Michael Varriano, 3/16/23, Period 2

Blog #3 Literacy and Learning

Throughout this blog I will be sharing my thoughts and reflections on the movie “The Never Ending Story.” Although we have spent the majority of this semester studying Beowulf and Grendel, the few days we spent watching and discussing “The Never Ending Story” resonated with me much more. Although the movie was released in 1984, the complex themes intertwined into the fantasy novel relate to today’s world as much as when it was released. Throughout this blog I will explore those themes.

I have very distinct memories of watching “The Never Ending Story” as a young child. My favorite part was the adorable Luck Dragon and the happy ending. I recall that the only part of the movie that made me fear was the gnarly wolf, Gnork. While rewatching the movie this year I was able to watch through a completely different lens. Having experienced an additional decade of life since my last view it seems to be almost a completely different (never ending) story.

The first theme of the movie is acceptance. Throughout the movie, one of the primary conflicts is Bastian’s internal conflict. It is portrayed that the loss of Bastian’s mother was a large contributor to his becoming a social outcast. It is this that results in him being alone with his thoughts and the book. Bastian’s dreams begin to fade away as the loss of his mother consumes him. As this happens, The Nothing begins to consume Fantasia. It could be argued that Atreyu’s entire journey is Bastian’s internal struggle towards the acceptance of the loss of his mother. The journey seems hopeless for Atreyu until Bastian realizes his own significance. Bastian renames the Empress while thinking about his mother and accepting the terrible loss he has faced. From this point on Bastian is able to rebuild Fantasia with his wishes and dreams. This directly connects to how we can manifest and create our own future by following our dreams. When we suffer losses we must progress through our life in memory of our loved ones. From my perspective this is by far the most significant theme.

Another important theme is understanding our self worth. This theme is intertwined between Atreyu and Bastian. The first gate that Atreyu faced challenged him to truly believe he deserved to pass. No amount of armor or weapons could have protected the previous knight from the gate’s beams. In order to succeed we must believe we deserve what we desire. Once we believe we are worthy of our goals we have passed the first mental gate we set for ourselves and we can proceed. The second gate is the magic mirror. The mirror reveals one’s true self. Often, we do not reflect on our motives for what we do. While proceeding with genuine intentions we can easily pass through this mental gate. All of Fantasia was created by Bastian. This further proves that these gates symbolize Bastians internal struggle to find himself.

The final theme I would like to reflect on is our incredible ability to dream. Although Atreyu’s journey seems doomed at numerous times throughout the movie he never gives up hope. With the help of the Luck Dragon he perseveres through every obstacle. Atreyu lacks the human flaw of self doubt. In contrast, Bastian’s self doubt holds him back. Until the end of the movie he continuously repeats, “It can’t be.” The doubt in his human mind prevents him from seeing that his dreams could be so vital to the entire world of Fantasia. In the modern day, it is easy to get caught up in media and static flooding into our brain. This media dictates to us what we can and can’t do and makes our dreams seem impossible. Our individual Fantasias extinguish into nothingness. Unfortunately, we do not have an Atreyu or a Luck Dragon to summon us to dream. Now, instead of fearing the gnarly wolf, Gnork, I fear that my generation will never reignite our dreams. However, just like Bastian we have the ability to dream and create as beautiful a Fantasia and as beautiful a reality as we can wish for.

The never ending story referenced in the title has two parts. First, the never ending memory and love towards those we have lost. The memories we share with them are our own never ending stories. The second never ending story is our dreams. The way our dreams can become reality and leave a positive, lasting impact on our world and the people around us can become another never ending story.