What writings by "classic" authors would you consider fantasy?

[Longgrain]

Of course I'm sure you all already consider Tolkien a classic author (and I do as well), and by the looks of it, Rowling is well on her way, but I'm thinking more in the vein of writers who aren't particularly known to be considered fantasy writers, or writers whose works may cross into other genres.

Asides from LOTR, I'm not as familiar with fantasy literature as the rest of you are, more into what most people would call "classics". I'm not looking for a debate as to what would be considered "classic" but more as to what would be called "fantasy".

Already I can think of The Tempest, by William Shakespeare. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, though these two can be argued to cross the lines into Science fiction or horror.

Do the works of Homer count as fantasy, if taken as literature?

How about the more imaginative writings of Herman Hesse (who I'm a big fan of BTW) such as Steppenwolf, The Glass Bead Game, and the Journey to the East, all of which can be said to qualify as fantasy.

And just how do we classify Kafka? Or stuff like Dostoevsky's The Nose?

Or how about Italo Calvino (who I'm just starting to read right now) or are we blurring the lines again.

I hope I'm not disrupting things too much, there's nothing more I'd like than to kick back with the rest of you and talk Tolkien, and learn more about these other new worlds I'm just discovering, I simply think It's a subject that could be open to discussion amongst Fantasy fans...and am wondering what the rest of you think.

Or should I just hurry back to my cave before the first rays of the morning sun hit me and I become a permanent part of the landscape.;-)

[Khephra]

1. I'd say all the writers that you mention count as fantasy

But I'm not a genre or "lit" snob, so I don't mind books being in
several categories.


Jorge Luis Borges is another one that should be on the list. Poe is primarily known for horror and poetry, but he also should be on the fantasy list of classic authors too.

Any of the classic authors who wrote fictional exploration stories should also be counted (Utopia, Lost Horizons, Gulliver's Travels, etc....).

[Longgrain]

2. Agreed...

I'm neither a "genre" or "lit snob" either.

It's just, I sometimes feel that, genre enthusiasts sometimes get elitist. I'm interested in "fantasy" in a broad definition as an aspect of fiction.

Point well taken, I'm just curious as to what others around here think.

BTW, I'm glad you mentioned Gulliver's Travels, another one of my faves :thumbsup: .

Right now I'm reading Calivino's Invisible Cities. I haven't read it until now, and so far I'm fascinated.

[Khephra]

3. There are, unfortunately, elitists everywhere

One of my problems was actually a reverse of the above situation. I'm a English major and BOY the elitist "lit" crowd can be snobby about genres.

I love pointing out to them that Shakespeare wrote fantasy (The Tempest) and even used horror elements like ghosts.

They tend to stop talking to me after I tell them that.

[Longgrain]

4. Once again agreed.

:7 I like and recognize both the consistencies and contrast between Genre and Classics. The old books are as human today as they will be tommorrow...

Incidentally, I was never a "lit" major; my collegiate experience was at an art school, my training was always more in the visual, even if my nose was always stuck in a book.

I had a 3.8 average, yet I failed miserably.

The academics, at the schools I attended, were a joke (similar to my grammar) but, I wanted to learn.

I Just couldn't afford $2000, give or take, per semester, to complete my education. :nopity:


Most of me education if'n ain't me own Ed-u-ka-shun.

(English Trans. I couldn't afford college; I'm self educated.)

[Khephra]

5. I'm what I call a perpetual student

I've been in college for years, but I still haven't graduated. Like you, I have trouble paying for the tuition, and having grown up in the Reagan years, I had to educate myself.

So I take a course here and there. Eventually I'll get my degree...it will just probably take two decades to complete. Sigh....

[wryter2000]

10. Hey, Shakespeare wrote romance

The Taming of the Shrew (although these days, Katharine would be considered too submissive at the end for romance)

[Longgrain]

11. LOL!

Though in my experience romance is also considered "Fantasy". ;-)

Seriously though, does romance also qualify as fantasy fiction?

Here's the first definition from Merriam-Webster:

1 a (1) : a medieval tale based on legend, chivalric love and adventure, or the supernatural (2) : a prose narrative treating imaginary characters involved in events remote in time or place and usually heroic, adventurous, or mysterious (3) : a love story b : a class of such literature

Here's the link

http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=romance&x=24&y=18

The definition of romance, much like the definition of fantasy continues to blur, but then again it was always fuzzy to begin with. Another example would be Don Quixote. What is it? Romance, because Don Quixote was inspired by his lady Dulcinea. Fantasy, because Dulcinea was only an ideal in his imagination. Both, neither, I don't know?

I'm just interested in this kind of thing.

[wryter2000]

12. Some romance

There are all kinds of subgenres. Some are like mysteries. Some are historical. Some are contemporary fiction.

There's a subgenre now called "futuristic/fantasy/paranormal." Futuristic contains elements of science fiction. Fantasy of...fantasy. And paranormal includes things we normally consider horror -- vampires, werewolves, ghosts, various kinds of spirits. Some paranormal is light-hearted -- (think Bewitched)

Paranormal is growing rapidly. Futuristic is still very small. Fantasy is almost non-existent, but there has been some interest from publishers such as Harlequin on the romance side and Tor on the fantasy side.

My first novella was a fantasy romance (erotic). My first full book was a paranormal set in 19th century New Zealand with Maori spirits in it. I'm trying to bridge the gap between romance and fantasy. I just wrote a fantasy (see if it sells!). If that opens up, I want to write fantasy that's also clear romance.

More than you wanted to know, huh? :)

[Longgrain]

13. Yeah I know.

The entire reason I've been asking around here is because I've written a book (or two, or even three) of my own, that are of unclassifiable genres. Generally satire, but combining elements of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, with a strong romance story going on as well as sub plots that include crime drama and detective story. Almost as if each of the characters (and my cast is relatively large) represents a different "Genre" (there's that word again)and they've all been thrown together into the same story...if I'm even making sense.

The setting is suburban American, and there's nothing supernatural going on. More metaphysical/ coincidental. The texture of the story alternates from spoofing to general straight forth story telling.

Which is my problem, I'm having a hell of a time marketing it.

Too many publishers tend to diversify too much--saying stuff like, "mystery is big now, we're only looking for mystery stories".

I'm sorry if I sound a bit angst ridden. I'm not really. I'm just curious.

[robbedvoter]

6. ETA Hoffman (among others - Nutcracker lirics)

Italo Calvino - wow - so hard to put him in a box. One of my forgotten favotites - T0 and other stories....
Garcia Marquez? Salmon Rushdie? Michail Bulgakov (Maestro & Margareta).Lewis Carol of course....Oscar Wilde (The Happy Prince, Dorian Gray), Antoine de Saint Exupery - The Little prince
Sophie's World - - who wrote it?
Turns out almost everything I love is fantasy. What could it mean?

[Longgrain]

7. No way!

I'm sorry but I don't meet too many literary people from where I'm from but...Someone else mentioned Bulgakov? :thumbsup:

Somewhat off topic, but this is a painting I did shortly after reading The Master and Margarita...






Not based on, but inspired by. Perhaps a thread about fantasy illustrators could be in line?

Come to think of it, regarding my original discussion, I suppose we could also add to the list Faust by Goethe (which Master and Margarita was inspired by) and the Wizard of Oz series, but I suppose the Oz books could also be considered pure fantasy from the onset.

I'm still hoping for a few more responses.

I have an ulterior motive for purposing this question, as for the Vonnegut thread I started, regarding a writing project of my own.

I not really an Olga-hai, I just look like one...

[robbedvoter]

8. Right! Goethe popped to mind too, and Durer for "illustrators"

he used ETA Hofman's Tales as inspiration for his bizare, beautiful drawings.
And I can see how your drawings was inspired - I had many strange dreams after teading "Master & Margareta"

[wryter2000]

9. C. S. Lewis

The Perelandra books and the Narnia Chronicles.

[Silver Gaia]

14. Ah yes...

I was gonna say C. S. Lewis. 'Till We Have Faces is an excellent fantasy.

[DrWeird]

15. Fritz Leiber.

nt

[porkrind]

16. The Bible. Poorly done, BTW.

My review: Needs serious editing, and the plot is predictable and dull.

I'd give it 1-1/2 out of 5 stars. :)

[porkrind]

17. Older than that...

Lots of ancient creation myths and heroic poems, IMHO, fulfilled the same purpose as fantasy literature today, i.e. they tell stories that resonate across all cultures with the human spirit. These themes keep coming up over and over again in fictional stories. For example, characters such as the underdog hero who prevails against all odds, the inscrutable oracle, the endearing comic relief, the bad guy, ect., and stories with motivations such as revenge and the coming-of-age journey. In fact, they were summarized long ago as the "The 36 Dramatic Situations". Anyway, these themes and characters resonate with the human psyche, and they can be presented in a very pure form in fantasy literature and mythology, where they are encumbered by the realities and trivialities of everyday life. In the fantasy setting, they are stark and pure to their theme. Here are some older sources for these themes that show how timeless they are and how connected to the human condition they are:

Practically all Greek, Roman, Norse, Indian, Native American, South American mythology
"The Epic of Gilgamesh" (Babylonian mythology)
"The Eddas" (Norse epic poem)
"Beowulf" (Old English epic poem)
Hesiod's "Theogony (The Descent of the Gods)"
Homer's "Illiad" and "Odyssey"

We see these themes and characters endlessly renewed and retold, and we never tire of them. They resonate with us, and are part of us all. One only needs to compare popular modern tales such as "Star Wars" and "The Lord of the Rings" to see this.

[Matilda]

18. There is an element of fantasy in many genres of literature ....

myth, legend, fable, allegory, all contain elements of fantasy.

But to define these often great stories of ancient literature by
the simple title "fantasy" is a bit misleading. Modern fantasy
has as its base the idea to entertain, whereas the ancient myths
and legends were more of an attempt to explain the condition and
nature of man and the world. The Harry Potter books have the
fantastic as their core, even though they use the age-old theme
of the fight between the light and the dark, so I would classify
them as fantasy, but I'd hesitate to put the ancient myths and
legends, or the more modern allegorical works such as Goethe's
Faust, in the same basket. The elements of fantasy in these works
are not the main theme, they are only a part of it, used as a tool.

I think your point is well made - as much as we may love Harry
Potter, the books are not the stuff of great literature, and there
is no character in LOTR who could be called a Hero in the classical
tradition.