Date of Award

2008

Degree Type

Thesis

Department

English

First Advisor

Marino, James

Subject Headings

Gaiman, Neil -- Criticism and interpretation, Popular culture in literature, United States -- Civilization -- Fiction, Neil Gaiman, American Gods

Abstract

In dealing with literary work such as Neil Gaiman's, fiction that both inhabits and defies conventions of genre and medium and thus easy definition, it is clear that an examination of such work benefits from as eclectic a style as Gaiman's own approach to story-telling. While this essay attempts no summary of the author's entire literary corpus, an analysis of the underlying influences of the novel American Gods is necessary to map the details of its territory. A survey of the convergence of the various genres and allusions within this one text, and the ways in which Gaiman measures Old World belief systems with New World contemporary values offers an entrance into American Gods' narrative center

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