Being a Brasenostril, it has almost become part of my daily routine to shuffle in and out of groups of tourists huddled round a tiny door, emblazoned with golden fawns guarding its frame. This stubby passageway, it is alleged, was the inspiration for that famous encounter in C. S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. So pervasive has fantasy become as a genre that, just yesterday, I saw a group blanketed by their Gryffindor scarves stop at St Mary’s Passage to pay homage to a world of fantastical creatures and happenings that their beloved Daniel Radcliffe wasn’t remotely involved in.
The Power of Fantasy
Fantasy has become as much of a staple of the literary and cinematic canon as that passageway has of every Oxford guided tour. But has this persistence been driven by the same shared need for escapism through the ages, or is fantasy a discreetly blunt cultural mirror used to reflect on our reality?
During the aftermath of the Second World War and the less than jovial task of rebuilding the nation from rubble, there emerged a new focus for literature, especially among novels aimed at children. While some European countries began a sustained period of cultural reflection, Britain, having been on the winning side, saw a much faster transition to seemingly escapist literature.
The Birth of Complex Childfiction
It took until only 1950 for Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia to get underway with unashamed use of Greek mythology, talking animals, inter-special warfare, and a plethora of magical spells and ablutions. Though on the surface this highly-fictionalized world seems to be turning its back on harsh post-war conditions and discussions, C. S. Lewis was arguably the father of a sub-genre of fantasy that has since played a key role in the British literary canon: complex childfiction.
While the world of Narnia is fictional, it is not without parallels to the world in which C. S. Lewis was writing. Symbolic undercurrents of the war and its aftermath embellish and shape the fruitful fantasies of Narnia, the most prominent of these being Christianity. The Chronicles, particularly The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, resonate with contextual echoes, mirroring the need for hope and salvation in a war-torn world.
Shifting Perspectives
Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, published later that decade, marks the success of novels that leaned towards escapism without pulpit-prose. By the time of publication, the need for fantasy as a reflection on society was already diminishing as society shifted. The emergence of fantasy in film and television saw a greater devotion to character complexity, narrative tension, and combat. The genre had become more grounded in narrative reality, with less attention to societal reflection or moral motivations.
Jump forward to the present, and it is clear that our fantasy narratives have taken on almost purely escapist forms. Harry Potter lacks any allegorical meaning, and Game of Thrones is not a comment on politics. Though emotionally and narratively complex, these parallel worlds serve as an escape from daily life.
The Rise of Escapism
As the media through which fantasy can be created have become far more widespread, so too has the audience. In this modern age, as individuals feel less and less important on a large scale, their escapist desires have increased. Culture seeks to provide an escape from daily life, allowing people to detach and immerse themselves in parallel worlds.
So, if one desires a real escape, it is best to avoid delving too far into history. This way, they can fully immerse themselves in the world of Minotaurs and fawns without stumbling upon a moral treatise on British Christianity.
In the end, fantasy, with all its enchantment and allure, continues to captivate us, reflecting our need for an escape and a journey into the unknown.