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Fantasy literature is fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
 in written form. Historically speaking, the majority of fantasy works have been literature
Literature

Literature is the art of written works. Literally translated, the word means "acquaintance with letters" . In Western culture the most basic written literary types include fiction and non-fiction....
. Since the 1950s however, a growing segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of film
Film

Film encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the film industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or special effects....
s, television
Television

Television is a widely used telecommunication mass-media for transmitting and receiving moving , either monochrome or color, usually accompanied by sound....
 programs, graphic novel
Graphic novel

A graphic novel is a type of comic book, usually with a lengthy and complex storyline similar to those of novels. The term also encompasses comic short story anthologies, and in some cases bound collections of previously published comic book series ....
s, video games, music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
, painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
, and other media.

ies involving magic, paranormal magic and terrible monsters have existed in spoken forms before the advent of printed literature.






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Fantasy literature is fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
 in written form. Historically speaking, the majority of fantasy works have been literature
Literature

Literature is the art of written works. Literally translated, the word means "acquaintance with letters" . In Western culture the most basic written literary types include fiction and non-fiction....
. Since the 1950s however, a growing segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of film
Film

Film encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the film industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or special effects....
s, television
Television

Television is a widely used telecommunication mass-media for transmitting and receiving moving , either monochrome or color, usually accompanied by sound....
 programs, graphic novel
Graphic novel

A graphic novel is a type of comic book, usually with a lengthy and complex storyline similar to those of novels. The term also encompasses comic short story anthologies, and in some cases bound collections of previously published comic book series ....
s, video games, music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
, painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
, and other media.

History

Stories involving magic, paranormal magic and terrible monsters have existed in spoken forms before the advent of printed literature. Homer
Homer

Homer is traditionally held to be the author of the ancient Greek language epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey, as well as of the Homeric Hymns....
's Odyssey
Odyssey

The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Hellenic civilization epic poetrys attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work traditionally ascribed to Homer....
 satisfies the definition of the fantasy genre with its magic, gods, heroes, adventures and monsters. Fantasy literature, as a distinct type, emerged in Victorian times, with the works of writers such as William Morris
William Morris

William Morris was an English architect, furniture and textile designer, artist, writer, and Socialism associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement....
, Lord Dunsany, and George MacDonald
George MacDonald

George MacDonald was a Scotland author, poet, and Christian minister.Though no longer well known, his works have inspired admiration in such notables as W....
.

J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, Order of the British Empire was an English people English literature, poetry, Philology, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion....
 played a large role in the popularization of the fantasy genre with his hugely successful publications – The Hobbit
The Hobbit

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again is an award-winning Juvenile fantasy and children's book by J. R. R. Tolkien, written in the tradition of the fairy tale....
, and The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings is an Epic poetry high fantasy novel written by Philology J.R.R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work....
. Tolkien was largely informed by an ancient body of Anglo-Saxon myths
Anglo-Saxon polytheism

Only a little Old English poetry has survived, and all of it has had Christian redactors. The epic poem Beowulf is an important source of Anglo-Saxon pagan poetry and history, but it is clearly addressed to a Christian audience, containing numerous references to the Christian Names of God in Old English poetry, and using Christian phrasing and...
 — particularly Beowulf
Beowulf

Beowulf is an Old English language heroic Epic poetry of unknown authorship, dating as recorded in the Nowell Codex manuscript from between the 8th to the early 11th century, and relates events described as having occurred in what is now Denmark and Sweden....
 — as well as modern works such as The Worm Ouroboros
The Worm Ouroboros

The Worm Ouroboros is a heroic high fantasy novel by Eric R?cker Eddison. The book describes the protracted war between the domineering King Gorice of Witchland and the Lords of Demonland in an imaginary world that appears mainly medieval and partly reminiscent of Norse sagas....
 by E. R. Eddison, and it was after his work that the genre began to receive the moniker, "fantasy" (often applied retro-actively to the works of Eddison, Carroll
Lewis Carroll

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , better known by the pen name Lewis Carroll , was an England author, mathematics, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer....
, Howard
Robert E. Howard

This article is about writer Robert E. Howard. For the Medal of Honor recipient, try Robert L. Howard.Robert Ervin Howard was an United States author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres....
, et. al). J. R. R. Tolkien's close friend C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as Jack, was an academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist....
, author of the The Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia

The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels for children written by C. S. Lewis. It is considered a classic of children's literature and is the author's best-known work, having sold over 120 million copies in 41 languages....
, also an English professor interested in similar themes, was also associated with popularizing the fantasy genre.

Modern Day

Authors such as J.K.Rowling and Terry Pratchett
Terry Pratchett

Sir Terence David John Pratchett, Officer of the Order of the British Empire is an England novelist, known for his frequently comical work in the fantasy genre....
 are maintaining the genre's popularity. Rowling's sales record from fantasy books made her the world's first author billionaire.

Style

Fantasy has been distinguished from other forms of literature by its style.

Ursula K. LeGuin, in her influential essay, "From Elfland to Poughkeepsie", criticized the use of a formal, "olden-day" style for writing high fantasy
High fantasy

High fantasy or epic fantasy is a Genre of fantasy that is set in invented or Parallel universe . Built upon the platform of a diverse body of works in the already very popular fantasy genre, high fantasy came to fruition through the work of authors such as C....
. While she admired the archaic style for its ability to distance prose into a fantasy world
Fantasy world

A fantasy world is a type of imaginary world, part of a fictional universe used in fantasy novels and games. Typical worlds involve magic or magical abilities and often, but not always, either a medieval or futuristic theme....
 rather than appear as a modern world in disguise, when it was used by masters such as Lord Dunsany and E. R. Eddison, she also noted that it was a dangerous trap for fantasy writers because it was ridiculous when done wrong. Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock

Michael John Moorcock is an English writer primarily of science fiction and fantasy fiction who has also published a number of literary novels....
 observed that many writers would use archaic language for its sonority and to lend color to a lifeless story.

The fantasy world requires, like any genre, appropriate language, and that language can vary. In various forms of fairytale fantasy
Fairytale fantasy

Fairytale fantasy is distinguished from other subgenres of fantasy by the works' heavy use of motifs, and often plots, from folklore....
, even the villain's language would be inappropriate if vulgar.

See also

  • List of fantasy novels
    List of fantasy novels

    This page lists notable fantasy novels . The books appear in alphabetical order by title ; series are alphabetical by author-designated name or, if there is no such, some reasonable designation....
  • Fantastique
    Fantastique

    The Fantastique is a French term for a literary genre and Film genre that overlaps with science fiction, Horror fiction and fantasy.The fantastique is a substantial genre within French literature....


Footnotes


External links