Throughout Dream Country, Gaiman makes use of intertextuality; he frequently draws upon other works of literature and art in order to add different layers to each of the stories. In a sense, this decision acts as a means of creating an alternate version of stories or references that many people know— or, in the terms of this class, an alternate version of the reality presented in these stories. Authors typically allude to other texts in order to allow readers to apply some meaning from the referenced text to the current text. Because Gaiman’s works are graphic novels and use so few words, this decision is especially important because it allows him to say so much more. It’s hard to imagine reading “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with having read Shakespeare’s original version— Gaiman seems to assume that all readers are familiar with the play. Thus, while intertextuality contributes valuable information to a work of literature, it is also limited in that it assumes a specific audience. I think that Gaiman’s reference to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” works because it is such a canonical text; but, some of the more obscure references, such as the reference to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, are not as obvious.