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Genre
Fantasy:
Books that fall into this genre usually inspire imaginative thought and go beyond the realities of
this world into others. There are two types of fantasy; traditional fantasy and modern fantasy. The only real difference between
the two is that traditional fantasy originated orally and has no author while modern fantasy originated in print and does
have an author. In both of these types of fantasy, they violate the natural and physical laws of our world.
Some examples of these are favorite stories like Cinderella (Brothers Grimm), The Adventures of Pinocchio (Carlo Collodi),
and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll).
Unlike other stories where the character is well defined, stories that fall under the fantasy genre has
characters whose development is lean and spare. Their lives give examples of simple human nature but do not go into great
detail on thought and background. Plots in these stories are simple and direct. There is an introdution into the story, a
problem occurs, a climax, and in the end, everything is well again and everyone lives happily ever after. Themes
in these stories are simple showing rewards of mercy and kindness, justice and punishment of evil, and the power of love.
Fantasy books have 6 typical motifs they follow. Magic, one of the most important aspects of a fantasy book,
ties together the other 5 motifs and is usually included in the setting. The five other motifs include other worlds, good
vs. evil, heroism, special character types, and fantastic objects. Modern fantasy falls into several different catagories
which can include one or more of these. There is animal fantasy which includes talking animals as in Charlottes Web (E.
B. White). Toys and objects have or come to life as in Pinocchio (Carlo Collodi), tiny humans as in The Borrowers (Mary
Norton), peculiar characters and situations such as Mary Poppins (P. L. Travers). There is imaginary worlds like in Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll), magical powers as in The Chocolate Touch (Partick Catling), and supernatural tales
as in Stonewords (Pam Conrad). There are time warp fantasies as in Tom's Midnight Garden (Philippa Pearce) and high fantasy
as in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
Many adults dismiss fantasy as they see no educational value. They believe it is not solid grounded reading
for children or young adults. But what they are not seeing about fantasy is that fantasy allows for use of the imagination.
"It clarifies the human condition and captures the essence of our deepest emotions, dreams, hopes, and fears." (Tunnell, Jacobs
pg. 86)
Literary Elements
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Dialogue:
"When a person's mouth opens, truth emerges about personality, motives, desires, prejudices, and feelings." (p 25)
Normal dialogue between people is full of emotion. A person's personality shows when they speak
to another. Depending on what the conversation is about and who it is with, whether it is directly stated or not, the intention
of the speaker is made clear.
The same thing is true in written dialogue. When text is written how it is spoken, the reader
can pick up on the meaning and true feelings of the character. It expresses human thought and emotion.
Characterization:
Characterization conveys the character's personality, life history, values and physical attributes. Characterization
can describe several different aspects of a character such as age, appearance, gender, marital status, educational level,
hobbies, ambitions, etc.
There are two types of characterization: direct and indirect characterization. Direct characterization tells what the
character is like up front. This can be done with a narrator or another character. Indirect characterization makes the audience
deduce what the character is like. This can be done through the character's thoughts, actions, looks, speech, and their interaction
with other characters.
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