Part Three: Reading Fantasy

by Jeanette O'Hagan

In the last post, we explored the fantasy genre from a writer’s perspective. Today, I want to think of it from a reader’s perspective.

Of course, there is considerable overlap between the two, but I know I often read far more widely than I would be comfortable writing.

As a Christian, I want what I write to be consistent with my values, beliefs as well as drawing on my experience, research and imagination. While my faith may not always be explicit, it informs who I am, what I write about and how I write it. 

However, I don’t just read Christian fiction or Christian authors. Whether fiction or non-fiction, fantasy or some other genre, I read books by atheists, agnostics, people of other religions or of no stated religion.

Why read beyond a Christian ‘bubble’?

It’s possible to learn from non-Christians.

In the Old Testament Joseph, Moses and Daniel and his friends learn from the pagan wisdom even while they remain true to Yahweh, the one True God. In the New Testament, Paul was not only educated in the Torah, but also in Greco-Roman philosophers and poets. He sometimes drew on these sources to persuade Christians (e.g. Titus 1:12) or connect with those outside the faith (Acts 17:24-29). 

It helps in understanding the worldview of non-Christians.

Even the most innocent romance or formulaic detective novel has an implicit world view – concepts about what or who matters, good, evil, the nature of truth, authority etc. However, fantasy and science fiction often bring big world themes and perspectives to the fore. And just as reading a novel embedded in a particular culture is a great why of understanding the nuances and mores of that culture, so is reading general market fantasy a great way of understanding contemporary worldviews.

It helps us connect to people.

We not only develop a better understanding of beliefs, values and concerns of people in the wider society, we can talk intelligently about the shows, films and books they enjoy – as I attempt to here, here or here.

For instance, Ursula Le Guin’s EarthSea explores facing fears and being willing to acknowledge that we are deeply flawed. In the original book Ged awakes a destructive shadow, which he flees, but eventually realises is part of himself. Do I agree with everything Le Guin portrays? No. For one thing, I don’t accept her view that life after death is no more than a shadowy echo or nonexistence (The Farthest Shore). Yet, her books make me think and can provide a discussion point about the nature of humanity and life after death.

And after all, great literature is great literature and we can learn from it but we need our eyes ‘wide open.’ I think this is true of all the fiction (and non-fiction) we read (or watch).

Hedges

But that doesn’t mean I would read anything and everything.

While it is fantasy of a different kind, I have held off reading the notorious 50 Shades of Grey – not just because, by all reports, it is atrociously written, but because of its glorification of a manipulative sexual relationship as romance, among other things.

The strong and the weak

Paul’s discussion of ‘food offered to idols’ (I Corinthians 8-10) is relevant here. In the ancient world, animals sacrificed at the temple could later be sold in the meat market. For some Christians (especially new converts from Paganism) – this caused a quandary. Was buying the sacrificed meat from the market equivalent to offering it to idols? Or, to put it another way, is reading about magic in fiction the same as practicing it?

Paul argues that all food comes from God, so the meat could be eaten with a clear conscience. However, he acknowledges that believers should certainly refrain from participating in a temple meal (or the actual sacrifice) because of the malign spiritual forces involved (see post 2).

Paul states that we shouldn’t ignore the inner warnings of the conscience – though some people have oversensitive consciences while others’ consciences can be seared or hardened. He also urges people with a ‘strong conscience’ (informed and trained by God’s Word, the Holy Spirit and faith) to respond graciously to others’ scruples (1 Corinthians 10:28). Yes, he says, all things are permissible to the believer (a touch of sarcasm there) but not all things are beneficial or constructive, and some things can control us (I Corinthians 6:12; 10:23-24).

I think it’s important to put hedges around what images or ideas we bring into our imagination.  However, where those boundaries are drawn might differ between different Christians, because we all have different areas of weakness.

For instance, in my late teens, I was profoundly disturbed by Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights because of the way it romanticised Heathcliff and Cathy’s selfishness, cruelty and twisted love, rewarding them, it seemed, with their special brand of heaven. Yet I know many people love this book.

And Children?

As adults we can make our own decisions guided by the Word and a Spirit-informed conscience. Yet, we have a duty of care with children because of their immaturity and vulnerability. Up to the age of seven or eight, children can have difficulty in separating the real world from the imaginary and older children and teens are developing their moral sense and the foundation for values and identity. Appropriate hedges will depend on the particular child and their age. The older the child, the more appropriate discussion rather than outright prohibition or careful supervision becomes.

While I’ve discussed appropriate hedges in more depth in the previous post, in summary, I think it’s appropriate to consider:

1. How obvious is it that the fantasy world is different from or separate to the real world?
2. What is the source of magic (God, natural or innate abilities or forces – or something else more illicit)?
3. Is the magic metaphorical or allegorical in some way? What is the overall message — or themes of the story?
4. Does the positive magic closely correspond with something a child (or adult) could become involved in the real world e.g. being able to fly as opposed to astrology or Satanic rituals?
5. Are the magic users role models that children might chose to emulate (maybe even a ‘cool’ villain).

While some books are probably just not helpful or may open doors best kept shut, the appropriateness of many stories will depend on the sensitivities and age of the reader. Sometimes even the most innocuous book may be wrong for a particular reader because it triggers past experiences, weaknesses or harmful obsessions. But let's not forget the opportunities and possibilities as well.

What fantasy books (or movies) have you found helpful or have got you thinking? What stories have been less beneficial for you and why? What hedges would you suggest?

Previous Posts:

Part One - What about fantasy?

Part Two - Writing fantasy

Part Three – Reading fantasy (That's this one)

Other posts:
Saints, Seekers and Sleepers
What is Christian Fiction?

Fantasy Image: Jeanette O'Hagan © 2015 
The Lady and the Bird Image: Jeanette O'Hagan  © 2013

Jeanette O'Hagan has a short story published in the general market Tied in Pink Romance Anthology  (profits from the anthology go towards Breast Cancer research) in December 2014 and two poems in the Poetica Christi’s Inner Child anthology launched in July 2015. She has practiced medicine, studied communication, history and theology and has taught theology.  She cares for her school-aged children, has a Masters of Arts (Writing) at Swinburne University and is writing her Akrad's fantasy fiction series.  You can read some of her short fiction here. 

You can find her at her Facebook Page or at Goodreads or at JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes .

Part Two Writing Fantasy

by Jeanette O'Hagan

A few weeks ago, we discussed some reasons why Christians may be wary of Fantasy (What is Fantasy). Yet this genre also offers great opportunities to talk about God and faith. Fantasy can engage the reader, often highlights the ongoing struggle between good and evil on a cosmic scale, and provides opportunities for analogy and metaphor of important themes. 

So how might Christians include fantastical and supernatural elements in fiction? Before we answer that question, I think it's important to understand some basic concepts.

Different Types of Fantasy

Fantasy comes in a number of different forms—from high fantasy, low fantasy, sword and sorcery, fairy tales, secondary world, portal, allegorical, animal tales, historical, ghost stories, paranormal, urban, even horror—and may include magical realism or supernatural/spiritual tales. 

Each of these approaches includes fantastical and supernatural elements to different extents and with a different relationship to realism. 

To confuse the picture even more, there can be a cross-over between science-fiction and fantasy— for instance Anne Macaffrey’s Dragons of Pern series includes dragons but eventually gives a natural explanation for these creatures. Similarly popular origin stories of superheroes give a naturalistic explanations for their fantastic superpowers.

High Fantasy is usually about world shaking events, involves prophecies, wizards, magical creatures, quests, battle between good and evil, and high stakes while low fantasy may be on a smaller scale, grittier, less magical elements or more political. Much fantasy is secondary world (an alternative reality other than earth— like Tolkien’s Middle Earth or the world of Eragon), portal (where there is a doorway to another world e.g. Narnia, the Wizard of Oz, or Alice in Wonderland) or alternative reality. Fantasy may be set in our world but still clearly meant to be imaginary— for instance fairy tales, animal anthropomorphism (animals acting like humans as in Wind in the Willows, Peter Rabbit or Watership Downs), historical (Mary Stewart’s Merlin trilogy) or verge on allegory (Anna Elizabeth Stengl’s Heartless or many of George MacDonald’s fairy tales). Paranormal and urban fantasy is about creatures of legend such as vampires, werewolves, witches, zombies or ghosts and are usually set in a modern, contemporary world (eg the Twilight series but also Mike Duran’s The Ghost Box – or even Dickins The Christmas Carol). Magical realism might include symbolic supernatural elements in otherwise realist story which are presented without comment (Life of Pi, Chocolat). And for some stories the supernatural is included as a higher rather than an imagined reality— stories of angles, prayer, miracles (eg Frank Peretti or Angelguard). Some writers of fantasy are naturalists and/or may use fantastical elements with a basic anti-supernatural message (eg Pullman’s The Golden Compass). Read more on different fantasy sub-genres.

Different Definitions of Magic

To further confuse the issue, 'magic' like 'love' is an amorphous word—it has a range of meanings from the illusionist’s tricks, the purely imaginary or unrealistic tropes of fiction (flying horses or carpets), to actual practices of traditional and tribal religions or neo-paganism (New Age, Wiccan, modern Shamanism etc). Miracles might also appear to be ‘magic’ to an outsider.

In fantasy, the fantastical and magical elements are not meant to correspond to the world as we know it. Fantasy is more than magic— imaginative visions of different worlds, fantastic or imaginary creatures or different realities.  These imaginative forays push the boundaries of our known reality, in part to entertain, but also as a way of thinking about the world.

As Neil Gaiman says in Coraline (paraphrasing G. K. Chesterton), ‘Fairy tales are more than true – not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten.’ 

However, with the resurgence of alternative spirituality and post-modernism, magical elements can begin to bleed into real-world beliefs and practices about a magic that draws from a polytheistic or animistic world-view. Prayers, rituals, divination either invoke or seek to control and manipulate spiritual beings (gods, spirits) or forces (mana, chi, life-force) or tap into an essential fatalism (implicit in omens, astrology etc). 

Fictional magical systems (overlap with ‘real’): True words— finding the true word or name gives you control over a person or thing. Gifts, talents or abilities— telepathy, prescience, telekinesis, superpowers, illusion or changing shape. Knowledge— of atomic structure, of the true nature of things, of natural or supernatural power source. Spiritual or religious— through prayer, ritual or relationship with God (or in polytheism–gods, spirits, ghosts). Communication, manipulation, control of spiritual entities or the dead. Possession by or channelling a supernatural being/s. Curse or failure to move on after death – e.g. werewolves, vampires, ghosts Magical nature – e.g. unicorns, fairies

So what is at stake here?

The Bible clearly prohibits real-world magical practices because:

1. The Creator is the ultimate source of blessing and He determines our destiny.  He wants us to depend on Him, not to go through intermediaries.
2. While the spiritual forces invoked have some power, they are both deceitful and hostile.
3. So ‘magic’ (calling or using supernatural power through a supernatural intermediary other than God) is ultimately harmful and entangles us in malign spiritual forces.

However, the Bible doesn’t discourage the expression of the supernatural in the Christian’s life through the right channels such as faith, prayer, the working of the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts.  ‘Magic’ is a counterfeit of God’s (supernatural) work in the world.

And, I would add that the Bible also warns us against another extreme – a materialism that, if it doesn’t deny God’s existence, at the very least claims achievements and prosperity as the result of our own intelligence and effort. Pride and rebellion against God are just as destructive and soul destroying as sorcery and witchcraft (Deuteronomy 8:17,18; 9:4; 1 Samuel 15:23).

In both cases, we need to acknowledge God as the source of blessing and direction.

Different Approaches for Writing Christian Fantasy

Steven D. Greydanus suggests J R R Tolkien and C S Lewis put ‘hedges’ around the portrayal of magic in their fantasy fiction through a clear distinction between the imaginary fictional world and real-world practices and by confining the use of magic to supporting characters (the wise old wizard that helps the protagonist rather than the protagonist themselves).

Travis Perry suggests six positive ways to include magic in Christian fantasy:

1. Only the villains use ‘magic’ – while the ‘good guys’ either use ordinary means or rely on God’s power.
2. Rename miracles ‘magic’ and prophets ‘wizards’ (that is, have prophets and miracles dependent on God’s power— even though using the terms ‘magic’ and ‘wizards’).
3. Treat magic as an allegory for the workings of God (deep magic in Lion, Witch and Wardrobe).
4. Magic is a form of undiscovered science (just as our use of electricity and machines would appear magical to a medieval person).
5. Blur the lines between the supernatural and the natural, by making the supernatural a fabric of everyday life (eg Alice in Wonderland – everything is fantastical).
6. Have innate supernatural talents as an analogy for spiritual gifts.

I think it helps to consider the source of magic, how it is used, by whom and for what reasons. The nature of the magic within the world may be explicitly stated or implicit. I’d suggest that you:

1. Have a clear distinction between good and evil (though there may be shades of grey, heroes and heroines are flawed & villains are never pure evil).
2. Ask what is the source of 'magic' in your world – is it from a good God, from innate power or ability (which would be directly or indirectly a gift of God), or is there a natural explanation (e.g. telepathy as brainwaves)? Be cautious about magic drawing on a life force or power lines or some esoteric knowledge, while invoking, manipulating or controlling spiritual beings other than God might be confined to antagonists or presented as a false step by protagonists.
3. Ask who can use ‘magic’ and how—is it something everyone can use or is it reserved to special people (superpowers or professionals), is it intuitive or does it require study and training, does it depend on one’s relationship with God (or other supernatural beings) or on natural abilities?
4. Indicate the motivation for using magic— is it to manipulate other people, to harm (black magic) or to heal and help them (white magic). Yet even ‘white magic’ is harmful if it comes from the wrong source.
5. Show how the villains’ use of ‘magic’ differs from the ‘good guys’? Do they use a different type of magic or do they wield it in a different (maybe illicit) ways or for different reasons?
6. Consider how blurred the lines are between what is clearly imagination and reality. Could it be confused for contemporary dabbling in magic and thus encourage further involvement or exploration of such avenues?

  

Some examples: Paul Gallico’s The Man Who Was Magic— A magician arrives in town of magicians or illusionists famous for their use props, sleights of hands and tricks. The difference is the stranger can do ‘real’ magic— producing a real rose out of thin air with the dew still on the petals. Jealous and afraid of losing their livelihoods and reputations, the false magicians wish to kill the stranger. This story is a powerful allegory of Jesus’ story (the true magician where the magic of the others is counterfeit). C S Lewis Narnia series—the villains are often witches or magicians (Jardis, the White Witch, the Lady of the Green Kirtle, Uncle Andrew). Their magic is used for selfish reasons or to control and manipulate others, and is opposed to the powerful and true magic of Aslan the Lion (analogy for Christ-figure) and his father, the Emperor over the Seas. The children are given gifts (including Lucy’s magical cordial which heals) or signs (as with Jill in the Silver Chair) but it is their faith in Aslan that is most important. Narnia is a fantastical world in which animals talk and the stars have human form. In Tolkien’s Middle Earth—the elves have innate magical abilities while men, dwarves and hobbits do not. The magicians like Gandalf are physical personifications of angels (Istari), sent by the creator God to guide elves and men back to him. Necromancy, sorcery are condemned and the great power of the One Ring will corrupt and subvert the good in even the best and must be destroyed rather than used.

This is a complex issue and I found it hard to cover all the issues succinctly—so I do apologise for a rather lengthy post. I hope I’ve given some direction and, more importantly, something to think about.  On Thursday, I want to approach this issue from the perspective of the reader, including young readers.

What about Fantasy?
Part One - Should we read/write Fantasy
Part Two - Writing Fantasy (that's this one)
Part Three - Reading Fantasy

Other posts:
Saints, Seekers and Sleepers
What is Christian Fiction?

Further reference:

http://travissbigidea.blogspot.com.au/2014/08/7-ways-to-deal-with-problem-magic-poses.html

http://kingdompen.org/magic-fantasy-and-the-christian-writer/

http://www.decentfilms.com/articles/magic
https://droppedpebbles.wordpress.com/fantasy-and-faith-part-one/
http://mikeduran.com/2015/09/dont-wake-the-watchful-dragons/

Fantasy Image: Jeanette O'Hagan © 2015 

Jeanette O'Hagan has a short story published in the general market Tied in Pink Romance Anthology  (profits from the anthology go towards Breast Cancer research) in December 2014 and two poems in the Poetica Christi’s Inner Child anthology launched in July 2015. She has practiced medicine, studied communication, history and theology and has taught theology.  She cares for her school-aged children, has just finished her Masters of Arts (Writing) at Swinburne University and is writing her Akrad's fantasy fiction series.  

You can read some of her short fiction here. 

You can find her at her Facebook Page or at Goodreads or on her websites  JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes .

What about Fantasy? Part One

by Jeanette O'Hagan

What does Christian faith and fantasy have to do with each other? Should Christians write or read fantasy? Is it Biblical? Is it perhaps harmful or deceptive?

Supernatural tales have been around since the dawn of time (myths, legends, fairy tales, tall stories) and the 18^th century novelists loved tales of Gothic thrills (ghosts, spooky castles etc), With advent of rationalism and modernism such romantic fantasies became less popular in the 19^th and 20^th century though arguably, in the mid-twentieth century, it is two staunch Christians, C. S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien, who did much to  reignite the interest in fantasy which the proliferation of the genre one sees today in books and film. It’s hard to deny the influence that Tolkien has had on modern fantasy – and it has been recently been cogently argued that Dr Who may (in part) have been inspired by Lewis’ Narnia (which makes the 2013 Christmas Special even more poignant). Both Lewis and Tolkien were influenced by George MacDonald’s modern fairy tales (another Christian writer). Many would argue (myself included) that Lewis’ fantasies strengthened their understanding of God and, in some cases, brought them to faith in Christ. Philip Yancy (an influential Christian author) credits reading Lewis’ fiction as part of his way back from atheism to Christian faith. In a world that often tries to exclude the supernatural, fantasy can whet people’s appetite for the transcendent.

On the other hand, when the Harry Potter phenomena was sweeping the world, turning reluctant readers into avid fans, many Christians argued that the books were harmful and should be shunned. To be honest, I had my doubts about them and resisted the pressure to read them when my daughter was young – though we have both since read the entire series. I was once told that the Narnia series shouldn’t be read because it ‘had witches in it.’

Some Christians would say that fantasy is harmful, perhaps even demonic, and should be avoided. Of course, some even argue against Christian romance – or any fiction at all because it is ‘telling lies’ or mere escapism. But fantasy (and certainly horror or paranormal fiction) seems to be particularly open to criticism because it pushes the envelope of reality and usually (but not always) includes supernatural beings and magical powers. After all, doesn’t the Bible enjoin truth telling? Doesn’t it say:

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8 (NLT)

And doesn’t it also contain strong prohibitions against witchcraft and the practice of magic:

I will put an end to all witchcraft, and there will be no more fortune-tellers (Micah 5:12, NLT) or And do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft. (Deut 18:10, NLT).   (See also Lev 19:26, 31; Deut 18:14, Isa 2:6-8, 18, 20; 8:19-20; 47:9,12; Ezek 13:18-21; Acts)

Is fiction telling lies?

God does value honesty and the Bible is full of history — with a careful respect for the names, dates, locations (Genesis to Chronicles, the Gospels and Acts). However, both the prophets and Jesus used parables, some realistic and some more imaginative. God himself used symbolism in dreams — and the Apocalyptic books (much of Daniel and Revelation) revel in the use of symbolism and almost bizarre images to express God’s truth. An imaginative use of metaphor and story can engage our emotions and reveal truths we may not otherwise have understood.

Is fiction, and particularly fantasy, escapist?

Well yes, to some extent. Freud claimed fiction was ‘fantasizing’ – a form of egregious wish fulfilment. The hero always wins, the heroine gets her happily-ever-after or we can imagine ourselves visiting other worlds or having superpowers. Yet, as we have seen with parables, imaginative stories can help us see and deal with profound truths. In fiction we can use themes, metaphors and images to communicate realities that can touch the heart in the way a treatise or rational argument may not. Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin and Charles Dickens’ novels had a tremendous impact on 19^th century social consciences. We can tell stories not only to sooth, but also challenge and inspire, to imagine other possibilities and other ways of dealing with the world’s problems. Science Fiction and Fantasy are particularly good at exploring the big philosophical questions as well as the personal. Moreover, fantasy (along perhaps with historical fiction) is genre where inclusion of the supernatural and/or religion is almost expected even in the general market.

Is it unsavoury?

Some Christians will argue that we should only read ‘clean’ fiction that doesn’t deal with difficult issues. Some object to any portrayal of dark or satanic forces or magic in Christian fiction.  However, it seems to me that the Bible itself is not a ‘clean’ read by these standards. Like God himself, His Word doesn’t shy away from showing life in all its grittiness or displaying the ugly, broken side of human nature, sometimes in rather earthy language. It also mentions spiritual forces and practices opposed to God. It includes demons, witches, sorcerers and magical practices (through a critical lens). What it doesn’t do is glorify immorality (calling bad good or good bad) and it always points to a way forward in God, sometimes boldly (Exodus, the Gospels) and at other times with more subtlety (Ruth, Esther).

It seems to me that we need to be careful to honour God in all the fiction we write and read and that fantasy is not isolated in this respect. Some time ago my husband and I decided to stop watching a heavy diet of crime shows, because the shows seemed to be getting grislier and more bizarre to maintain their shock value and this was giving a distorted picture of the world. Another friend stopped devouring romance novels because it fuelled a sense of dissatisfaction in her marriage when her husband did not come close to living up to the romantic leads. Does this mean it’s wrong to watch crime shows or that romance is not helpful? No, I don’t think so. What I think it means is that we need to be sensitive to the effect of what we read and watch has on us and that this will differ between different people.

This post has just opened the lid of this fantastical ‘can of worms’ J Next month, I will continue exploring the issues it raises:

Monday, September 7 Part Two — I’ll look at writing about magic/supernatural in fiction.

Thursday, September 10 Part Three — I’ll look at what’s helpful/beneficial in reading fantasy. 

For a more extended look at what fantasy  is - check out Fantasy and Faith: Part 1 & Part 2.

What about Fantasy?
Part One - Should we read/write Fantasy (that's this one)
Part Two - Writing Fantasy
Part Three - Reading Fantasy

Other posts:
Saints, Seekers and Sleepers
What is Christian Fiction?

Fantasy Image: Jeanette O'Hagan © 2015 

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Jeanette O'Hagan has a short story published in the general market Tied in Pink Romance Anthology  (profits from the anthology go towards Breast Cancer research) in December 2014 and two poems in the Poetica Christi’s Inner Child anthology launched in July 2015. She has practiced medicine, studied communication, history and theology and has taught theology.  She cares for her children, has just finished her Masters of Arts (Writing) at Swinburne University and is writing her Akrad's fantasy fiction series.  You can read some of her short fiction here. 

You can find her at her Facebook Page or at Goodreads or on her websites  JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes