February 16, 2004
High Fantasy
American Military University
HM 214, Science Fiction and Fantasy
by James Landrith
High Fantasy
American Military University
HM 214, Science Fiction and Fantasy
by James Landrith
In the past, most of the fantasy I’ve read or seen on film has been of the high fantasy variety. In particular, stories and movies based on Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian character, J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth tales, films and cartoons, and the Harry Potter series of books and movies by J.K.Rowling are among some of the most popular examples of this style of fiction.
The high fantasy subgenre contains many interesting and appealing elements. According to Garyn G. Roberts, high fantasy usually contains a moral quest typified by “exotic lands, outrageous characters, seemingly impossible odds and never-ending complications and tensions.” Roberts also explains that high fantasy consists of two different styles “heroic Sword and Sorcery fiction” and “epic romances.”
I’ve always found the moral quest element of high fantasy to be its most intriguing aspect. In particular, I enjoy the ultimate triumph of good over evil or an epic struggle to accomplish some fantastic goal, set against a broad range of locations and diverse cast of characters. I am further intrigued and interested in stories that feature complicated moral lessons and characters with conflicted and contradictory motivations and moral codes. Many of the stories assigned for this lesson segment contain such themes.
Robert E. Howard’s The Tower of the Elephant, is a classic example of sword and sorcery fantasy. In this particular Conan the Barbarian tale, the reader is presented with an epic struggle of good over evil contrasted with the less than pure motivations of its lead protagonist. While the Conan character doesn’t qualify as a purely righteous character, he does partially fill that role in this particular storyline. When the reader takes the time to consider the culturally primitive background of Conan as well as the societal norms presented in this story, it is much easier to see a brute like Conan in the role of hero. The moral quest in this tale involves Conan’s sack and conquering of the Elephant Tower and the demise of Yara, the powerful evil sorcerer controlling the Tower. In keeping with his barbaric nature, Conan’s motivations for taking on this task are far from pure and change during the course of the story.
In the beginning of this tale, Conan decides upon this task merely to prove it can be done. For the barbarian, it is a matter of pride to attempt to steal the magical Elephant’s Heart jewel from the evil sorcerer in the Elephants Tower. This task quickly turns into a quest for survival once his accidental companion, the prince of thieves, is slain during their entrance to the Tower. Further playing into the moral quest theme, Conan is motivated to avenge the horrible treatment of the pitiful creature Yag-kosha by the evil sorcerer. Howard demonstrates the barbarian’s humanity through his thoughts upon viewing the tortured and mutilated Yag-kosha. Conan, upon viewing Yag-kosha “stood aghast at the ruined deformities which his reason told him had once been limbs as comely as his own.” Further, Conan felt “all fear and repulsion” leave him, replaced by “a great pity” and a “strange aching sadness.” In the end, Robert E. Howard has left the reader with a barbaric, but believable character who, with unpure motives, accidentally entered upon a moral quest to avenge his companion’s death and the imprisonment and torture of the deformed Yag-kosha.
Riddles in the Dark, an excerpt from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, involved a life and death struggle between a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins and the very nasty creature known as Gollum. The quest in this story centered around Bilbo’s struggle to persevere and survive in spite of Gollum’s primitive desire to kill and devour the hobbit. Further complicating the tale are Bilbo’s efforts to hide from the evil goblins who pursed him through the maze of underground tunnels into which he had unfortunately stumbled.
This story is also an interesting case of the primary villain and impediment to the quest’s success, represented by the tortured creature known as Gollum, not necessarily being as readily clear-cut and detestable as some high fantasy villains. Gollum is nasty and violent, yet plagued by a feeble hold on his former life as a civilized creature. Tolkien described Gollum’s inner turmoil by pointing out that the riddle game with Bilbo Baggins “reminded him of days when he had been less lonely and sneaky and nasty, and that put him out of temper.”
By portraying Gollum as less than a pure evil, Tolkien has presented the reader with a less than clearcut moral quest, yet still a quest indeed. Bilbo’s struggle to stay alive and navigate through the underground labyrinth of tunnels to the safety above is also interestingly contrasted with Gollum’s struggle to maintain a small hold on his former self. Further, the life and death struggle of Bilbo Baggins to outsmart Gollum in an ages-old riddle game gives the reader an interesting view of a savage world that, for all its brutality and unfairness, still operates within specific, traditional parameters for its inhabitants. Tolkien accomplishes this through his description of the riddle game as “sacred and of immense antiquity, and even wicked creatures were afraid to cheat when they played at it.” This explanation is not unlike today’s Geneva Convention agreements which govern the conduct of military organizations on the battlefield.
This similarity provides an interesting parallel between the fantastic world of Middle Earth and today’s world of technology, globalization and world-wide civilization. In the end, Baggins succeeds in his quest not through brute force or weaponry, but by outwitting the hideous Gollum and eluding the evil goblins through the use of deception and agility.
As the stories I profiled above demonstrate, moral quests and battles of good vs. evil are not always as clear cut as readers may expect. I believe stories that present the reader with protagonists and villains with conflicted and contradictory motives are far more interesting than cut and dry, black and white moral narratives. The world we live in is full of contradictions and conflicting motivations. The fantasy worlds we retreat to in our own minds are merely reflections of the same.
Howard, Robert E. “The Tower of the Elephant.” The Prentice Hall Anthology of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Ed. Garyn G. Roberts. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001. 257-271.
This short story is an excellent example of sword and sorcery fantasy featuring the Conan the Barbarian character.
Roberts, Garyn G. The Prentice Hall Anthology of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001. 207-208.
This anthology presents an overview of the history of science fiction and fantasy. The genre is explored through essays, summaries and bibliographies. Further many classic examples of the genre are demonstrated through the inclusion of dozens of short stories.
Tolkien, J.R.R. “Riddles in the Dark.” The Prentice Hall Anthology of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Ed. Garyn G. Roberts. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001. 272-283.
This short story is a brilliant example of high fantasy with a life and death struggle involving wits and cunning, rather than bloodshed and battle
{mos_sb_discuss:7}