Fantasy is a
genre that uses
magic and other
supernatural forms as a primary element of
plot,
theme, and/or
setting. Many works within the genre take place on fictional
planes or planets where magic is common. Fantasy is generally distinguished from
science fiction and
horror by the expectation that it steers clear of scientific and
macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three (which are subgenres of
speculative fiction).
In popular culture, the genre of fantasy is dominated by its
medievalist form, especially since the worldwide success of
The Lord of the Rings by
J. R. R. Tolkien. In its broadest sense however, fantasy comprises works by many writers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians, from ancient
myths and
legends to many recent works embraced by a wide audience today.
Fantasy is a vibrant area of academic study in a number of disciplines (English, cultural studies, comparative literature, history, medieval studies). Work in this area ranges widely, from the structuralist theory of
Tzvetan Todorov, which emphasizes the fantastic as a liminal space, to work on the connections (political, historical, literary) between medievalism and popular culture.
The identifying traits of fantasy are the inclusion of fantastic elements in a self-coherent (internally
consistent) setting, where inspiration from mythology and folklore remains a consistent theme. Within such a structure, any location of the fantastical element is possible: it may be hidden in, or leak into the apparently real world setting, it may draw the characters into a world with such elements, or it may occur entirely in a
fantasy world setting, where such elements are part of the world. American fantasy, starting with the stories chosen by
John W. Campbell, Jr. for the magazine
Unknown, is often characterized by internal logic. That is, the events in the story are impossible, but follow "laws" of magic, and have a setting that is internally consistent.
|
|