One of the main themes in The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes is dreaming and the effect of dreams. The storyline revolves around literal dreams, but that is not what the story is about. The Sandman is more about the concept of dreams rather than the act of dreaming. This story disproves the theory that dreams are invisible, subconscious thoughts that come to us at night and disappear the next day. Throughout The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes, Neil Gaiman shows us that at the root of everything known to mankind is a dream.
One of my favorite panels in the novel is the one pictured above when Dream is in Hell after he has retrieved his helmet. He is about to leave when Lucifer threatens him by saying that Dream, just like dreams, are powerless in Hell. Dream responds by saying: "You say I have no power? Perhaps you speak truly, but you say that dreams have no power here? Tell me, Lucifer Morningstar, ask yourselves, all of you... What power would Hell have if those here imprisoned were not able to dream of Heaven?" This renders all of the creatures of Hell silent and Dream is able to leave. This panel just represents the power that the concept of dreams hold. Even in Hell, a place that is dark and condemned, dreams are necessary. The inhabitants of Hell would not be tortured if they could not dream of the glory and happiness that they were missing out on in Heaven.
Whether Dream's bold speech in Hell will have repercussions on him or not in later stories is yet to be seen. However, the reader gets some foreshadowing of future conflict when Lucifer says, "One day, my brothers, one day I shall destroy him," after Dream leaves Hell. Dream is a complex character, not only a master of dreams, but also a master of stories. Dream as a whole is made up of bits and pieces from other stories in the world of literature. For example, the three items that he needs to regain his power, the pouch of sand, the mask, and the ruby, are all allusions to other fairytale comic stories. I did not know this until I did more research after reading The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes. I did research because as a newbie to the world of comics and graphic novels, I knew nothing about all the references made in the story, so my interpretation of the story was somewhat limited. Dream is a character that not only holds the power of people's ability to dream, but also the ability to hope. I think the connection between the concept of dreams and hope is very important.
A dream produces a story, and the storyteller is directly linked to the storyline. This might be one reason that Dream is quite similar in appearance to the author himself. Neil Gaiman tackles a daunting and important story in The Sandman series, showing readers that the act of dreaming is not as important as the concept of that dream. Although I found this graphic novel to be challenging at first, I have discovered that the concept of Dream is not as easily understood as I might think. This is a story that invades the subconscious, and requires a reader willing to delve deep into the world of dreams.
