Genres
Fantasy
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A genre of speculative fiction built on supernatural or magical elements, frequently set in wholly imagined worlds with their own histories, creatures and systems of magic that need not answer to natural law or documented history. Supernatural material runs throughout earlier literary history, but the modern literary genre is usually dated from George MacDonald's Phantastes (1858), widely considered the first fantasy novel written for an adult readership; the genre did not reach a mass popular audience until J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, especially in their 1960s paperback editions, carried it into the literary mainstream.
Facts
Disputed
Place of OriginModern literary origin usually dated to Victorian Britain. 1 Supernatural material runs throughout earlier literary history worldwide, but the modern literary GENRE, as opposed to myth, folktale or romance, is usually dated from George MacDonald's Phantastes (1858), widely considered the first fantasy novel written for an adult readership; where exactly that boundary should be drawn is itself debated in genre scholarship. Notable ExampleGeorge MacDonald, Phantastes (1858); J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955). 1 Defining TraitA genre of speculative fiction built on supernatural or magical elements, frequently set in wholly imagined worlds with their own histories, creatures and systems of magic that need not answer to natural law or documented history. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Features Author
The success of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings ignited mainstream interest in fantasy and led to his popular identification as the father of modern fantasy literature.
In Genre
Sources
1. Fantasy (Wikipedia)
1. Fantasy (Wikipedia)
The Hobbit (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation (Wikipedia)on the paperback editions and the genre's mass marketQuote, on the paperback editions and the genre's mass market
Sullivan credits the first publication of The Hobbit as an important step in the development of high fantasy...essential to the creation of a mass market for fiction of this kind
The Hobbit (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation (Wikipedia)Features Author: The Hobbit, Lead, openingQuote, Features Author: The Hobbit, Lead, opening
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim
J. R. R. Tolkien (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation (Wikipedia)Features Author: J. R. R. Tolkien, lead section, fantasy genreQuote, Features Author: J. R. R. Tolkien, lead section, fantasy genre
While many other authors had published works of fantasy before Tolkien, the tremendous success of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings ignited a profound interest in the fantasy genre ... This has led to his popular identification as the 'father' of modern fantasy literature.
The Lord of the Rings (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation (Wikipedia)Features Author: The Lord of the Rings, Reception sectionQuote, Features Author: The Lord of the Rings, Reception section
It is considered one of the most influential fantasy books ever written, and has helped to create and shape the modern fantasy genre.
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