Contemporary fantasy
Contemporary fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy set in the present day. It is perhaps most popular for its subgenre, urban fantasy. Several authors note that in contemporary fantasy, magical or fantastic elements are separate or secret from the mundane world.
Definition and overview
The term are used to describe stories set in the putative real world (often referred to as consensus reality) in contemporary times, in which magic and magical creatures exist but are not commonly seen or understood as such, either living in the interstices of our world or leaking over from alternate worlds.
Frances Sinclair, determining what to call fantasy set in our known world, contrasts contemporary fantasy with magical realism. She notes that in contemporary fantasy magical elements are often kept secret from most people, and notes the amount of young adult fantasy in the subgenre. In contrast, Sinclair points out that in magical realism "the impossible can occur without comment", and the relationship between reader and narrator may be stronger.[1]
Brian Stableford attempts to narrowly define the genre, excluding portal fantasy and fantasy "in which the magical entity is a blatant anomaly".[2] He arrives at a definition of fantasy set in the mundane world, often including an "elaborate secret history". He notes that much contemporary fantasy is set in rural settings, but also notes the subgenre of urban fantasy, and that both children's fiction and literary fiction often fall within this genre.[2]
The Encyclopedia of Fantasy similarly suggests that the mundane and fantastic are contrasted within the genre. The Encyclopedia's definition includes "portal fantasy in which transition between the two realms occurs regularly", as well as several other subgenres.[3] It also notes that many contemporary fantasies include a theme of colonization, either of the fantastic or of the mundane home.[3] Greg Bechtel agrees with the Encyclopedia, saying the sub-genre "explicitly depicts the collision of the contemporary world with a world of magic and spirits".[4] He notes the distinction between this genre and magical realism, crediting Greer Watson,[5] but says that there can be overlap.[4]
Grzegorz Trebicki describes "contemporary" fantasy works "set in our 'primary' world, in which the textual reality has been enriched by various fantastical elements, usually borrowed from particular mythologies or folk traditions".[6] He says that such works are usually driven by genre conventions other than mythical archetypes.
Style
In his preface to That Hideous Strength, one of the earlier works falling within this subgenre, C.S. Lewis explained why, when writing a tale about "magicians, devils, pantomime animals and planetary angels", he chose to start it with a detailed depiction of narrow-minded academic politics at a provincial English university and the schemes of crooked real estate developers: "I am following the traditional fairy-tale. We do not always notice its method, because the cottages, castles, woodcutters and petty kings with which a fairy tale opens have become for us as remote as the witches and ogres to which it proceeds. But they were not remote at all to the men who first made and enjoyed the tales".[7] The same is true for many of the later works in the genre, which often begin with a seemingly normal scene of modern daily life to then disclose supernatural and magical beings and events hidden behind the scenes.[citation needed]
Relationship with other subgenres
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Novels in which modern characters travel into other worlds, and all the magical action takes place there (except for the portal required to transport them), are not considered contemporary fantasy. Also, contemporary fantasy is generally distinguished from horror fiction that mixes contemporary settings and fantastic elements by the overall tone, emphasizing joy or wonder rather than fear or dread.
The contemporary fantasy and low fantasy genres can overlap as both are set in the real world. There are differences, however. Low fantasies are set in the real world but not necessarily in the modern age, in which case they would not be contemporary fantasy.
When the story takes place in a city, the work is often called urban fantasy.
Contemporary fantasy can also be found marketed as mainstream or literary fiction and frequently marketed as magical realism, itself arguably a fantasy genre.[citation needed] Examples include Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman, The Antelope Wife[8] by Louise Erdrich, and Mistress of Spices by Chitra Bannerjee Divakaruni.[citation needed]
Examples
- Lila the Werewolf by Peter S. Beagle[3]
- Talking Man by Terry Bisson[2]
- Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black[9]
- Dangerous Angels by Francesca Lia Block[9]
- War for the Oaks by Emma Bull[3]
- Summerland by Michael Chabon[2]
- Little, Big by John Crowley[2]
- The Seventh Heart by Marina Fitch[2]
- Neverwhere and the graphic novels of Neil Gaiman[9][3]
- Living in Ether by Patricia Geary[2]
- Dark Cities Underground by Lisa Goldstein[9]
- The Magicians and its sequels by Lev Grossman[10]
- Waking the Moon by Elizabeth Hand[3]
- The Summer Country by James A. Hetley[2]
- The Thread That Binds the Bones by Nina Kiriki Hoffman[2]
- That Hideous Strength by C.S.Lewis
- Moonheart, The Onion Girl and the Newford series by Charles de Lint[9]
- King Rat by China Miéville[9]
- The Book of Heroes by Miyuki Miyabe[6]
- Hannah's Garden by Midori Snyder[9]
- The novels of Tom Robbins[2]
- The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling[2]
- The short fiction of Lucius Shepard[3]
- The Dragons of the Cuyahoga by S. Andrew Swann[2]
- The occult thrillers of Charles Williams[3]
- The Wood Wife by Terri Windling[9]
See also
References
- ^ Sinclair, Frances (2008). Fantasy Fiction. School Library Association. p. 34. ISBN 9781903446461. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Stableford, Brian (2009). The A to Z of Fantasy Literature. Scarecrow Press. p. 86. ISBN 9780810863453. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Clute, John; Kaveney, Roz (1997). Clute, John; Grant, John (eds.). The Encyclopedia of Fantasy. Orbit Books. ISBN 978-1-85723-368-1. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
- ^ a b Bechtel, Greg (2007). "The Word for World Is Story: Syncretic Fantasy as Healing Ritual in Thomas King's Green Grass, Running Water". Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts. 18 (3): 204–223, 285.
- ^ Watson, Greer (2000). "Assumptions of Reality: Low Fantasy, Magical Realism, and the Fantastic". Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts. 11 (2): 165–172. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
- ^ a b Trebicki, Grzegorz (2014). "Subverting Mythopoeic Fantasy: Miyuki Miyabe's the Book of Heroes". Mythlore. 32 (124): 49–63. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
- ^ Lewis, C.S. (October 1996). That Hideous Strength. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9780684833675. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
- ^ Kakutani, Michikomi. "'Antelope Wife': Myths of Redemption Amid a Legacy of Loss". Books of the Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "A Contemporary Fantasy Reading List". The Endicott Studio. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
- ^ Kramer, Kelly (2017). "A Common Language of Desire: The Magicians, Narnia, and Contemporary Fantasy". Mythlore. 35 (130): 153–169. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
General references
- Martin Horstkotte, The postmodern fantastic in contemporary British fiction. WVT, Trier 2004, ISBN 3-88476-679-1
- Lance Olsen, Ellipse of uncertainty : an introduction to postmodern fantasy. Greenwood Press, Westport 1987, ISBN 0-313-25511-3
External links
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