Post 3

                                                                  Post 3

I would like to talk about the following themes in Neverwhere and how significant all three of them to the novel as a whole:

“Good vs. evil.”                                                                                                                                         

All the way through the novel, the image of good and evil is demonstrated in various scenes. Some of the following examples are precisely these scenes:

Lady Door vs. Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar in Chapter 1

Richard Mayhew vs. Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar in Chapter 2

Richard Mayhew and Anesthesia vs.  The darkness of the Night’s Bridge in Chapter 4

Anesthesia vs. Her aunt and the man that was living with Anesthesia and her aunt, also in Chapter 4

The Marquis de Carabas vs. Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar in Chapter 10

Richard Mayhew and Hunter vs. the Beast in Chapter 16

Richard Mayhew, Lady Door, and Marquis de Carabas vs. Islington, Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar in Chapter 17

For those who without any prior knowledge of Neverwhere, they should look at the characters’ motives, because based on their motives, the characters show how moral and how immoral they really are. As a result, the readers can see that there is bound to be conflict occurring every time the good and the evil meet.

“Trust vs. Betrayal”

There were times in Neverwhere, when someone trusted someone, yet there were times when someone betrayed someone.

In Chapter 1, for example, Richard Mayhew found Lady Door, lying in the ground, bleeding. When he realized that Lady Door didn’t want to go to the hospital, Richard decided to take Lady Door to his apartment.                                                                                                                       Good Samaritan, Richard Mayhew, didn’t know what Lady Door’s intentions were; nonetheless, he disregarded the possibility of being harmed by Lady Door, by trusting her, and trusting himself that he was doing the right thing.  Although Richard Mayhew, a stranger to Lady Door, could’ve betrayed Lady Door at that moment, by first appearing to help her and then, tease her, or worse, Lady Door also provided that trust in Richard Mayhew and in herself  by allowing Richard to help her at that unexpected moment.

Characters from Neverwhere, such as Richard Mayhew and Lady Door, gained each other’s trust, while others experienced betrayal. Of course, Richard and Door’s trust builds as the story continues; however, they made the mistake of trusting another character from Neverwhere, who they thought was a loyal friend.

In Chapter15, when the Marquis de Carabas and Richard try to catch up with Hunter and Lady Door down the well, they saw Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar, hiding and anticipating for Hunter and Door to come their way. Richard desperately tries to warn Hunter and Door; however, Hunter showed her true colors by kicking Richard in the stomach and by allowing Mr. Croup and Mr. Hunter to take Lady Door, as their hostage. Mr. Croup subtly explains to Richard that Hunter was working for Islington since her alliance with Islington was arranged.

The message behind this theme is, “Who can you trust? How do you know you can trust someone? How do you know that person you trust could be stabbing you in the back, at any moment?” These questions do not have clear cut answers, making the novel mysterious and suspenseful.

“Escape”

Some of the characters in Neverwhere were seeking escape from where they were. Examples of this situation include:

In Chapter 1, Lady Door tried to escape from Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar.

In Chapter 4, Anesthesia explained that that she ran away from where she lived with her aunt and the man her aunt was with to escape all the pain she experienced from them and wounded up living with the rats from London Below.

In Chapter 17, Islington stated his intentions of escaping the prison he was sentenced to be in by planning to get the key from Door to unlock the door that he needed to escape.

In Chapter 20, Richard attempted to escape London Above by forming an outline of a door that could lead him back to London Below.                                                                                               

The more we see this situation, the more it becomes apparent that many of the characters are not satisfied with where they are. That helps the readers see that the novel is taking them in various directions, because of the various destinations that the characters have to get to.

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