Noun

Singular fantasy

Plural fantasies

fantasy (plural fantasies)

1. That which comes from one's imagination
2. (literature) The literary genre generally dealing with themes of magic and fictive medieval technology.
3. (slang) The drug gamma-hydroxybutyric acid.

Related terms

• fantasize

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, and/or setting. Many works within the genre take place in fictional worlds where magic is common. Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction in that it does not provide a logical (or pseudo logical) explanation for the scientifically impossible events that occur, though there is a great deal of overlap between the two (both are subgenres of speculative fiction).

In popular culture, the genre of fantasy is dominated by its medievalist form, especially since the worldwide success of The Lord of the Rings books by J. R. R. Tolkien. In its broadest sense however, fantasy comprises works by many writers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians, from ancient myths and legends to many recent works embraced by a wide audience today.

Fantasy is a vibrant area of academic study in a number of disciplines (English, cultural studies, comparative literature, history, medieval studies). Work in this area ranges widely, from the structuralist theory of Tzvetan Todorov, which emphasizes the fantastic as a liminal space, to work on the connections (political, historical, literary) between medievalism and popular culture.

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of plot, theme, and/or setting. Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of scientific and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three (which are subgenres of speculative fiction).

Contents

• 1 Sourced
• 2 Unsourced
• 3 Related Topics
• 4 External Links

Sourced

• All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
  • Zuleika Dobson by Sir Max Beerbohm, 1911.

• The poet is in command of his fantasy, while it is exactly the mark of the neurotic that he is possessed by his fantasy.
  • The Liberal Imagination by Lionel Trilling, 1950.

• It is easy to imagine fantasy as physical and myth as real. We do it almost every moment. We do this as we dream, as we think, and as we cope with the world about us. But these worlds of fantasy that we form into the solid things around us are the source of our discontent. They inspire our search to find ourselves.
  • The Physics of Consciousness: The Quantum Mind and the Meaning of Life by Evan Harris Walker, 2000.

Unsourced

• Fantasy is literature for teenagers.
  • Brian Aldiss

• When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than any talent for abstract, positive thinking.
  • Albert Einstein

From Wikiquote under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Sat Jul 17 17:25:07 2010