Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com Neil's Other Works Stardust Chapter headings for Stardust
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Always the April Fool Member  |
I'm wondering about the chapter headings for Stardust, the ones that begin "In which..." They have a classic feel to them, and I'm sure that Neil must have borrowed the device from some other writer. What other book (or books) make use of this?
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Shoggoth's Most Peculiar Member  |
I'm sure they were common in late 19th (maybe early 20th) century Fantasy novels or something. I'm almost sure they were used in Erewhon by Samuel Butler (but I'm not at home so I can't check). I've seen them used a few times but I'm struggling to remember any actualy titles, sorry!
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Technical Services Administrator Member  |
didn't L'Mort de Arthur do that too? A little summation of what happens in the chapter?
_____________________________________________________________ Don't you realize? The next time you see sky, it'll be over another town. The next time you take a test, it'll be in some other school. Our parents, they want the best of stuff for us. But right now, they got to do what's right for them. Because it's their time. Their time! Up there! Down here, it's our time. It's our time down here. That's all over the second we ride up Troy's bucket. - Goonies |
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Shoggoth's Most Peculiar Member |
Had a quick glance through some books tonight.
My copy of Erewhon doesn't have them but the sequel (Erewhon Revisited) does. Amy, you're right, my copy of L'Mort D'Arthur has them, as does my copy of Don Quixote |
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the Wicked Little Critta Member  |
Every chapter of AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS by Jules Verne, started with "in which". I had wondered that about STARDUST too. I think it's an endearing way to bring the reader into the chapters.
----------------------------- Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Additional handling charges may be required. |
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Always the April Fool Member |
Thanks everybody!
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Goofy Beast Member  |
I could imagine it's also connected to serialisation; starting off each episode in a newspaper or magazine with that sort of preview trailer whets your appetite and might also remind you of what happened before.
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Member |
It's actually an old tradition, both in fantasy novels and in other older forms of literature. Back in the day, chapters didn't have names as such, but numbers (e.g. Chapter the First, Chapter the Second, etc). If the chapter had anything besides a number, it would be a sort of summary of the chapter, traditionally beginning with the words "in which" or "wherein," and the like.
Nowadays it's fallen more by the wayside, and people mostly like to give chapters artsy names that have some sort of philosophical meaning in accordance with the content. Mostly, it's used by fantasy writers who want to give their work an 'old' feeling, a 'fairy-tale' quality (as was the case with Stardust), or a humorous tone (as was the case with Anansi Boys). Now you know (and knowing is half the battle). (G.I.Joe) ---------------------------------------------------- Visit my blog: support a not-starving artist. <a href="http://thestoryboard.wordpress.com">The Storyboard</a> |
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Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com Neil's Other Works Stardust Chapter headings for Stardust
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