The Power of Religion and Storytelling in the Novel Hey Nostradamus! by Douglas Coupland Essay

At the edge of all light, standing on a cliff above darkness of theunknown, faith is knowing once of two things will happen there will besomething to stand on or you will be able to fly. The novel HeyNostradamus! by Douglas Coupland illustrates one's spiritual identity atthe end of all certainly, through the power of religion and storytelling.Coupland concentrates on the aftermath of what it means to survive, and tocontinue to believe at the edge of your faith. Hey Nostradamus! By DouglasCoupland is four stories united by a single tragic thread. It opens with aColumbine High School-style attack by three students at a fictionalVancouver high school in 1988. the main character Jason is tragicallyaffected by the death of this secret wife Cheryl and their child, whichaffects the people around him. He eventually reappears as a shattered adulta decade later unable to move past the events of that day. He begins arelationship with Heather, a court reporter, but disappears soon after inmysterious circumstances. The story then shifts to Reg, Jason's father, aman whose inflexible and cruel religious beliefs leads him to accuse Jasonof murder the day of the shootings and eventually alienates him fromeveryone he loves. Douglas Coupland, a famous Canadian novelist and artist,Most famous for his first novel Generation X Tales of an AcceleratedCulture and artwork presented in Vancouver Art Gallery (Altogether he haspublished thirteen novels, short stories, seven non-fiction books, anddramatic works and screenplay. Although in his old age he seems to befilled by a desire for a deeper examination of human life. That is clearlyevident in his seventh novel Hey Nostradamus! where he eschews his standardformula of dry, cutting and hip humour in favour of a deeply spiritualstory. The title Hey Nostradamus! refers to the French astrologer who wrotecryptic predictions whose interpretations are still being debated (1503-1566), his predictions included everything. Coupland names the book HeyNostradamus! because he touches on all aspects in his novel, from religion,to...

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