literature assignments
CHILDREN’S LITERATURE II
MODULE TWO: LECTURE ONE
FANTASY
Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe usually with made-up locations, events, or
people. Magic, the supernatural, and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds.
Fantasy literature is popular with both children and adults. Fantasy is distinguished from science fiction
and horror by the absence of scientific or macabre things, but these genres may overlap. Fantasy fiction
is escapist in nature, allowing children to give free reign to their imagination. Often fantasy fiction
borrows from very old stories such as myths and legends and gives them a modern twist to create a new
and original tale that may be set in the present or in the past. According to Joseph Campbell, a famous
American mythologist, the heroes in these tales are often called to experience some form of quest where
they need to not only reach a difficult goal, but also develop and learn about themselves. Fantasy stories
may be highly satisfying to children on a psychological level, as children can imagine themselves as heroes
and heroines of their own quests
A Very Brief History
Stories involving magic and monsters existed long before there was any printed literature. Classical
mythology is filled with fantastical stories and characters. For example, we have Homer’s, ‘The Odyssey,”
which is required reading for almost every high school student in America. Young teens are excited to
follow along with Odysseus on his many adventures as he defeats monsters and beasts of various sorts,
tames witches, and achieves honor and glory for himself. The contribution of the Greco-Roman world to
fantasy is vast and it includes motifs such as: the hero’s journey, magic, rings of power, magic wands,
wondrous herbs, supernatural monsters and creatures – especially dragons, magicians, and witches. India
also boasts a long tradition of fantasy literature, dating back to the 3rd century B.C.
Medieval Times & The Renaissance
Chivalric Romance, such as the stories of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round table, were quite
popular in aristocratic circles of the Medieval period (1000 – 1500 AD). These were fantastic stories about
marvel-filled adventures, often populated with knights, damsels in distress, dragons and other romantic
tropes, where the heroes and heroines were considered the representation of the ideals of the age, while
the villains represented what was considered base. Many medieval romances recount the marvelous
adventures of a chivalrous, heroic knight, often of super-human ability, who, abiding by a strict code of
honor, fights and defeats monsters and wins the love of a lady.
During the Renaissance romance was very popular. “Le Morte d’Arthur” (1485) by Sir Thomas Malory was
written in prose. Giambattista Basille wrote and published “The Pentamerone,” (1634) a collection of
literary stories – the first collection known as “fairy-tales.” Giovanni Francesco Straparola published “The
Facetious Nights of Straparola” (1550 – 1555). The latter of these two works include the oldest recorded
form of many well-known European fairy tales. In a work of alchemy in the 16th century, Paracelsus (1493-
1541) identified four types of beings with the four elements of alchemy: gnomes – earth; undines – water;
sylphs – air; salamanders – fire.
Paracelsus’ Four Elements – Beings
The Age of Enlightenment
The Enlightenment period was generally hostile to fantasy, though important literary fairy tales by Charles
Perault (1628-1703) and Madame d’Aulnoy (150 – 1705) were published. Madame d’Aulnoy labed her
stories, “contes de fee” which is where we get our term, “fairy-tales” from.
Romanticism
Romanticism was a movement of the late 18th and early 19th century, a dramatic reaction to rationalism,
challenging the priority of reason and promoting the importance of imagination and spirituality. One of
the first literary results of this fascination was the gothic novel, a literary genre that began in Britain with
“The Castle of Otranto” (1764) by Horace Walpole. Another famous work was “Vathnek” (1786) by
William Thomas Beckford. The Brothers Grimm were inspired by German Romanticism. Once again there
was a strong interest in medievalism and in literary fairy tales.
The Victorian Era
Fantasy was quite popular during the Victorian Era (early 1800s to early 1900s). Some famous works such
as Mary Shelley’s” Frankenstein” (1823) and “Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” (1865) were published
during this time. Hans Christian Anderson also wrote many well-loved fairy tales during this period.
The history of modern fantasy literature begins with George MacDonald’s works, “The Princess & The
Goblin” (1868) and “Phantasies” (1868), widely considered to be the first fantasy novel ever written for
adults. Another major fantasy author, William Morris wrote “The Well at World’s End” (1896). Morris’
works were the first to be set in an entirely invented world – a fantasy world. Several children’s fantasies
such as “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” (1900), and ‘Peter Pan” (1906) were also written during this time.
Modern Fantasy Literature
In 1923, the first English language fantasy fiction magazine “Weird Tales” was created. Many other
magazines followed. The pulp magazine format was at the height of its popularity at this time and was
instrumental in bringing fantasy fiction to a wide audience in both the U.S. and Britain. From the 1930s
to the 1950s, J.R.R. Tolkien played a large role in the popularization and accessibility of the fantasy genre
with his “Lord of the Rings” cycle of books. J.K. Rowling did the same for the dissemination of fantasy
literature in the 21st century with her “Harry Potter” novels.
Popular Children’s Fantasy Fiction Novels from the Last 150 Years
• The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (1937)
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (1950)
• The Lord of the Rings Cycle by J.R.R. Tolkien (1954-1955)
• Charlie & the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (1964)
• Harry Potter & the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling (1997)
• Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (1997)
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (2008)