A Single Grain
“Fantasia is disappearing!” Nighthub exclaimed.
“There is a terrible Nothing sweeping over our land!” Glukuk said.
“What are we to do!?” asked Nighthub.
“The empress knows how, but she has fallen terribly ill,” Cairo said.
“I will help her, what must I do?” asked Atreyu.
“The empress needs a new name,” Cairo said.
That conversation took place in the Ivory Tower, where the empress lives. The Ivory Tower is from the book, and movie “The Never Ending Story.” The book was written by Michael Ende, and the movie was directed by Wolfgang Peterson. Fantasia is a land of the human’s imagination, and it is being consumed by this “Nothing.” The humans are losing their imagination so Fantasia is becoming nothing.
The Nothing is a symbol was well as an enemy. It symbolizes the loss of imagination from humans. Since Fantasia is a land of the humans imagination, if all the humans loss their imagination then Fantasia will disappear. The AURYN is a symbol of The Never Ending Story; it symbolizes infinity. Gmork, the black wolf, is a symbol of darkness and doom. He is with the nothing, trying to stop Atreyu from completing his quest.
There is a quest in every story that follows the romantic mode of literature. The nothing is sweeping over the land and the only one that can fix it has fallen ill. The Empress needs a new name and only one person can help her, Atreyu the hunter. The only thing is he’s a kid, not an adult, like thought. That follows the first part of the romantic mode of literature, mild conflict. Then Atreyu could not find an earthling child to help the empress until finally Bastion, the child reading the book, understood and screamed his mother’s name to the heavens, and Fantasia. Then Bastion has to save Fantasia by making wishes that will recreate it. One of his wishes is to go back to the real world and scare the bullies that make fun of him. This is a new beginning, the last part of the romantic mode of literature.
There are many characters in The Never Ending Story. Bastion is the kid reading the book. He is the only one who can save Fantasia, he just doesn’t know it. Mr. Carl Coreander, the bookstore owner, is the one that was reading the book before Bastion. Bastion was running away from the bullies that were chasing him and he ran into the bookstore. Mr. Coreander left the book out on purpose so that bastion would take it. Atreyu the hunter is the one who is called to get the Empress a new name. He goes on a quest to find the southern oracle who will help him find a new name. Falkor is the luck dragon that Atreyu meets. He can fly and always brings luck to anyone around him. Gmork is the evil wolf that tries to stop Atreyu in the Swamp of Sadness. Then later he finds Atreyu again in some ancient ruins. Gmork leaps at Atreyu but Atreyu stabs him in the chest.
Finally, if the world stays the way it is then there won’t even be imagination in little kids. Anyone who reads the never ending story is “not safe” as the bookstore owner puts it. There are certain times when Bastion yells and then when he reads the next part of the book it’s as if the characters heard him. Then at the end Bastion actually goes to fantasia, or what’s left of it. It’s just him, the Empress, and one grain of sand, the last piece of Fantasia. Bastion makes a whole new Fantasia in less than a day, now that’s a lot of imagination and wishes!
