“The boundaries are
always there—between the graveyard and the world beyond, between life and
death, and the crossing of them.” - Neil Gaiman
There is no denying the subtext of myth in
Neil Gaiman’s novels. In The Graveyard
Book, a maze of classical mythology, Christian mythology and even the
female myth are intricately woven and overlap within this storyline. Each type
of myth offers a small hurdle that Bod must overcame but ultimately leads our
hero to an escape and victory. Gaiman makes myth relevant to contemporary world
as a coming of age for his main character, Bod, and also his portrayal of the
different genders.
Unlike the
Lady in the Water and Gaiman’s Ananzi Boys, the myth is not specifically
spelled out at the beginning of the story. Nevertheless, the myth slaps you in
the face in the first chapter. The Christian myth of the Christ child is
prominent. Everyone around the infant is killed but the child escapes to the
graveyard where he is protected by the community. Nevertheless the Jacks,
spurred by a prophesy, continue in their attempt to find and kill him. To the
Jacks, Bod represents someone that will destroy their evil way of life.
Additionally, the theme of intersecting the spiritual world and the earthly
world is also similar to Christ as he is both God and man. Bod is not afraid of
death and has the ability to pass between the living and the dead. The setting
of graveyard/nature preserve also supports the living dead theme.
Myth and tradition is important in the graveyard
where the ghosts of the past live beside the newly dead and begin to educate
Bod. The ghosts have the voice of the past where contemporary world is evident
with Scarlett’s cell phone and talk of videos. Even in the dance of the dead,
you have the living present dancing with the ghosts of the past. Bod accepts
all of the residents and even goes so far as putting a headstone the witch
Liza’s pauper grave. These traditions of the past seem to give him a moral
sense and influence his choices. In contrast, the
Ghouls (Honorable Archibald Fitzhugh, Bishop of Bath and Wells, Duke of
Westminster) represent peer pressure and making bad choices.
This narrative also bring in the
traditional myth of good vs evil with the backdrop of the macabre. The hero in the
middle of a mystical world that battles evil and overcomes the mystical forces
that surround him. Bod passes through
the Gates of Hell to the underworld. The underworld is frequently seen and its
residents battled in Greek mythology.
The female myth is also prevalent in the roles
of women in the book. They are represented as educators with Mrs Owens and Ms.
Lupitzo, a common role. But these characters are also strong as the Lady on the
Grey Horse gives the final world and Ms. Lupitzo, a werewolf, saves Bod from
the underworld. Gaiman also shows
the Jacks of All Trades, a male society driven by greed. In contrast, the female
leadership is more balanced. Indigo
Man and the Sleer are the guardians of the Master and the treasure and also represent
the evil that lurks in the oldest grave.
Just like Giamati’s character in The Lady in the Water, Bod is able to
overcome his differences and the past death of their family with the help of
the spiritual world. Bod’s journey involves making sense of the real world and
the spiritual world. It is a journey of
self-awareness for the young boy trying to overcome his differences as he
travels from the fantasy world in the graveyard to the world outside its gates.
This is the same journey for teens trying to fit in with social groups. Gaiman
also puts a twist on this journey. Perhaps because this book was inspired by
his son toddling through a library, Gaiman also deals with parents allowing
their children to venture out into a different, scary world where they cannot
protect them. Possibly this theme is a parent’s coming of age? The traditional
and the contemporary play against each other at times in the novel but end up
in a state of balance.
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