Editing High fantasy

{{Short description|Subgenre of fiction}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Fantasy}}
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* [[Lloyd Alexander]]'s ''[[The Chronicles of Prydain]]''
* [[Piers Anthony]]'s ''[[Xanth]]''
* [[Terry Brooks]]' ''[[Shannara]]''
* [[Stephen R. Donaldson]]'s ''[[The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant]]''
* [[David Eddings]]' ''[[Belgariad]]''/''[[Malloreon]]'', ''[[The Elenium]]''/''[[The Tamuli]]'' and ''[[The Dreamers (novel series)|The Dreamers]]''
* [[Steven Erikson]]'s and [[Ian Cameron Esslemont]]'s ''[[Malazan Book of the Fallen]]''
* [[Raymond Feist]]'s ''[[The Riftwar Cycle]]''
* [[Terry Goodkind]]'s ''[[The Sword of Truth]]''
* [[Robert Jordan]]'s and Brandon Sanderson's ''[[The Wheel of Time]]''
* [[Ursula K. Le Guin]]'s ''[[Earthsea (book series)|Earthsea]]''
* [[C. S. Lewis]]'s ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia]]''
* [[George R. R. Martin]]'s ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]''
* [[Michael Moorcock]]'s [[Elric of Melniboné]] series
* [[Terry Pratchett]]'s ''[[Discworld]]''
* [[Brandon Sanderson]]'s ''[[Brandon Sanderson bibliography#The Cosmere|Cosmere]]'' 
* [[R. A. Salvatore]]'s  ''[[List of Forgotten Realms novels|Forgotten Realms]]''  and ''[[The DemonWars Saga]]''
* [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Hobbit]]'' and ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''
* [[Margaret Weis]]'s and [[Tracy Hickman]]'s ''[[Dragonlance#Novels|Dragonlance]]'', ''[[Darksword]]'' and ''[[The Deathgate Cycle]]''
* [[Tad Williams]]' ''[[Memory, Sorrow and Thorn]]'' 
* [[Roger Zelazny]]'s ''[[The Chronicles of Amber]]''

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'''High fantasy''', or '''epic fantasy''', is a [[subgenre]] of [[fantasy]]<ref name=High_fantasy_is_a_fantasy_genre>{{cite web|url=http://fandomania.com/defining-the-genre-high-fantasy/|title=''Defining the Genre: High Fantasy''|work=fandomania|date=11 May 2011|access-date=8 August 2016|quote="High Fantasy is probably one of the most recognizable subgenres of Fantasy."|archive-date=22 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190322195115/http://fandomania.com/defining-the-genre-high-fantasy/|url-status=live}}</ref> defined by the [[epic poetry|epic]] nature of its [[setting (narrative)|setting]] or by the epic stature of its [[character (arts)|characters]], [[theme (narrative)|themes]], or [[plot (narrative)|plot]].<ref name="stableford">[[Brian Stableford]], ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Press, Plymouth. 2005. {{ISBN|0-8108-6829-6}}</ref> High fantasy is usually set in an [[Fantasy world|alternative, fictional ("secondary") world]], rather than the "real" or "primary" world.<ref name="stableford" /> This secondary world is usually internally consistent, but its rules differ from those of the primary world. By contrast, [[low fantasy]] is characterized by being set on Earth, the primary or real world, or a rational and familiar fictional world with the inclusion of magical elements.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Reading and Writing Literary Genres|last1=Buss|first1=Kathleen|last2=Karnowski|first2=Lee|year=2000|publisher=International Reading Assoc.|isbn=978-0-87207-257-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/readingwritingli0000buss/page/114 114]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/readingwritingli0000buss/page/114}}</ref><ref name="Perry">{{Cite book|title=Teaching Fantasy Novels |last=Perry |first=Phyllis Jean |year=2003 |publisher=Libraries Unlimited |isbn=978-1-56308-987-9 |page=vi }}</ref><ref name="Gamble">{{Cite book|title=Exploring Children's Literature|last1=Gamble|first1=Nikki|last2=Yates|first2=Sally|year=2008|publisher=SAGE Publications Ltd|isbn=978-1-4129-3013-0|pages=102–103}}</ref><ref>C.W. Sullivan has a slightly more complex definition in "High Fantasy", chapter 24 of the ''International Companion Encyclopedia of Children's Literature'' by Peter Hunt and Sheila G. Bannister Ray (Routledge, 1996 and 2004), chapter 24.</ref>

==Characteristics==
The term "high fantasy" was coined by [[Lloyd Alexander]] in a 1971 essay, "High Fantasy and Heroic Romance", which was originally given at the New England Round Table of Children's Librarians in October 1969.<ref name="stableford" /> "High fantasy" often serves as a broad term to include a number of different flavors of the fantasy genre, mythic fantasy, [[dark fantasy]], and [[wuxia]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Dungeon Master's Guide|publisher=Wizards of the Coast|date=December 2014|isbn=978-0-7869-6562-5|editor-last=Crawford|editor-first=Jeremy|location=Washington, United States|pages=38–41|language=English|editor-last2=Perkins|editor-first2=Christopher|editor-last3=Wyatt|editor-first3=James}}</ref> It typically is not considered to include the [[sword and sorcery]] genre.<ref name=":0" /> High fantasy is typically set in a quasi-[[medieval]] world, is frequently inspired by various mythological or legendary traditions, and often but not always features supernatural [[Magic (supernatural)|sorcery]] and imaginary beings such as [[dragon]]s. 

Many high fantasy stories are told from the viewpoint of one main hero. Often, much of the plot revolves around their heritage or mysterious nature, along with a world-threatening problem. In many novels the hero is an orphan or unusual sibling, and frequently portrayed with an extraordinary talent for magic or combat. They begin the story young, if not as an actual child, or are portrayed as being very weak and/or useless.<ref>{{cite book|author=Michael Moorcock|title=Wizardry & Wild Romance: A Study of Epic Fantasy|year=2004|page=84|publisher=MonkeyBrain|isbn=1-932265-07-4}}</ref> 

The hero often begins as a naïve or childlike figure but is forced by circumstances to mature rapidly, experiencing a considerable gain in fighting or problem-solving abilities along the way.<ref>{{Cite web|last=MasterClass|date=26 May 2022|title=High Fantasy Books: 6 Characteristics of High Fantasy|url=https://www.masterclass.com/articles/high-fantasy|website=MasterClass}}</ref> The progress of the story leads to the character's learning the nature of the unknown forces against them, that they constitute a force with great power and malevolence. The [[villain]]s in such stories are usually completely evil and unrelatable.<ref>[[Patricia A. McKillip]], "Writing High Fantasy", p 53, Philip Martin, ed., ''The Writer's Guide to Fantasy Literature: From Dragon's Lair to Hero's Quest'', {{ISBN|0-87116-195-8}}</ref> 

The romances of [[William Morris]], such as ''[[The Well at the World's End]]'', set in an imaginary [[medieval]] world, are sometimes regarded as the first examples of high fantasy.<ref name="dg">{{cite book|last=Dozois|first=Gardner|author-link=Gardner Dozois|title=[[Modern Classics of Fantasy]]|chapter=Preface|location=New York|publisher=St. Martin's Press|year=1997|pages=[https://archive.org/details/modernclassicsof00dozo/page/ xvi–xvii]|isbn=031215173X}}</ref><!-- https://books.google.com/books?id=3r6FBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT15 --> Other early examples of the genre are some works of American novelist [[James Branch Cabell]] which were set in a fictional world inspired by medieval France and published starting in 1919, known collectively as ''[[Biography of the Life of Manuel]]''. [[E.R. Eddison]]'s novels [[The Worm Ouroboros]] (1922) and the [[Zimiamvian Trilogy]] (1935–1958) are also important in epic fantasy.

[[Tolkien's legendarium|The works]] of English [[J. R. R. Tolkien]], especially ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' (1954-55), are regarded as [[History of fantasy|archetypal works of high fantasy]].<ref name="dg" /> 


[[File:The Well at the World's End MET DP322256.jpg|left|thumb|''The Well at the World's End'' (1896) by William Morris is an early example of high fantasy fiction.]]

==Themes==
High fantasy has often been defined by its themes and messages.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Wolfgang|first=Baur|title=Kobold Guide to Worldbuilding|publisher=Kobold Press|year=2012|editor-last=Silverstein|editor-first=Janna|pages=27|language=English|chapter=How Real is Your World? On History and Setting}}</ref> "[[Good versus evil]]" is a common one in high fantasy, and defining the character of evil is often an important theme in a work of high fantasy,<ref>Tom Shippey, ''J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century'', p 120, {{ISBN|0-618-25759-4}}</ref> such as ''The Lord of the Rings''. The importance of the concept of good and evil can be regarded as the distinguishing mark between high fantasy and sword and sorcery.<ref name=":0">Joseph A. McCullough V, "[http://www.blackgate.com/articles/S&S.htm The Demarcation of Sword and Sorcery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010011823/http://www.blackgate.com/articles/S%26S.htm |date=10 October 2008 }}"</ref> In many works of high fantasy, this conflict marks a deep concern with moral issues; in other works, the conflict is a power struggle, with, for instance, [[Wizard (fantasy)|wizard]]s behaving irresponsibly whether they are "good" or "evil".<ref>Ursula K. Le Guin, "The Question I Get Asked Most Often" p 274, ''The Wave in the Mind'', {{ISBN|1-59030-006-8}}</ref>

==Game settings==
[[Role-playing game]]s such as ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' with [[campaign setting]]s like ''[[Dragonlance]]''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dragonlance.com|title=Dragonlance homepage|access-date=2 March 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060304092129/http://www.dragonlance.com/|archive-date=4 March 2006}}</ref> by [[Tracy Hickman]] and [[Margaret Weis]] and ''[[Forgotten Realms]]'' by [[Ed Greenwood]]<ref>{{cite journal|quote=For Dungeons and Dragons, both TSR and WotC produced additional settings that can be used with the core rules, two of the most popular being the magic-punk Eberron ... and the high fantasy Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting.|last=Snow|first=Cason|title=Dragons in the stacks: an introduction to role-playing games and their value to libraries|journal=Collection Building|volume=27|issue=2|year=2008|pages=63–70|doi=10.1108/01604950810870218}}</ref> are a common basis for many fantasy books and many other authors continue to contribute to the settings.<ref>"Most role-playing games draw upon a universe based in high fantasy; this literary genre, half-way between traditional fantasy ..." Squedin, S., & Papillon, S. (2008). U.S. Patent Application 12/198,391.</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Novels}}
* {{annotated link|Sword and sorcery}}
* {{annotated link|Historical fantasy}}
* [[List of genres]]
* [[List of high fantasy fiction]]
* {{annotated link|Low fantasy}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~mjoseph/genre%20lecture%20fantasy.doc "Fantasy Genre Lecture"]—A paper by Michael Joseph discussing high fantasy and referencing Alexander's theories, via Rutgers' School of Communication and Information. 
* [https://www.hbook.com/?detailStory=flat-heeled-muse#_ "The Flat-Heeled Muse"] by Lloyd Alexander, the inventor of the term "high fantasy", discusses fantasy world-building and "the problems and disciplines of fantasy"
* [https://www.nownovel.com/blog/fantasy-book-writing-help/ "Fantasy book writing: 7 tips"]—Now Novel discusses the origin of the term, referencing Lloyd Alexander and offering high fantasy writing tips

{{fantasy fiction}}
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[[Category:High fantasy| ]]
[[Category:1971 neologisms]]
[[Category:Fantasy genres]]