Did you get this from Sandman - Season Of Mists

[Mutate]

What I got from this story was that, "you don't have to stay anywhere you don't want forever", "you can leave Hell anytime", to me this meant that, if you are going through a difficult period of life, or depression, a bad relationship etc, you have to work on yourself. And you have to work yourself to "leave the place" ie, to get out of your situation. IE if you are in a miserable relationship get yourself out of it, or feeling down, do the things you like doing, make an effort to see friends, and keep living life. I was wondering if anyone else came away with a feeling like this.

[Nero's Boot]

Speaking as a mentally ill person, some Hells cannot be escaped...they must just be endured.

--some Hells last forever NB

[Mutate]

Hmm, I think the same thing. This is why I want other Sandman fans feedback!
I guess maybe people should try to escape from things you CAN esacpe from...and leave the rest up to your own coping skills? I don't know really.

[Ryan Day]

I don't think it's quite that simplistic, but it does fit into the larger theme of roles and responsibilities, and how much one person (or being) can change. Some, like Lucifer, Destruction, or Fiddler's Green, abandoned their roles, while others, like Dream, Nuala, or even Hob couldn't bring themselves to accept change, for a variety of reasons. Some people will escape from their existence regardless of the consequences to others, while others will stay with the life they've know even if it destroys them.

[Punch]

[B]"you don't have to stay anywhere you don't want forever"/B]

yeah that was the theme for this storyline,(weren't those words actually said by one of the dead boys?) BUT I think it's important to remember that Dream does change in this storyline, and also plants the seeds for the "big change".

[Aaron King]

The entire series is about change. Each Endless represents its name and also the opposite. Destruction is both destruction and creation; Death is death and life. Thus, Dream is possibility and reality. This is because each thing is intrinsically tied to its opposite. New things often emerge from the ashes of the old. Life cannot exist if nothing dies. Dreams and reality are tied very closely together. Reality becomes a stagnant thing, a static thing, without dreamers that change it. Dream himself becomes stagnant and static until he decides to change. His position is so extreme, though, so his change is also extreme: he becomes a new person (Daniel). His extreme stasis comes from ignoring the fact that he needs to change despite his sister always telling him so. The way he reacts to his African lover (I forget her name) illustrate his inability to change until the last possible moment.

Lucifer comes to this realization after a similarly long time. So, be the change you want to see. If you don't like your position, leave it. Sure, it might seem hard to leave it. I mean, Lucifer had GOD to contend with. But when it comes down to it, all you have to do is make the decision.

(I've gone through some mental hardships myself, including some time in a hospital, and nothing changed for me until I decided what I really wanted to do and change it myself.)

[Schmakt]

That's a pretty neat thought... I really need to finish rereading that series... I first read it when I was too young and too stupid.

but, regardless, that's a pretty neat thought - where you in a depressed-ish state of mind when you read it?

[Screwtape]

Sometimes the process of change is unpalatable, even when change is required. That, ultimately, is why Dream makes the decision he makes at the end (or perhaps through the whole series). If you want to change your way of life, it will mean leaving yourself behind.

It's also worthwhile to note that this is where Dream begins the process that comes to fruition in The Kindly Ones (remember how he takes Loki away to talk to him, and we never find out what they discussed?).

I love the series. My copy of Absolute Sandman arrives on Tuesday and I can't tell you how thrilled I am about it.