Comparative Analysis of Gaiman's American Gods and Norse Mythology

master's thesis

• Title (english): Komparativna analiza Gaimanovih Američkih bogova i nordijske mitologije
• Author: Nikola Ivišić
• Mentor: Vanja Polić Jurković (mentor)
• Committee member: Tihana Klepač (predsjednik povjerenstva)
• Committee member: Martina Domines Veliki (član povjerenstva)
• Granter: University of Zagreb; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; (Department of English language and literature); Zagreb
• Defense date and country: 2023-02-16, Croatia
• Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline: HUMANISTIC SCIENCES; Interdisciplinary Humanistic Studies

Abstract

This thesis provides a comparative analysis between Neil Gaiman’s novel American Gods and Norse mythology. The analysis aimed to show how Gaiman employs Norse mythology, along with other mythologies from around the world, to weave a contemporary story about how America understands itself. The first part of this thesis provided a theoretical framework for understanding and defining myth in order to understand its role, purpose, and dynamic within the societies that gave birth to it. In that endeavour, the thesis relied on Northrop Frye’s definition of myth, followed by Claude Lévi-Strauss’s structural analysis of myth, which provided a necessary framework for the comparative analysis. The second chapter analysed the motif of war between two groups of gods in Norse mythology and the war between the Old Gods and the New Gods in American Gods. The goal of this comparison is to show how Gaiman takes fundamental mythological elements, such as the element of war, and fits them into the contemporary context, proving their timeless relevance. And finally, the third chapter focuses on the relationship between the characters in American Gods, namely Mr Wednesday and Shadow, and their mythological counterparts, the Norse chief god Odin and the sun-deity, Baldur. Ultimately, it has been concluded that Gaiman’s employment of Norse mythology proves that the passing of time does not take away from their relevance and that they still help the reader better understand the world in and around themselves.

Abstract (english)

Ovaj diplomski rad nudi komparativnu analizu romana Američki bogovi Neila Gaimana i nordijske mitologije. Analiza ima za cilj pokazati kako Gaiman koristi nordijsku mitologiju, zajedno s drugim mitologijama iz cijelog svijeta, kako bi ispleo suvremenu priču o tome kako Amerika razumije samu sebe. U prvom dijelu ovog rada dat je teorijski okvir za razumijevanje i definiranje mita kako bi se razumjela njegova uloga, svrha i dinamika unutar društava u kojima su ovi mitovi nastali. U tom nastojanju, rad se oslanja na definiciju mita Northropa Fryea, a zatim na strukturalnu analizu mita Claudea Lévi-Straussa, koja daje teoretski okvir za komparativnu analizu. U drugom poglavlju analiziran je motiv rata dviju skupina bogova u nordijskoj mitologiji te rat između starih i novih bogova u "Američkim Bogovima". Cilj ove usporedbe je pokazati kako Gaiman preuzima temeljne mitološke elemente, poput elementa rata, i uklapa ih u suvremeni kontekst, dokazujući njihovu bezvremensku relevantnost. I konačno, treće poglavlje usredotočeno je na odnos između likova u "Američkim Bogovima", točnije Gosp. Wednesdaya i Shadowa, i njihovih mitoloških dvojnika, nordijskog vrhovnog boga Odina i božanstva sunca, Baldura. U konačnici je zaključeno da Gaimanovo korištenje nordijske mitologije dokazuje da vrijeme koje prolazi ne umanjuje njihovu relevantnost te da čitatelju pomažu da bolje razumije svijet u sebi i oko sebe.

• Keywords: Gaiman; Norse; Mythology; Myth; Odin; Baldur; War
• Keywords (english): Gaiman; Nordijski; Mitologija; Mit; Odin; Baldur; Rat
• Language: croatian
• URN:NBN: urn:nbn:hr:131:516143
• Study programme: Title: English Language and Literature (double major); specializations in: Linguistics, Literature and Culture, Translation, TEFL; Course: Literature and Culture; Study programme type: university; Study level: graduate; Academic / professional title: magistar/magistra engleskog jezika i književnosti (magistar/magistra engleskog jezika i književnosti)
• Type of resource: Text
• File origin: Born digital
• Access conditions: Open access
• Created on: 2023-02-19 18:02:19