I had an epiphany: there are no fundamental differences between
The Neverending Story and
Harry Potter.
Both
of the protagonists follow very closely the "Hero Arch" as outlined by
Joseph Campbell. There are several major points that I thought of right
away:
1. The call to adventure.
Harry
gets a letter from Hogwarts, introducing him to the whole wonderful
world of witches and wizards, as well as inviting him to become a part
of it.
Bastian, as I
recall, finds a book that seems to call to him. Did it even whisper his
name? I can't remember. There was definitely a call, for sure.
2. The refusal of the call.
Harry doesn't get the opportunity to refuse the call, because his aunt and uncle do it for him.
Bastian also doesn't get the opportunity to refuse the call, because the bookstore keeper does it for him.
3. The crossing of the threshold.
Harry
has to buy his books in this weird ally-within-a-brick-wall. Also, he
has to run into the wall at King's station to get to platform 9 3/4,
which is where the train leaving for Hogwarts picks all of the students
up.
Bastian enters the
actualized metaphysical world of the imagination when he reads the book,
"The Neverending Story." He actually enters the book at one point,
too (an inanimate object not normally seen as a threshold, just like platform 9 3/4), and then his Dad is reading it, but I haven't seen it for years,
and I can't remember how that works. Something to do with the
necklace...whatever. Threshold crossed.
4. The magic of flight.
Harry gets to fly on broomsticks... that's pretty cool.
Bastian gets to fly on Falkor, the dragon-that-has-a-dog's-face. That's also pretty cool, if you're into flying albino dog-dragons.
5. Supernatural aid.
Harry gets a wand. His protective figure is Dumbledore (an old and eccentric man). And Ron and Hemrione (his friends, peers). And Falkor (a non-human with a heart of gold).
Bastian gets an amulet. His protective figure is the bookstore keeper (also an old and eccentric man). And Atrayu (his friend, a peer). And Hagrid (a half-non human with a heart of gold).
6. Apotheosis: the hero somehow becomes divine.
Harry achieved this by being "the boy who lived."
Bastian achieved this by being "the boy who lives," because he's the only real person in Fantastica.
7. The ultimate boon: he can fulfill his mission, which will somehow benefit those he left behind in the other world.
Harry kills Voldemort (Oops! Hope you read it!), which benefits all mankind (the wizarding world and "muggle" world together).
Bastian, kills
through his amazing imagination, saves Fantastica (the world which represents the
cumulative imagination of mankind, vaguely analogous to the "wizarding world" in that it is both real and unreal, interacts with all real mankind and also does not interact directly with anyone in the "real" world). He saved everyone from not being
able to imagine things anymore.
There are a lot of other points,
and these two fit almost all of them in some way, probably. But these
are the ones I can remember.
There are other things that link the two together, that aren't necessarily part of Joseph Campbell's doctrine.
A. They both are in a world that is contemporary, yet secret to everyday people.
B.
They both form a little possey of people: Harry with Ron, Hermione, and
other students at Hogwarts, and Sebastian with Atrayu, Falcor, and
other magical creatures in the world of imagination.
C. They both were unacceptable as regular people: they did not excell in their regular social circles.
D. They both are adolecents.
And so, you can see that
Harry Potter and
The Neverending Story are, essentially, the same story.
