How The Neverending Story inspired me to write: Part 8

As terrified as Engywook was of the Sphinx Gate, he’s even more afraid of the second test, the “Magic Mirror Gate”.

He’s terrified that Atreyu must face this second gate on his own, armed with no information on what to expect.

Because the mirror forces you to face your true self:

Engywook: …kind people find that they are cruel. Brave men discover that they are merely cowards. Confronted with their true selves, most men run away screaming!

By this logic, Engywook would discover he’s a fraud if he were to peer into this mirror. And brave warrior Atreyu would see his own cowardice.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Sphinx Gate, Atreyu ventures into a perpetual blizzard. Despite the low visibility, he stumbles upon a circular mirror of ice.

Fourth Wall Break: When Atreyu peers into the ice, he sees Bastian in the school attic, reading the book.

Bastian–horrified as he reads a perfect description of himself and his own real world surroundings–looks up from the book in the direction that Atreyu would be looking at him.

In that moment, a tear falls from Atreyu’s eye (which is interesting – we will come back to it later).

Bastian is spooked. He hurls the book across the room, ready to leave it behind for good. But just as he’s about to leave, he has a second thought.

Bastian: What if they really do know about me in Fantasia?

There’s something irresistible about this book. But an internal battle rages in Bastian’s head. His rational mind says that magic isn’t real, yet this book seems to be proving otherwise.

Occult Lens: The second test is to face your “true self”. The Mirror Gate represents the “Guardian of the Threshold”, a popular concept in Theosophy, a “guard” that stands in the way of young aspirants who want to “ascend to higher worlds of knowledge”. When Atreyu walks through, he effectively has merged his physical self with the subconscious realm.

Book vs. Movie: In the book, there was also a third test called the “No-Key Gate”. This gate confounded Atreyu for a long time because it stays locked unless the person who wants to get through no longer cares whether or not he gets through.

How does Ende resolve this? Well, after seeing that (the book version of) Bastian is a fat, ugly kid, Atreyu is so repulsed and disgusted that he somehow ends up losing his memories and all his desires. (Can you imagine being so repulsed by the appearance of someone that you lose your memories?)

With his memories lost, the No-Key Gate opens and Atreyu aimlessly wanders through, entirely by accident. From there on, Bastian’s voice is the only thing left to lead a zombie-like Atreyu to the Southern Oracle.

The No-Key Gate is a stupid scenario, and I’m glad it was cut from the movie.

THE SOUTHERN ORACLE

On the other side of the mirror is a frigid landscape bathed in twilight.

The Southern Oracle has been waiting for Atreyu. It’s a larger version of the Sphinx Gate with a blue glow. Two otherworldly female voices speak in unison, and announce that they have been expecting Atreyu. They call out to him by name.

Book vs. Movie: In the book, the Southern Oracle was a disembodied female voice named “Uyulala” who lived in the “Palace of Deep Mystery”. Uyulala had to sing to maintain her existence and spoke in poetic rhymes.

Atreyu asks the Southern Oracle how to save Fantasia.

The Southern Oracle tells him the Childlike Empress needs a new name.

Atreyu: A new name. That’s all? But that’s easy! I can give her any name she wants.
Southern Oracle: No one from Fantasia can do it. Only a human child can give her this new name.
Atreyu: A human child? Where can I find one?
Southern Oracle: You can only find one beyond the boundaries of Fantasia.

Near the end of the conversation, the Southern Oracle begins to crumble. It has been withstanding The Nothing all this time through sheer will, waiting for Atreyu to arrive so it could tell him this information.

Atreyu calls for Falkor and takes to the skies, seeking a way to go beyond the “boundaries of Fantasia”.