor opinion of governesses. When she tries to sneak away, Mr. Rochester goes after her and asks her to stay. At the same time, a man arrives at the house by the name of Mason and Mr. Rochester looks as though he has seen a ghost before going to talk with him. That night, the household and guests are woken by a terrible scream. Additionally, Jane hears stomping above her room. Mr. Rochester settles everyone down, telling them it was just a servant having a nightmare. However, he comes to Jane's room a few minutes later to ask for her help, taking her upstairs to where Mr. Mason is laid out, bleeding form the shoulder, both from a knife wound and a bite. Mr. Rochester demands they say nothing to each other while Jane sponges his wounds, then leaves to get the doctor. For hours Jane does so while wondering about the odd sounds coming from behind a heavy door. Mason is taken to the doctor's carriage and taken away, and Mr. Rochester sends Jane to bed.

Not too long after this incident, Jane receives word that her aunt Mrs. Reed is on her deathbed and has been asking about her. Jane informs Mr. Rochester that she will be gone for a time and he insists that she return as soon as she can. At Gateshead Hall, home of her childhood, Jane finds that her aunt is in and out of consciousness and sense, but still retains her unloving manner. Her son John is in prison for various things, having squandered the family fortune, while pretty Georgina is on the hunt for a wealthy husband and Eliza is making plans to become a nun. None of them are there for Mrs. Reed, so Jane is there, having decided to forgive her aunt for the terrible things she did. Before Mrs. Reed dies, it comes to light that she received word that Jane was once asked after by an uncle from her father's side, something her aunt vindictively hid from her. This means that Jane did not have to be a forgotten child. After Mrs. Reed dies, Jane helps settle affairs, then returns home, feeling that it no longer matters after all these years who was asking after her and why.

Jane tries to come to terms with the fact that Mr. Rochester will probably marry Blanche Ingram. He takes Jane for a stroll in the garden, as he often does, and discusses the matter with her, asking what she will do if he were to marry. She tells him that she will become a governess elsewhere when Adele goes off to school, as surely a lady like Blanche would prefer to have the house to herself rather than have a child running around. Mr. Rochester pushes her until she finally admits that not to be with him will be terrible, while it will mean so little to him whether she is there or not. He denies this, and asks Jane to marry him, going on about making one's own morals. At first convinced he is playing a mean game, Jane is too happy to really take to heart any of his ramblings, as he always rambles on about something. She is more concerned about the fact that he used Blanche to make her jealous, then spread a rumor that he may not be as rich as everyone thinks, after which the Ingram family became cold towards him. He admits it was a silly game, but it helped him know that Jane cared for him too. That night a storm blows in and a tree in the garden is split by lightning. Is it an omen?

Mr. Rochester immediately sets about planning the wedding, wanting it to happen as quickly as possible. He ignores all surprised and horrified reactions to his marriage to the far younger, far poorer, completely unknown Jane Eyre. Even when Adele asks questions, he comes back with ridiculous answers about how they will live together on the moon, away from all societal nonsense. He treats Jane as something of a doll, trying to put her lavish clothes and bright colors. He continues to think of her as his "little friend." The wedding day comes and Jane finds herself blissfully at the altar, despite the whiplash of how quickly it happened, when suddenly a lawyer and Mr. Mason come bursting in to announce that Mr. Rochester is already married! Looking like a man beaten down by life (more than usual), Mr. Rochester takes them all back to the house with Jane still in her wedding gown. In the attic, he shows them Bertha, his mentally ill and terribly violent and disturbed wife, sister to Mr. Mason. Jane discovers that Bertha was the one who attacked Mr. Mason so viciously, that she is the one who screams and cackles at night. He has tried to do well by her, installing Grace Poole as caretaker while fleeing to Paris and other places rather than stay at home. Still, the wedding is off. He failed to escape reality.

Jane makes a drastic choice: she will leave Thornfield Hall. She takes her few belongings and what she has received of her first year's salary, and goes to town. She takes a carriage as far as she can, but loses her money and luggage in the process. For some time, Jane wanders the English countryside, begging in the streets of small towns, reminding herself to stay away from the man she loves. Eventually she ends up in a small community where the local clergyman named St. John (SIN-jin) Rivers and his sisters Diana and Mary learn more about her and help her to get set up as a school teacher. She lives comfortably in their company until St. John proposes marriage to her. He plans to become a missionary in India and Rosamond, the woman he loves, is not a suitable missionary's wife. Jane is better suited. However, she refuses marriage, but says she will go to India. Soon after, they have a revelation: Jane's father was the uncle of St. John, Diana, and Mary, making them all cousins. Their father left her his fortune, meaning that Jane is now a lady of fairly good social standing.

Jane then thinks she hears her darling Edward calling her name and she becomes determined to return to Thornfield Hall, if for no other reason than to bid that dead romance goodbye. As St. John prepares for India, she leaves and discovers that the hall burned down, set ablaze by the mad Bertha. In his attempt and failure to save his deranged wife from jumping off the roof, Mr. Rochester was caught in the crumbling building, losing one hand and his eyesight. Jane goes to the small house he now lives in, and the two reunite. He apologizes for ever making her feel lesser, for now he is truly hideous. She assures him that it was never his money or good looks that made her fall in love with him. In the last few pages, Jane recalls that Edward eventually recovered enough eyesight to see their son when he was born and that her cousin St. John died in India living the life he felt called to.

Why is Jane Eyre such a good read? In my opinion, the ending is what really makes the whole book. It is the lead characters' reward for going through so much hardship and heartache. Although Mr. Rochester wanted to do the unthinkable by marrying a second woman, it came from his intense love for Jane as well as his intense unhappiness, unable to have a true relationship with Bertha. He says that he was tricked into the marriage when he was young, while she barely showing signs of sickness. In contrast, though he is much older than Jane, she stimulates his mind and he trusts her completely. Unfortunately, for much of the book, these feelings are mixed with his high and mighty perspective as a wealthy man with power over a young woman in his employment. He plays with Jane a lot before proposing, making it seem as though he really will marry another woman. His desire is to make her say she loves him, one way or another, without saying it first. And when they are planning the marriage, he does not see the real Jane or respect her simple tastes, getting too caught up in his fantasies about a blissful wealthy life together ignoring the sick woman in the attic. Even if you ignore how suspicious many of his words are in regards to "making his own morals," this part of the book is not comfortable. It seems like Jane gets pushed around by expectations while just trying to be happy with a partner who makes her feel alive. The reveal of the mentally ill wife is horrifying, yet there is some relief to be had as Jane frees herself, however awkwardly, from Mr. Rochester's influence by fleeing across the moors. It all felt like it was at the wrong time with the wrong intentions. Jane's pain throughout the book is palpable as she avoids looking like she is watching Mr. Rochester and makes difficult decisions for herself at a young age, old soul or not. Her stubbornness keeps her going, keeps her working, keeps her alive, and keeps her from falling into the temptations of an ungodly union outside of wedlock. (The boundaries of society are really felt throughout the story.) When Jane finally learns that she has living family that cares for her and that she has more than enough money to live a good life, there is relief and vindication after a life of being looked down upon. When she discovers that Mr. Rochester has fallen from his high horse, there is only joy. She has been raised up by circumstance, and he has been brought down by it. She has gained confidence and he has learned humility, and they can now be the couple they were meant to be. It truly feels like a union between people prepared to be equals, rather than one always looking up and the other down, possibly straining their necks until the relationship fell to ruins. Now they can be together in a quiet home raising a child together, visiting Jane's family, and appreciating one another for the wonderful things in each other's minds.

Everything in the book feels like it served a purpose, like it could not have happened any other way. Books about fate can be very satisfying, even when there is hardship along the way. That being said, I appreciate that the final words are dedicated to poor St. John, who died in a faraway land trying to do what he felt was right. His tragic ending without family, love, or home around him is a reminder that we don't really know what is right or wrong. We just have to keep going.

The allegory of The Neverending Story

The reason I love The Neverending Story so much is that it chronicles the process of how one can be saved by fantasy or completely destroyed by it. At first glance that is not what the story is about, especially if someone has only seen the 3 movie adaptations or the animated TV series, both of which are enjoyable. Most people would describe it as being about a boy named Bastian who is magically able to enter a fantasy land of stories called Fantastica (Fantasia in adaptations) after reading a book and wishing he could be there with the characters he cares so deeply for. However, that is only the first third or so of the book.

The films are somewhat iconic, or at least recognizable, due to the wonderfully adapted aesthetic of the unique story, characters, and world originally created by Michael Ende in 1979. The pretty theme song and bits of dark imagery also help. And in some ways, the first film follows the book very closely, at least as an outline of Atreyu's journey and Bastian's experience reading it. Unfortunately, the deeper meaning of the story is somewhat lost. A few details are omitted that I think enhance the characters (e.g. Bastian being fat and slow), and the second and third movies mostly abandon the plot of Bastian going to Fantasia and staying there a long time. Instead, circumstances merely allow him to return to Fantasia to help them during a crisis, which leads to him finding some answers to questions asked in the subplots about his life back home in the human world. The second movie uses existing characters, although the plot points are mixed around, and the third creates a new cast of characters to surround the protagonist with, such as a talking tree named Barktroll.

The animated show is little known, but still captures the feel of the story in a Dragon Tales meets Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles kind of way. Like the second and third live action movies, it is about Bastian revisiting Fantasia and fighting bad guys. Like the children in Dragon Tales, he has a magical object that allows him to visit when he pleases. Like in shows along the same lines as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, there are consistent villains he must face and defeat, namely the evil witch Xayide featured in the second live action film. There are also colorful friends for Bastian to visit, including Atreyu from the book and Barktroll from the movies. What the show does well is incorporate pieces of the book missed by the movies, even choosing somewhat disturbing subjects, such as the strange tale of the Acharis. Nevertheless, it is a kids' show that is meant to entertain above all else and fails to teach much of anything beyond "be a good friend" and "don't be selfish" and "never give up."

Michael Ende's story begins with a boy named Bastian Bathlazar Bux running into the used book shop of a Mr. Carl Conrad Coreander after escaping some bullies. He is fat and pale and slow, but he loves books and is drawn to the one bound in copper-colored silk the old man is reading. He steals it against his better judgement, only to decide moments later that he must hide away now that he has become a thief and a criminal. This leads him to the attic of the schoolhouse where he makes a sort of nest out of old gym mats and sits down to read the book. It has a special symbol on the cover: a white snake and a black snake circling each other, biting each other's tails. (All parts of Bastian's experience are chronicled in italic text throughout the story, differentiating between the book in his hands and the real world.)

The Neverending Story, which Bastian thinks is a fabulous name, starts off with a whole host of creatures traveling from their countries in the endless kingdom of Fantastica to the center: the Ivory Tower. Each messenger means to inform the Childlike Empress, Fantastica's ruler, about strange and terrible occurrences as an utter nothingness swallows up their homes. "When you look at the place, it's as if you were blind." They all discover upon arrival at the Tower that hundreds of other messengers have brought the same message about the Nothing and that the Childlike Empress is deathly ill. After being seen by 499 doctors, she sends the 500th on a mission to carry her emblem to her chosen champion.

The Childlike Empress's symbol and source of power is the AURYN, also called the Gem or the Glory. It is an amulet shaped like two snakes biting each other's tails, one white and one black. In truth, the Empress is the heart of Fantastica rather than its ruler, for she does not govern and does not discern between good and evil, strong and weak, etc. Therefore all creatures, even the very wicked ones, recognize the AURYN and do not harm the one carrying it. As such, when it is given to Atreyu, a young orphan of the Greenskins people of the Grassy Ocean, he sets forth on his quest for a cure for the Empress without fear. It protects him where others would burn, freeze, or die of sadness. This is the part of the story most people are familiar with since the first live action film covers it.

Atreyu travels until he seeks out a giant turtle called Morla the Aged One who tells him the Childlike Empress needs a new name in order to be cured. His beloved horse is lost in the process. He then finds the terrible monster Ygramul the Many, who knows that Uyulala the Southern Oracle may know who can name the Empress, and its magical bite transports Atreyu a distance across Fantastica that would normally take a person their whole life to travel. He is followed by Falkor, a white luckdragon caught in Ygramul's web who overheard the conversation. They are nursed back to health from the magic poison by Urgl and Engywook, two gnomics who live just beyond the gates to the Southern Oracle. It is guarded by two sphinxes whose faces speak of terrifying wisdom and infinite knowledge, disturbing the hearts of all onlookers.

Atreyu has to pass through three gates to reach the oracle: the Great Riddle Gate where the sphinxes choose whether or not to let visitors through, the Magic Mirror Gate where one must face the reflection of their soul, and the No-Key Gate that only opens for one who does not care whether or not he steps through. Atreyu is let through by the sphinxes, then sees in the magic mirror not his own reflection but a vision of a fat boy sitting with a copper-colored book. After that, he loses all desires and memories, and only wanders through the No-Key Gate by accident. Uyulala, a formless voice, explains that only a human from another world can give the Childlike Empress a new name. Atreyu and Falkor the luckdragon fly in search of the borders of Fantastica in order to go beyond, but even the four wind giants they encounter do not know of any borders. After being separated from the luckdragon in a violent storm and losing AURYN, Atreyu finds himself washed up on the shores outside Spook City, the kingdom of ghostly things. It is abandoned, for the Nothing has called all inhabitants away, and he discovers only one creature: Gmork, a starving werewolf chained magically to one spot. The werewolf has been hunting Atreyu for as long as his journey has lasted, but neither realize who they are talking to. So, as the Nothing creeps closer, Gmork explains to Atreyu that when Fantasticans go into the Nothing they end up in the human world and become lies that hurt and spread fear. As a creature without its own world, Gmork agreed to come to Fantastica to hunt the one who might bring a human there. When Atreyu reveals his identity, the werewolf laughs and dies, and Atreyu is nearly swallowed by the Nothing before Falkor can reach him. They make it back to the Ivory Tower faded, gray, and starting to disappear.

The Childlike Empress is alone in her Magnolia Pavilion at the top of the Tower and invites Atreyu in, where they wait for her savior. Back in the attic, Bastian has a frighteningly clear vision of her face, as though she was really there looking out at him. She tells Atreyu that he has succeeded where he thought he had failed, for his adventure brought her savior to them, yet he refuses to go to her. Announcing that she has no other choice, eyes flashing with the same terrifying knowledge as the sphinxes, the Childlike Empress sets out on a journey to search for the Old Man of Wandering Mountain. Just as she is the beginning of all stories and therefore forever young, he is the end of all stories and forever old. They are never meant to meet, and yet she finds his mountain and enters the egg-shaped place where the Neverending Story writes itself in a book bound in copper-colored silk. She forces him to start the story again, and he hesitantly obeys, for now they are trapped in a cycle starting with Bastian stealing the book from Mr. Coreander's shop and ending with the Childlike Empress going to the Old Man of Wandering Mountain, over and over and over again. Finally, forgetting his uncertainties in the hopes of making the circular torture stop, Bastian calls out the name he thought for the Childlike Empress long ago: Moon Child.

He finds himself in a dark place with Moon Child speaking to him, handing him the final grain of sand left in all of Fantastica. With his imagination, he turns it into a seed, from which sprouts Perilin the Night Forest, an ever-growing florescent jungle. He discovers three things: (1) he is no longer fat, but very handsome and dressed in beautiful clothes and a turban, (2) he is alone in the forest, and (3) he has AURYN around his neck. He is also suddenly alone. On the back of the amulet reads "DO WHAT YOU WISH." Bastian takes this as a sign that he is free to do as he chooses, and he sets forth making wishes.

First he wants to become stronger, and strength flows into him. Then he wishes to explore a desert, which is far more challenging than a jungle. At daybreak Perilin crumbles into sand and Bastian trudges through the hot rainbow dunes of what he has named Goab the Desert of Colors. During this journey he wishes that he had great courage along with fearlessness, and soon appears the desert lion Grograman, also known as the Many-Colored Death, who dies with the night as Goab's seeds sprout Perilin and revives with the burning daybreak. After spending some wonderful time in the desert with the fiery lion, receiving the magic sword Sikanda, Bastian comes to wish to become famous and surrounded by friends, and a door opens for him into the Temple of a Thousand Doors. He wanders around until he wishes to see Atreyu, and he finds himself outside the Silver City of Amarganth. A great tournament is being held by Atreyu to find someone to search for and protect the savior of Fantastica, and Bastian enters the contest to put an egotistical knight called Hero Hynreck in his place. Atreyu finally realizes it is him and the two are reunited in order to meet for the first time.

At this point it becomes clear that Bastian is losing his memories, and it quickly becomes apparent to Atreyu that each time Bastian makes a wish he loses something of himself from the human world. First he forgot he was ever fat, thus becoming confused when Atreyu brings it up, and then he forgets the he was ever weak or unliked and so on.

In the Silver City, Bastian shows off his gifts to the storytelling townspeople. As with Perilin and Goab, which he wished into existence only recently yet have both existed within Fantastica for thousands of years, he tells the story of the history of the city that floats on the Lake of Tears and of the locked library within: Library of the Collected Works of Bastian Balthazar Bux. Soon after, he does it again when he makes amends with Hynreck by thinking up a terrible dragon named Smerg that has kidnapped the knight's princess. Atreyu and Bastian set out on a journey to return Bastian to his world, which Atreyu is determined to do, and Bastian spends his time thinking about the consequences of his wishes, for the dragon Smerg has wreaked havoc on the countryside. Soon after, they encounter creatures he talked about in his story about the Silver City: the Acharis, the ugliest creatures in all Fantastica who create beautiful works of art using the sublime silver their tears wash out of the earth. Feeling sorry for the weeping creatures, Bastian wishes that they become the Shlamoofs, the happiest creatures in the world. However, these new creatures have no purpose at all other than to make jokes and without a care they destroy the artistic work the Acharis built the night before.

Despite wondering if he is making the right wishes, Bastian is losing more of himself, accepting that he has always been handsome, strong, and admired. He even begins to forget what brought him to Fantastica at all and starts believing he created the whole world himself. When asked about the human world, he can tell less and less. Around this time, hundreds, then thousands, of princes from nations across Fantastica begin flocking to Bastian in the hopes that he might give their country a story of its own. By now Bastian has begun to squabble with Atreyu, and has decided to visit the Childlike Empress in the Ivory Tower first before trying to get home. The huge procession ends up marching through the lands of Xayide, a witch who lives in a hand-shaped castle called the Seeing Hand with empty armored guards. She is defeated easily and offers herself up as a slave to the mighty savior of Fantastica. While Atreyu sees that she planned the whole thing from the beginning, Bastian is distracted by her flattery and begins spending time with her. Atreyu and Bastian get into a terrible fight, and keep their distance from each other. Xayide encourages him to make wishes for himself and no one else. First he wishes his modest mule mount away so he may ride with her, then he wishes to become the wisest man in all Fantastica. The caravan then is visited by messengers from Ghigam, the Star Cloister, which is home to monks in the pursuit of knowledge led by an eagle, a fox, and an owl. They ask Bastian about their world and using a magic stone acquired in the Silver City Bastian lights the sky to reveal the schoolhouse attic where The Neverending Story sits, beyond the stars themselves, after which the stone disappears and the philosophers break into arguing factions after seeing the uninterpretable truth.

Moving on, the caravan finally reaches the Ivory Tower, only to discover that the Childlike Empress is gone. By now Bastian has sent Atreyu and Falkor away, believing they wish to take AURYN for themselves while pretending to look out for his well being. With Xayide by his side, Bastian decides that as the creator of this world he has every right to sit on the throne as emperor. Although no one is able to access the ruler's Magnolia Pavilion, a coronation is planned anyway, only to be interrupted by a rebel army led by Atreyu. Those loyal to Bastian battle fiercely with the rebels until Atreyu and Bastian come face to face. Forgetting any warnings about drawing his special sword Sikanda when it did not want to be drawn, Bastian strikes Atreyu, who is carried off by Falkor. Bastian's cloak turns from silver to black as he pursues them on an empty armored horse, in search of vengeance for being denied his coronation, only continuing on foot when the beast breaks apart from stress.

He comes across a strange city of nonsense buildings and streets filled with people of all ages doing nonsense things: shaving mirrors, wearing dish rags, playing with blocks without making words, and generally acting very busy while doing nothing at all. A monkey named Argax informs him that this is the City of the Old Emperors, where all humans lost in Fantastica come to stay. They had all run out of wishes before they could return to the human world, whether or not they succeeded in being crowned emperor, and lost the AURYN for good before ending up here. Bastian learns that Atreyu saved his sanity by keeping him from becoming emperor and using up all of his remaining wishes on terrible things.

Ashamed, Bastian uses up a wish in order to leave the city, therefore losing his memories of making up stories, then wishes to be part of a group as just another member with nothing special about him. (By now Bastian knows that he cannot move forward without wishing, so despite however few he has left he must continue wishing for something. Without the right wish, he cannot leave Fantastica and save himself.) This leads him to the Sea of Mist the monkey said he must cross and the people called the Yskalnari in the town of Yskal, or Basketville. For a time he is happy to exist among them without any distinction. However, he discovers during their floating journey across the misty sea that individuality means so little to them that they do not care when one of their members is carried away by a monster.

He then wishes someone would love him unconditionally and ends up at the House of Change, where the plant woman Dame Eyola looks after him like a mother does a small child. She tells him his own story, the one he has forgotten aside from his parents, and coddles him for a long while. She tells him that not only must he find his final wish to get home, he must do it to reach the Water of Life at the border of Fantastica that lies not outside of this country but on the very inside. He leaves when he finally discovers the right wish: he wants to be able to love someone outside himself.

Long ago in the Silver City of Amarganth when Bastian received the magic stone he later used to light the sky, a poem indicated that its light was meant to be used to "guide him in the dark depths of Yor's Minroud." He now learns what that is when he meets Yor the picture minor and experiences his pitch black Minroud, a deep mine, where one can access the forgotten dreams of humans that make up the foundations of Fantastica. Yor tells him that in order to fulfill his final wish, especially now that he has only his name left, Bastian must find a forgotten dream that is his, something that will connect him back to something in his world. After long searching in the dark, for he has no light to search by since he used up the shining stone trying to become wise, Bastian brings up a dream of a man wearing a dentist's smock and standing frozen in a block of ice. He takes the dream with him in search of the Water of Life.

As he trudges along, Bastian is confronted by the Shlamoofs wanting him to give them purpose in their joke lives and be their leader, and their terrible noise shatters the delicate dream he carries. He is saved by Atreyu and Falkor who have finally found him. By way of apology and accepting all he has done wrong and what he deserves, Bastian takes off AURYN and places it at Atreyu's feet. In that moment they are transported inside the Gem, the place where the Childlike Empress gets her power but can never go. The Water of Life in its great fountain is guarded by two snakes of impossible size biting each other's tail to keep from destroying everything, one white and one black. The black snake's head sits between them and the Water, and Falkor interprets the Water's messages. The travelers are only allowed to enter when Atreyu provides Bastian's name, when Atreyu vouches for him despite his lack of memory, and when Atreyu explains that Bastian has made amends for his wrongdoing by giving up AURYN on his own. Bastian drinks of the Water and all his memories come back to him, along with a new joy in simply existing as a fat, slow boy. However, he is not allowed through the next gate to the human world until Atreyu promises to finish all his unfinished stories for him. Bastian scoops up some of the Water of LIfe for his father and jumps through the gate.

Back in the human world, Bastian returns home to discover he was gone just one night. His father, despite his coldness since the passing of Bastian's mother, was worried sick about him and listens to the whole story of where Bastian was. And his resulting tears are the Water of Life brought back by Bastian. They agree that things will be different from now on, and indeed it seems they will, for Bastian is now ready to take responsibility for himself and goes to apologize to Mr. Coreander for stealing the book, which has disappeared. The old man listens to his story as well, commenting that he did not know the Childlike Empress by the name of Moon Child for he named her something else, and asks that Bastian come by now and then. Afterward, Bastian runs across the street to his waiting father.

The basic tale of The Neverending Story is not that unusual. We are all familiar with stories about people with good intentions or great ambitions realizing sooner or later that they had caused more harm than good with their selfish actions and inability to listen to their friends. What makes this version special is the same as what makes the movie Big special: a young boy is granted power that at first he uses creatively, then eventually begins to neglect and abuse in the same way everyone else does despite having a unique perspective on the situation. Really, it is the story we all think we will avoid as we grow up from children into adults. He forgets what made it special in the first place in search of glory and power, both false sources of happiness. As shown in the first live action film, the story of Atreyu bringing Bastian to the Childlike Empress by engulfing him in his adventure is a great story in and of itself. However, it is important that the story continue after that because for all book lovers the first story or creation is only the first step in a greater adventure of self discovery. There is a potent life lesson here about learning to love yourself and those around you rather than escape completely into something else or allowing yourself to forget what matters to you. I think it is a metaphor that could be applied to many things that allow us to believe the world is different than it is, including addictive substances and overwhelming jobs.

The Childlike Empress sees Bastian as he wants to be: strong, handsome, admirable. That is because she is the beginning of a story, the beginning of a dream that can be anything you make it. She seems him as full of beautiful potential. And because he is now in the story, he becomes it! In the fantasy world we can be anything we want, but to forget who we really are leads to self destruction, even if the road seems to be taking us to the top of the world for a while. The fact that the fantasy creatures turn into lies when they enter the real world is telling: fantasy is a wonderful thing but the line between it and reality must always remain. And frankly, we often cannot dig ourselves out of our fantasy world without help, in the same way that our fantasies can be made worse by others. Atreyu represents those friends who accept us for how we really are while Xayide represents the ones that encourage self destructive behavior while making it look like the better option, often not really caring what happens to anyone but themselves. The fact that she dies trampled by her own mind-controlled creations while Atreyu wears the scar Bastian gave him with dignity shows that true friends will survive with us while false friends will only bring us down with them if we let them. She had to create or manipulate all her companions while Atreyu is accompanied by a rare and beautiful luckdragon, and Bastian is, in turn, lucky to have him there as a loyal friend. And, in the end, love is the most important thing. Specifically, being able to love others and care for them is vital to living a good life. Living for something outside yourself makes you the best version of yourself. Bastian's father was unable to break out of his sadness and Bastian was the only one in the world who could save him. While saving Fantastica was wonderful for the world, saving his father is Bastian's greatest personal achievement after choosing for so long to be resentful towards the grieving man. It also marks the amazing change in the previously self-pitying little boy, now capable of forgiveness and encouragement, not just self pity.

In addition to being its own fabulous story, the book also pays homage to an assortment of classic fantasy and fairy tales. Bastian and Atreyu's friendship reminds one of that between Frodo and Sam in The Lord of the Rings (written about 20 years earlier), being both the closest relationship either one has while also bringing them a lot of conflict through their differing perspectives on the object of power (AURYN vs. the one ring). The parallel is especially strong when Bastian's determination wavers and Atreyu tries to take the amulet from him in order to save him, being unable to think of any other way. Certain creatures like the dragon Smerg or Ygramil the Many or the gnomics remind one of JRR Tolkien's classic work, too. It has also been pointed out to me that the Ivory Tower bears resemblance to the white city of Gondor or the Two Towers.

On a different note, there are pieces of the book that call back to classic European fairy tales. Dame Eyola and the House of Change are positive influences on Bastian, but they remind me of part of "The Snow Queen," in which the protagonist is lured into a comfortable home where she forgets herself in the midst of her journey. Some tales resemble specific stories, while at other times only smaller elements of them do. For example, the characters meet amazing creatures, helpful people, and talking animals. They are often given magical gifts by these characters, such as Bastian's sword Sikanda, that come with rules or enchantments. These tropes add to The Neverending Story's feeling of timelessness and whimsy, masking its deeper meanings as an allegory for growing up and losing ourselves.

My one remaining question about the story is this: why doesn't the werewolf Gmork have a world of his own? Who sent him to sabotage Atreyu's mission? I would love to hear your opinion on that.

My take on Stephen King's Misery

This is not an in depth analysis of Misery, only an outline of my personal feelings about the book.

After I read Stephen King’s Misery for the first time, I discussed it with several friends. As I tried to explain the effect it had had on me, they nodded before I could finish, stating, “Yeah, it’s really scary. I guess it figures that Stephen King’s biggest fear is being captured by a crazy fan.”

While I understood what they meant, I was surprised by the angle of their analysis. To them, it was the story of an author who is imprisoned by an avid reader of his work, one who happens to be mentally unstable. Obviously that is correct; anyone who knows anything about the book or movie would probably sum it up like that. However, that description did not speak to the parts of the book that really touched me.

The story is about Paul Sheldon, an author made famous by a melodramatic series following the love triangle between two gentlemen and Misery, their damsel in distress. Though the exact plot of the books is a bit unclear, what ultimately draws readers—specifically older women—is the drawn out love story. I got the feeling it is a bit like if Pride and Prejudice was drawn out over seven volumes or so. In the first chapter, Paul’s inner monologue (which comprises the whole book) makes it clear that he has grown to despise the novels despite the money and fame they have brought him. At last the definitive final book is being published featuring Misery's death, freeing him to write about serious, gritty topics that the "real artist" in him craves. Excited for the future, Paul goes to a secluded hotel in Colorado, finishes the manuscript for his new, heavily researched book called Fast Cars, and celebrates with a little too much drink before leaving. A massive blizzard hits, causing him to run his car off the road while going around a mountain. Luckily a local passing by spots the car, pulls him out of it, and takes him to their home.

That local turns out to be Annie Wilkes, a retired nurse. She cares for Paul’s broken legs while the roads are blocked by snow, giving him painkillers and helping him use the toilet. She also happens to be his “biggest fan.” Although Paul is grateful to be alive, he quickly realizes that Annie’s chipper demeanor hides something darker underneath. As he gets used to an immobile world of pain and drugs locked in a single room, Paul also has to learn which of Annie’s buttons to push to get what he needs. Sometimes he flatters her just right, resulting in rewards of dessert and kindness, and other times he fails. When he upsets Annie, she tortures him through neglect, forcing him to go without pills, toilet, food, or company.

Things take a turn for the worse when Annie reads the final Misery novel. Her reaction to Misery’s death is terrifying. Determined not to lose a character so dear to her, Annie tells Paul to write a new ending: her very own final volume written just for her. She forces Paul into a wheelchair and puts an old typewriter in front of him. Reluctantly, Paul makes start after false start until he’s devised a way to bring Misery back from the dead. Unfortunately, Annie reads it and becomes more furious than he has ever seen her. She rants about a time in her youth when her favorite children’s show put the hero into an impossible situation but never continued the story line and never answered the question: how did he get out of the car? By ignoring the character’s imminent death, they ruined the continuity of the series. Annie demands Paul try again. She also forces him to burn the single existing manuscript for Fast Cars, insisting it was a dirty piece of writing anyway and he needs to focus on Misery.

I am glossing over the most brutal parts of the book. For horror and gore lovers, the loss of Paul's foot or the killing of the police officer or the time he's forced to lie in the basement or his multiple escape attempts might be the most important parts of the book. For me, though those parts are very exciting, the most important aspect of the story is Paul's creative process.

As Paul’s mental health goes into decline, constantly battered by Annie’s changing moods and the desperate notion that he might be stuck in this secluded hell forever, he finally has a spark of brilliance: bees. He writes a new, brilliant beginning in which one of Misery’s lovers realizes she might not be dead, that she might be in a coma after reacting to a bee sting. This book written just for Annie was previously a symptom of Paul's situation, but now becomes his escape. In his inner monologue, he describes “falling through the hole in the page” to escape reality, which only gets worse and worse and worse despite his best efforts to manipulate Annie's mood swings, if only so her wrath points not so directly at him. And within the madness is a certain calmness: Annie is stunned by the richness of this new book and watches Paul write it in awe and admiration.

I recently learned that Stephen King wrote Misery soon after The Eyes of the Dragon, a fantasy novel he wrote for his children that his readership condemned. He was bombarded with the anger of fans who felt betrayed personally that he would deviate from what they knew and loved him for: horror. What I take from Misery is that King went through a period of time where he had to rediscover writing for the sake of writing. Though one can dive into the writing process searching for a way to quell the anger of fans, you can discover that the love for writing that got you into that mess can be the same thing to get you out of it. That creative process seems to be laid out in this book.

Yes, Misery is about a man trapped in a psychopath’s home, but it is also the story of a writer faced with the darkest part of his fan base and finding a way to be happy in his work while still struggling under the weight of expectation and ruin. Paul ends the story triumphant, having smashed Annie over the head with his typewriter, but he is plagued by the image of her jumping out at him since he did not actually witness her death. The epilogue follows him through the challenging time after his physical recovery and reentry into society, along with the publication of the new final Misery novel, which is made even more popular by the story of how it was written. The public demands he write about his terrible experience, but Paul fears that will turn it into a story rather than something that really happened. Wondering if he’ll ever be inspired again or just drift through life imagining Annie coming after him, Paul spots a kid on the sidewalk pushing a cart with a skunk in it. And the sight flips a switch. Suddenly it seems that maybe Paul will be alright — as alright as he can be—through the power and all consuming nature of writing.

Through this final moment, I believe the whole purpose of the story is laid out: though writing and fame (and life) can hurt us deeply and leave us damaged, the same love for writing that put us there can save us. It is a product of ourselves, something that can never be taken away if we are willing to grasp the next prompt. Coming from a man who has long suffered from addiction and uncertainty, I find the whole book extremely powerful and deeply personal, along with being a damn good horror story and character study.