Neil Gaiman's AMERICAN GODS posits a world in which the gods of all cultures that have crossed the pond to America live among us and with knowledge of each other. Simultaneously, these gods are in competition with new gods comprised of secular aspects of daily life that we as a culture worship. Write an essay laying out the rules by which these gods live. From what do they draw their power? How do they carry on their divine work in the modern era? What do they fear? What do they yearn for? How, in the end, can a god be killed?

Essay Topic 2

The belief systems that Neil Gaiman dramatically explores over the course of his novel existed before the sexual was painted as sinful. As such, many of the modern interactions with gods are of a distinctly sexual nature. Write an essay about sex as a divine act in American Gods, focusing on three instances. Part 1) Bilquis is introduced to the reader as a prostitute in Los Angeles. What odd occurrence happens when she picks up a john in this early passage? What does this occurrence say about the nature of sexuality in that belief system? Should it be feared? Is it a passage to complete immersion into the divine?

Part 2) What is the role of the sexual in the passage involving the jinn? How does his encounter with Slim the salesman end in a religious experience? Do you as a reader consider this experience to be essentially positive or negative? How does sexuality bond this spirit and this man completely and in a transformative way?

Part 3) Describe the one distinctly sexual dream that Shadow has over the course of the novel. Who does it involve? How does Shadow decide to make love to this individual? What occurs in Shadow's waking life that intimates to him that this was more than a mere dream?

Essay Topic 3

Part of Neil Gaiman's agenda in writing AMERICAN GODS is to illustrate how the traditions of today's popular religions have their roots in the ancient pagan faiths. He does this by craftily presenting these similarities baldly but without author's commentary. Write an essay about two of these examples:

Part 1) Early in the novel, Gaiman tells the story of Vikings who came to America. What traditional story of Odin do they bring with them? What iconography is so central that they reenact it in celebration of the god? To what Christian iconography is this similar? In what way does this create a comparison between Odin and Jesus Christ?

Part 2) Midway through AMERICAN GODS, Shadow and Wednesday go to San Francisco to speak with the goddess Easter. What connection does she draw between her divine traditions and the Christian celebration named for her? How are the two connected? What argument does Wednesday make to Easter regarding her presence in the Christian holiday?

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