On the Value of Fantasy Novels

Tolkien contrasts the concept of fantasy as a kind of trickery with the concept of fantasy as an artist sharing a secondary world with the reader. There is rarely malevolent intent in the creation of a fantasy world, only the genuine desire to create something and draw the audience in.

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“Deception” definitely isn’t a common criticism of fantasy books in the 21st century. Not many people that I can think of have criticized fantasy on the grounds of deception or trickery. But there is a certain belief that a lot of people have subconsciously, which is the belief in magical worlds is embarrassing or contrasts interest in scientific matters. Tolkien says, “Fantasy is a natural human activity. It certainly does not destroy or even insult Reason; and it does not either blunt the appetite for, nor obscure the perception of, scientific verity.” Fantasy doesn’t contrast logic or reasoning. Logic is essential to fantasy. Knowing that reindeer can’t fly makes imagining them fly all the more wondrous. The person with the best grip on reality has the best grip on fantasy.

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Tolkien moves on to defend why fantasy isn’t frivolous, which is more relevant to the conversations surrounding fantasy today. Fantasy is completely fictional and that must mean fantasy doesn’t offer tales from history or educate a person on human morals. And that’s completely false! Tolkien’s “recovery” concept is as follows: “We need, in any case, to clean our windows; so that the things seen clearly may be freed from the drab blur of triteness or familiarity—from possessiveness.” Stepping outside of our world allows us to see it in clearer, different ways.

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Fantasy can be a new way to look at real historical events or contemporary problems. Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude explores Latin America’s troubled history through the vivid language of someone who lived through it. It makes use of magical realism to portray important emotions, disasters, and grief. Hayao Miyazaki’s movie Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is a breathtakingly touching story about the relationship between humanity and nature. To convey the urgency of environmental change, Miyazaki creates a lethally poisonous, but wildly alive, toxic jungle, polluted by the very people who now wish to be rid of it. This movie consistently instills in me the passion to protect our environment. Fantasy as a representation of the real world is similar to the use of a metaphor in poetry. If done well, it can make what the writer is actually trying to communicate more impactful and memorable and allow the reader (or viewer) to feel the message on a deeper level.