James Lowder - Beyond the Wall: Exploring George R. R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire, From A Game of Thrones to A Dance with Dragons

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Beyond the Wall: Exploring George R.R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire, From A Game of Thrones to A Dance with Dragons 2012 by James Lowder

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COPYRIGHT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Foreword: Stories for the Nights to Come 2012 by R.A. Salvatore

The Palace of Love, the Palace of Sorrow 2012 by Linda Antonsson and Elio M. Garca, Jr.

Men and Monsters 2012 by Alyssa Rosenberg

Same Song in a Different Key 2012 by Daniel Abraham

An Unreliable World 2012 by Adam Whitehead

Back to the Egg 2012 by Gary Westfahl

Art Imitates War 2012 by Myke Cole

The Brutal Cost of Redemption in Westeros 2012 by Susan Vaught

Of Direwolves and Gods 2012 by Andrew Zimmerman Jones

A Sword Without a Hilt 2012 by Jesse Scoble

Petyr Baelish and the Mask of Sanity 2012 by Matt Staggs. Portions of this essay appeared in substantially different form under the title Petyr Baelish: Portrait of a Psychopath at Suvudu.com, July 7, 2011.

A Different Kind of Other 2012 by Brent Hartinger

Power and Feminism in Westeros 2012 by Caroline Spector

Collecting Ice and Fire in the Age of Nook and Kindle 2012 by John Jos. Miller

Beyond the Ghetto 2012 by Ned Vizzini

Introduction: In Praise of Living History and other materials 2012 by James Lowder

R.A. SALVATORE

JAMES LOWDER

LINDA ANTONSSON AND ELIO M. GARCA, JR.

ALYSSA ROSENBERG

DANIEL ABRAHAM

ADAM WHITEHEAD

GARY WESTFAHL

MYKE COLE

SUSAN VAUGHT

ANDREW ZIMMERMAN JONES

JESSE SCOBLE

MATT STAGGS

BRENT HARTINGER

CAROLINE SPECTOR

JOHN JOS. MILLER

NED VIZZINI

R.A. SALVATORE

WHY FANTASY?

Why write it? To entertain? To enlighten? To cut new alleyways of allegory? To chase spirituality with magic?

It pains me when I hear Margaret Atwood claim that shes not a fantasy author, as if that label somehow diminishes the quality of her work, just as it pained me three decades ago when my favorite literature professor discovered that I was reading Tolkiens Lord of the Rings in my free time. How his face turned red with anger! He had been pushing me toward his beloved Brandeis, to follow in his literary training, and bristled at the notion that I was wasting my intellect with such drivel.

He is long retired, but Tolkien certainly isnt. The twilight fancies resound about us, in books, movies, and television. They dominate the nascent art form of video games.

But even today, the pushback remains, as professors teaching Gilgamesh and Beowulf, Homer and Dante, wonder the worth instead of the irony. So it follows: when we see specific works of fantasy fiction, such as George R.R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire series, threatening to break into the halls of respectability, there is an undercurrent of commentary seeking to discredit the notion that said praiseworthy works could actually be, well, fantasy. Whether its the authors own statements, as with Ms. Atwood and Terry Goodkind, or the marketing angle attached to the booksChris Paolini is a child prodigy writing young adult stories; Philip Pullman is writing religious (or antireligious) allegory; J.K. Rowling is carrying on the fine British tradition of prep-school talesthe notion that these wonderful works sit well under the label of fantasy is always downplayed. Could it be that they are fantasy and they are all of those other things the academics and the marketers say, as well? Of course, to all, or they wouldnt succeed.

Or could it be that they are none of those things, and the labels themselves cut too fine a pie slice to be worth the taste? Is there really a corner to be turned here? Can the brilliance of The Handmaids Tale be diminished by a label attached to it? If that is the case, then we truly have found superficiality, but not in the work.

Peter Jackson accepted the slings and arrows of Hollywood royalty with his loving treatment of The Lord of the Rings as a serious and fantastical work. Millions of fans understood and appreciated his accomplishment, if the Academy did not, or did so only grudgingly. I hope my favorite college professor saw the films, and perhaps, if he did, the experience helped him to open his eyes, to understand, as Peter S. Beagle put it in the forward to the 1973 Ballantine edition of Tolkiens epic, that what Tolkien actually did was to tap our most common nightmares, daydreams and twilight fancies, but he never invented them either: he found them a place to live, a green alternative to each days madness here in a poisoned world.

Jacksons films have helped to reveal the absurdity of the label as condemnation. But if not Jackson, then certainly George Martin has done so, and hopefully for good.

I had the pleasure of sitting on a panel with George a few years ago; it felt more like we were sitting around a campfire on a dark winters night, whispering of adventure. Listening to George recount the stories of a childhood spent reading is listening to a love letter to speculative fiction. Theres no getting around it: George Martin writes fantasyunabashedly, proudly, lovingly.