Neil Gaiman's books feature young protagonists who are not like other "normal" children their age. The protagonists are precocious, naturally curious to explore. Neil Gaiman's books have a fairy tale feel combined with dark themes and follow a similar pattern. In Neil Gaiman's book, Coraline's parents' neglect leads the protagonist to explore, which leads her to face evil and frightening challenges. The events of his childhood shape his identity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay In the book Caroline, a ten-year-old girl named Coraline lives with her parents who have moved into an old house. She is an only child and is surrounded by old ladies who read tea leaves and the old man who trains mice as neighbors. Caroline loves to explore, but her parents are workaholics. Parents are depicted in front of their computers, physically present, but mentally absent. “Coraline shook her head. "Why don't you play with me?" he asked. “Busy,” he said. “Work,” he added. He hadn't even turned to look at her yet." Coraline asks her father to spend some time with her, but he doesn't even look at her, busy with his work. Coraline wants the attention that children her age usually get, but her father is unable to provide her with the care she needs. Coraline's mother doesn't seem to listen to her either and continues to ignore her. Coraline is often asked to “go away,” “draw something,” “read a book, watch a video,” or “count all the doors and windows” so that her parents can get on with their work. Coraline feels ignored and is left with nothing to do since she has already done those things. Caroline comes out exploring what brought her to an alternate reality. The house she lives in is boring and her parents are too busy to entertain her. He's also exhausted all the exploring there is to do at home. When she moves into this house, Coraline notices a locked door in her house but there is a brick wall behind it. Her curiosity about this forbidden space leads her to open it with a key. When he opens the door, there's a hallway back there. It's a magical port that takes her to the Other World, a better reality she's always dreamed of. At the end of the tunnel, Coraline's other parents are waiting for her. Coraline joins them in the alternate reality. “Coraline's other mother brought them lunch… It was the best chicken Coraline had ever eaten. His mother sometimes made chicken, but it was always packaged or frozen, and it was very dry and never tasted like anything.” The other parents are sweet, not at all like his boring, uninterested real parents. They load Coraline's plate with food, flatter and charm her, something her real parents never did. In this reality, he gets the best food that his real mom could never cook. The other parents are more attentive than Coraline's real parents, especially the other mother, who does everything she can to impress Coraline. She seems like a perfect mom. Even though everything seemed perfect in the alternate world, something is wrong. They all have shiny black buttons for eyes, the other mother, the other father and the other neighbors. “On a china plate on the kitchen table were a spool of black cotton and a long silver needle and, beyond them, two large black buttons. "I don't think so," Coraline said. “Oh, but we want you to,” said the other mother. We want you to stay.'” In this scene, the other parents present black buttons to Coraline. They offer her the chance to stay in the other world forever if Coralineshe will allow buttons to be sewn into her eyes. Now, the perfect world no longer seems perfect as the black eye symbolizes the theft of one's freedom. Coraline has always had the freedom to do what she wants since her real parents are not careful. Coraline realizes that the other mother is binding her victims to her to gain authority over them and is now taking her freedom. The other mother wants Coraline to only see things from her distorted perspective, without having her own thoughts, her own life. The consequences of opening the door affect her and she fears the alternate reality. “Coraline broke away from the other mother, left the living room and passed the mirror in the hallway. There was nothing reflected in it except a young girl who appeared to have been crying, but whose eyes were real eyes, not black buttons. «I will be brave. No, I'm brave!'''. Coraline had understood that this alternate reality is mere illusion and a frightening imitation of the real world. She needs to be reassured to look in the mirror and see that she still has her real eyes, not the black buttons. She repeats that she is courageous for convincing herself that she can escape this reality and tolerant towards the other mother. Coraline also saw the other mother transform into herself as a monstrous spider-like witch with a bony face and hands fashioned from sewing machines. This form is called beldam because its aggression and anger are presented very vividly. She shows courage to surpass her other mother. . Coraline's fear makes her realize that she just wants everything to go back to the way it was before she opened the door and forgot about this alternate reality. At this point in the story, Coraline has already understood that she must overcome her fear and fight this horrible nightmare. His parents were taken away by his mother and now he has to overcome his fear, bring his parents back and go back to how he was before he opened the door. “Yes,” Coraline said. I'm not afraid, she told herself, and she knew it was true as she thought it.” Coraline says she's not afraid and then realizes that she's actually telling the truth about how she feels. This is an uplifting moment and character development. She becomes very perceptive, which she wasn't at the beginning, she is more mature and aware of herself and others. Coraline's curiosity has gotten her into trouble, and she must rely on her wits and courage to save herself and others. She plays the evil mother in her own game to defeat. “What exactly do you offer?” “Me,” Coraline said, and gripped her knees under the table to keep them from shaking. 'If I lose I will stay here with you forever....'. To save her parents, Coraline challenges her other mother to a game, as she never turns down a good game. If he can find his parents and the eyes of the ghost children, everyone will be free; if he loses, he will remain in the other world forever and will have buttons sewn in his eyes. Although she is sacred to the outcome, she is committed to overcoming this frightening challenge and defeating the other mother. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay At first, she feels limited by her real parents and annoyed that they don't pay attention. Coraline's typical childish behavior and strong temperament transform into intelligence. Coraline's internal struggle and her deep unconscious desire to free herself from her other mother have given her a better understanding of life. Once he returned to reality, “Dinner that night was pizza and even though it was homemade by his father (so the crust was alternately thick and doughy and undercooked, or too thin and burnt), and even though he had put some on it slices of green pepper, along with meatballs and, above all,.