The Canons of Fantasy: Lands of High Adventure (Elements in Publishing and Book Culture)

Despite publishing endeavours such as the Ballantine Adult Fantasy Series in the 1970s and Fantasy Masterworks in the early 2000s, the canon of modern fantasy is still very much in flux. This Element examines four key questions raised by the prospect of a fantasy canon: the way in which canon and genre influence each other; the overwhelming presence of Tolkien in any discussion of the classics of fantasy; the multi-media and transmedia nature of the field; and the push for a more inclusive and diverse canon. Cover Title page Copyright page The Canons of Fantasy: Lands of High Adventure Contents Introduction 1 The Lay of the Land 1.1 Who Gets To Decide What Fantasy Is? 1.2 Can Fantasy Be Defined? 1.3 Conflicting Timelines: How Old Is Fantasy? 1.4 The Expanse of Fantasy, and What Lies Beyond 1.4.1 Fantasy vs Other Genres 1.4.2 Fantasy vs Mainstream Fiction 2 The Tolkien Landmark 2.1 Why Tolkien? 2.2 Traditions Merged 2.3 Literary Value 2.4 Consequences of Tolkien 2.4.1 High Fantasy and Other Subgenres 2.4.2 Tolkien and the Middle Ages 2.4.3 The Search for an Anti-Tolkien 2.4.4 Tolkien and Children’s Literature 3 Crossing Boundaries 3.1 Worlds to Explore 3.2 What Consequences for the Canon? 3.2.1 Role-Playing Games 3.2.2 Video Games 3.2.3 Gamebooks 3.2.4 Other Media 3.3 Transmedia Creations 4 Alternative Cartographies 4.1 Rethinking the Canon 4.2 Different Voices 4.3 Beyond the English-Speaking World Conclusion References