“The world is full of people who have never, since childhood, met an open doorway with an open mind.” Neil Gaiman's “Coraline” and Lucy Clifford's “The New Mother” are stories about ambitious children who try to find out who they are by exploring their nearby surroundings. Coraline and The New Mother are similar as they both pass through the boundary of the "uncanny", have a father figure who happens to be somewhat or completely absent, explore the identity of the main character, and plays on the fear of abandonment by parents. Both Coraline and The New Mother share multiple fantasy elements for example, the absence of a strong father figure, and the main characters curiously explore their surroundings to “find” their identities. “Coraline
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“A woman stood in the kitchen with her back to Coraline. She looked a little like Coraline's mother. Only…” (Gaiman 27) The way Gaiman trails off with “Only…” emphasizes the very subtle difference between the Coraline’s real mother and the “other” mother. This almost identical appearance has an unheimlich feeling because of the similarities between the two mothers. The realization that that there is “something peculiar” about the other mother’s white skin, long fingers, and especially the black button eyes shows Gaiman’s canny use of the unheimlich by drawing the attention to the subtly-altered familiar. Clifford’s “new mother” does not have the subtle differences that stand out, rather it has a long wooden tail and glass eyes which are so offbeat, that the truly uncanny feeling is portrayed. “Then,” she said, “I should have to go away and leave you, and to send home a new mother, with glass eyes and wooden tail.” (Clifford 92) Both of these stories exemplify the fantasy image of the mother-child dyad, which elaborates on the uncanny notion when the children are abandoned by their parent(s). “Good-bye, my children,” the mother said sadly, kissing them. “Good-bye, my Blue-Eyes; good-bye, my Turkey; The new mother will be home presently.” (Clifford 168) The fear of parents abdicating their children is a feeling that mentally
“A woman stood in the kitchen with her back to Coraline. She looked a little like Coraline's mother. Only…” (Gaiman 27) The way Gaiman trails off with “Only…” emphasizes the very subtle difference between the Coraline’s real mother and the “other” mother. This almost identical appearance has an unheimlich feeling because of the similarities between the two mothers. The realization that that there is “something peculiar” about the other mother’s white skin, long fingers, and especially the black button eyes shows Gaiman’s canny use of the unheimlich by drawing the attention to the subtly-altered familiar. Clifford’s “new mother” does not have the subtle differences that stand out, rather it has a long wooden tail and glass eyes which are so offbeat, that the truly uncanny feeling is portrayed. “Then,” she said, “I should have to go away and leave you, and to send home a new mother, with glass eyes and wooden tail.” (Clifford 92) Both of these stories exemplify the fantasy image of the mother-child dyad, which elaborates on the uncanny notion when the children are abandoned by their parent(s). “Good-bye, my children,” the mother said sadly, kissing them. “Good-bye, my Blue-Eyes; good-bye, my Turkey; The new mother will be home presently.” (Clifford 168) The fear of parents abdicating their children is a feeling that mentally