Reading The Promised Neverland with a British/American Literature Scholar

Reading The Promised Neverland with a British/American Literature Scholar
Volume Information
Japanese Title	英米文学者と『約束のネバーランド』を読む
Romanized Title	Eibeibungaku-sha to "yakusoku no nebārando" o yomu
Pages	256 pages
Japanese Release	August 17, 2020 ISBN 978-4087211313
Volume Guide
Previous	← Volume 20
Next	Art Book World →

Reading The Promised Neverland with a British/American Literature Scholar (英米文学者と『約束のネバーランド』を読む, Eibeibungaku-sha to "yakusoku no nebārando" o yomu^?), also referred to as "Reading The Promised Neverland with Anglo-American Literary Scholars", is a book that explores the themes and story of The Promised Neverland through the perspective of a scholar of British and American literature. It is published by Shueisha and written by Kei Toda, an Associate Professor at Hiroshima Jogakuin University, and examines the myriad of literary and religious influences behind the hit manga series, such as the models for the demons and the significance behind the title.

The book is currently only officially available in Japanese. An official English translation of the volume is yet to be released.

Summary

Who was the model for that demon? What is the key to solving the mysteries of The "Promise" and the "primitive faith"? A literary researcher thoroughly discusses many famous scenes while quoting them!

Due to its surprising developments and complex mental battles, The Promised Neverland is sometimes criticized as "not typical of Shonen Jump", but behind the story is a vast amount of knowledge about various literary works and religion. It can be seen that this is being taken into account. This book is an examination of the popular work The Promised Neverland by an up-and-coming scholar of British and American literature, and is the best introduction to British and American literature and culture. This book is a must-read for fans, as it approaches the core of many mysteries while quoting famous scenes from the same work abundantly.

Please note that this book was written with permission from the editorial department of Weekly Shonen Jump, and is written from the perspective of an English and American literary scholar, based on clues from the production of The Promised Neverland series. This is an academic analysis and study book. Therefore, it's nature is different from the "official commentary book" that introduces the true intentions of the original authors, Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu. In addition, please note that there are many spoilers as it includes an "interpretation" of the final part of the original work.

Shueisha lists some of the main topics explored in the book as follows:

• What is the true meaning behind the title?
• Some British and American literary works that may provide hints to the mysteries
• Grand Duke Leuvis, Lord Bayon... Who are the models behind the demons?
• Sonju's "Original Doctrine" and Judeo-Christianity
• Social hierarchies, Queens, and hunting... Which country resembles the demon society?
• The demon language and Hebrew
• Why is Leuvis' pet a monkey?
• The freshness of The Promised Neverland through a feminist perspective

Note that this book does not represent the views and interpretations of the series creators. It also includes spoilers from the entire series, including the ending.

Chapters

• Preface: The Iceberg called "The Promised Neverland"
• List of Main Characters
• "The Promised Neverland" Synopsis

• Chapter 1: Connection with British Literature and Culture
  • J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan - The meaning of the title
  • Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass - The white rabbit, Leuvis and Chess
  • Romantic Writers of the 19th Century - Bayon and Leuvis
  • J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings - Demons, Demon society and British society, Class, Fox hunting and Queens
  • Column: Why is Leuvis' pet a monkey?

• Chapter 2: Primitive Faith and Judeo-Christianity
  • What is Judaism? - Primitive Faith and Sonju
  • Miracles of Christ - Mujika
  • Moses and the Promised Land - Emma
  • Hebrew and Proto-Sinaitic Charts - Mothers and the demon language
  • Column: Who built the Stonehenge

• Chapter 3: Gender (Masculinity/Femininity)
  • The myth of femininity and the world of men
  • Liberation from "gender"
  • The myth of masculinity
  • Column: Emma and the genealogy of "fighting women"
  • Column: "About Never", "Never Let Me Go" and "Island"

• Afterword
• Notes
• References
• Book Guide to Enjoy "The Promised Neverland" Even More

Extra Pages

Gallery

Kei Toda with his book

Ad

Trivia

• The books includes lots of illustrations from the manga as well as relevant real-life photos and other images.