Fantasy is often looked down on as a genre. I tell my academic superiors that I enjoy fantasy and they covertly sneer. To my mom, my passion for fantasy was just another distraction from the recognized works of meaningful literature. To me, however, it is so much more than that. Why does fantasy delight me? I could spend years explaining. I love myth and magic and world building and the sense of adventure and heroism, but, more than that, I love what I learn from it. I love that it both delights me and teaches me. Fantasy can be literature as much as the next book. It stretches and expands our minds and imagination, preparing us for greater creativity. Moreover, by presenting us with the impossible, fantasy prepares the readers for the unexpected and gives us courage to tackle anything.
What makes a book great? It generates thoughtfulness, self-examination and reevaluation. It teaches us what heroes are made of and inspires us to act with integrity. It is true the you can read a fantasy novel and gain nothing from it but a sense of excitement, but it is also true that you can read Pride and Prejudice and think, "What a cute love story!" while entirely missing the point. The greatest fantasy books I've read have made my mind reel with moral dilemmas, generated a burning commitment to change the world, and enlightened my understanding of myself and my purpose as a child of God.
But if those same enlightening moments can be achieved through any genre of literature, what is the purpose of choosing to read about something that could never possibly be? The impossibility is the purpose! When it comes down to it, fantasy is unconfined and so can stretch to incredible bounds to share fundamentals of humanity that would be otherwise difficult to teach and envision. Fantasy forces us to stretch our minds to create an entirely new world-view! Cultures and traditions that seem strange to others make sense to the lover of fantasy. We learn to think outside the box in the same way the puzzle-solvers and artists do, as in fantasy we paint with vibrant colors to create a bigger picture than the rest of the world can understand.
Lastly, by immersing us in a world so completely foreign, fantasy teaches us to better accept all the sudden changes of direction we may experience in life and how to have the courage to solve problems seemingly far beyond our control. Because fantasy is fake, it is able to transcend agendas and create parables of real life in a way that we can really internalize and learn from. We believe in the impossible and that it really is not as impossible as it might seem.
Fantasy need not be scoffed at. It has the same gifts as fiction and nonfiction, but is also given the ability to stretch beyond that and expand our imaginations, and to prepare us for the uniqueness each of us will experience in life. I am proud to say that I enjoy fantasy, for not only does it delight me, but I delight in what I learn every time I pick up a new epic.
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