Questions for Volume III: Dream Country

MarianCallMarianCall
edited March 2014 in Weekly Questions Before Reading
Here are topics and thoughts to consider as you read Vol. III.  Propose your own!

Gaiman's notes indicate he was a little exhausted from the intensity of the Vol. I and Vol. II storylines, and he wanted to write some more self-contained stories before getting back into Morpheus' primary journey.  But there are important elements of these tales that lay the groundwork for plotlines in later books.

What do these stories tell us about authorship, agency, and inspiration?

Are we starting to see the common threads in the events that bring Dream to meddle with human affairs, changing outcomes?  Where do mortals cross the line, what does Morpheus consider a step too far?

What are some of the themes addressed by these stories, and how do they persist through the entire work?

Comments

  • Joi_the_ArtistJoi_the_Artist
    Thought it might be helpful to post a link with info about one of the existing DC characters in this volume, Urainia Blackwell: http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Urania_Blackwell_(New_Earth) 

    WARNING: do NOT read that link until finishing the story "Facade," as it contains spoilers.
  • Joi_the_ArtistJoi_the_Artist
    Here are my questions for Dream Country:

    What do we make of the “Writers are liars” quote at the
    beginning (and within "Calliope"), as it pertains to our discussions about the responsibility of an
    author to his/her characters, and the nature of true stories versus false
    stories?

    What does it mean to abuse one’s inspiration? How is that
    connected to the responsibility towards characters?

    How does fear keep us from creating art?

    Why the focus on the stories of Shakespeare? He’s arguably
    the greatest storyteller of the last 500 years, but his stories were mostly
    taken from other sources. What is it about his presentations of them that
    endures and captures the imagination?

  • EdwarticaEdwartica
    I'm seeing a lot of reliance on authorial intent. All these stories have a lot to say outside of what Gaiman may or may not have intended. Maybe a good question to ask, what do the stories say to me?

    And please forgive me if that sounded condescending or even a little too basic. Again, I just see a lot of authorial intent so I thought I might suggest another way to read. :-)
  • Joi_the_ArtistJoi_the_Artist
    I've seen a lot of "this story means X to me," but it's mostly in the thread for the book that's "active" that weekend. I'm inclined to try to tease out authorial intent first, just because it keeps the discussions grounded in something that everyone can talk about equally (rather than a sharing of experience, which, while great, is unique to the individual and harder to access as a group.)

    Naturally, I say this as I'm trying to write up this big huge post about what "A Game of You" means to me! :) Obviously, both ways of reading are important and should be shared!
  • EdwarticaEdwartica
    To be clear, if you say that this means whatever to me, there's got to be textual evidence. :-P

    I'm inclined to go with the Post-structuralism and reader response schools of criticism myself. The idea that authorial intent cannot really be known rings truth to me (though some might imply it is impossible not to know intent through the text).

    Again, no disrespect to anyone implied. Please do not read this that way. I'm also not telling anyone how to think or how To interpret. I'm not an English prof so, that's not my job. Oooo, did I just rip on my college professors?
  • DanielDaniel
    Consider the use of Shakespeare, and the different levels of respect that Poets and Playwrights had during his time* and the perception of Comics during the early 1990s vs. how they are seen today.

    *During Shakespeare's time, Sonnets and other Poems were for the high class, plays were for general entertainment, full of sensational violence.
  • DanielDaniel
    What is the function of choosing to use existing stories as a backdrop for these tales? Did you know any of the stories before reading this book? Did it push you to seek out those stories? Did that change Sandman Book III for you at all?
     
  • MarianCallMarianCall
    If you were in Hob's shoes, how long do you think you would last?  Would you accept the deal with Death?

    If you were in Element Girl's shoes, would you beg for Death? 

    How are Hob's situation and Element Girl's different?

    Two eternal life scenarios, so very different.
  • reo_1963reo_1963
    Does wanting writing brilliance count as a bid for immortality?
    That would tie 3 of 4 stories together... but how to tie in those cats?

    Are all these stories lessons in the importance of acting ethically and having good manners?
  • EdwarticaEdwartica
    Oooo , reo! Good questions!
  • SvithrirSvithrir
    Richard Madoc and William Shakespeare both make bargains in the interest of finding success as storytellers. How do the two compare?

    Between the cats and the faeries, in this volume we get our first extended look at Dream interacting with non-human cultures. What aspects of dreams and stories do we get to explore this way?

    As we see more of Dream in different times of his life, particularly before and after his imprisonment, what do we learn about him? How does he change over time?
  • jillybobjillybob
    As a storyteller myself, I'm really conflicted about these stories in which writers take their brilliance from someplace else -- Richard Madoc with Calliope, Shakespeare with Dream. Is a creator of stories a creator if the story doesn't come from within him? You become a storyteller because you want to tell your OWN stories, so at what point does the need to be recognized or remembered or heard eclipse that first desire to the degree that you're making bargains with outsiders to tell stories that DON'T come from within you? To me, that's repellent. Storytelling isn't about the fame or recognition (although those would be nice, so check back with me after I've had them to see if I feel differently), it's about engaging with the reader/audience and making them feel something. So I can't quite get my head around wanting to be recognized so much that I'd tell someone else's story. And make a dangerous bargain to do so, at that. I mean, obviously, as a working writer (especially in film and television), you often have to tell someone else's story, or shape your own to someone else's needs. But that's to make a living and a career. To make your name, to be known for something, you want to be known for the thing that's most YOU. That's why people who are commercial successes then turn around and do passion projects. Because they want to share their own passion.

    I mean, yes, in some ways both Madoc & Shakespeare were just trying to stay afloat, but I think, as written, they both had a thirst for greatness, and to me, that's nothing if you don't generate it for yourself. What's the point of being hailed as a genius if it's not your genius? (Although it's possible Madoc viewed it more as Calliope waking his genius, rather than his taking it from her ether, so to speak.)

    So yeah, I'd be interested to hear others' takes on the idea of creators and the notion of sort of stealing or purchasing inspiration rather than using one's own, and what sort of storyteller choosing to do that makes a writer. And what you think Gaiman was trying to say on that front.
  • MarianCallMarianCall
    Discussion thread is now open!

    If you have questions for people *before* they have read the book, post them here, otherwise we'll transfer discussion over to the other thread!

    @jillybob, this brings up some wonderful topics to discuss!  We wound up talking about it this morning in a live chat already, it's a great jumping off point -- now that the discussion proper has begun, I'm writing some about this (and other things) in the main discussion thread!
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