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Fantasy subgenres
The fantasy genre has spawned many new subgenres with no clear counterparts in the myths or folklore upon which the tradition of fantasy storytelling is based, although inspiration from mythology and folklore remains a consistent theme. Since the rise of popular fantasy fiction in the twentieth century, the fantasy genre is often subdivided into a number of branches. However, like all discussions of genre, there are very few definitions of any of the subgenres that can be called 'definitive' to cover every and only work of that subgenre. These new subgenres are frequently extended back to include earlier works.
Alternate historyAlthough many forms of alternate history are classified as science fiction, alternate histories where magic works or fantastic creatures abound are classified as fantasy. The characteristics that separate it from historical fantasy and contemporary fantasy are that the history has both clear differences and clear connections to history and geography.
Bangsian fantasyBangsian fantasy is named for John Kendrick Bangs, whose late 19th- and early 20th-century Associated Shades series of novels deals with the afterlives of various famous people. Frequently used are the Underworld/Limbo/Purgatory ("neutral"), Elysium/Nirvana/Heaven ("good"), and Erebus/Gehenna/Hell ("bad").
Comic fantasyThis sub-genre parodies the above ideas as well as ideas outside the genre, sometimes in a postmodern manner. A peculiarly early example of this genre is the aforementioned Gulliver's Travels. It might also include the so-called "worst fantasy story ever published" The Eye of Argon. Although many of these works qualify, by setting, as high fantasy, comic fantasy can theoretically overlap with any of the other subgenres.
Contemporary fantasyThis fantasy comprises stories set in the putative real world or consensus reality in contemporary times, in which, the story reveals, magic or magical creatures exist, such as vampires or, as in the Highlander films and television series, immortals. All the fantasy elements in a contemporary fantasy must exist in, or at least intrude into, the real world. Fantasy stories where the characters leave the real world for a fantasy world, and the real world contains nothing magical except, perhaps, the portal, are usually high fantasy. On the other hand, their existence must be secret enough that a reader can be convinced that by one means or another, the fantasy elements could hide or be hidden from history, the media, and the overwhelming majority of people.
Urban fantasyMost contemporary fantasy takes place in an urban setting, leading the designation urban fantasy. The term is rarely used for stories taking place in the cities of imaginary lands.
Dark fantasyDark fantasy in this context refers to stories that focus on elements usually found in the horror genre but which take place in a setting more alike sword and sorcery or high fantasy. Dark fantasy includes "grittier" fantasy, conducted in settings which represent the brutality of the medieval period more realistically than the traditionally idealized representations of conventional fantasy, generally with a dash of supernatural horror. It may or may not take place in its own fantasy world.
Fairytale fantasyFairytale fantasy is distinguished from other subgenres by the works' heavy use of motifs, and often plots, from folklore. They sometimes ignore the standards of world-building common to fantasy as blithely as the tales from which they derive, though not always; stories that use a high fantasy, contemporary, or historical setting, with the world-building thus entailed, may also be considered part of those genres.
Heroic fantasyA subgenre touching high fantasy on one hand and sword-and-sorcery on the other. A hero is usually the main character, and is usually on a quest, and often is carrying one or more magical items.
High fantasyThe term high fantasy (also epic fantasy) generally refers to fantasy that depicts an epic struggle between good and evil in a fantasy world, parallel to ours. The moral concepts in such tales take on objective status, and are not relative to the one making the judgement. The moral tone and high stakes -- usually world-shaking -- separates this genre from sword and sorcery, while the degree to which the world is not based on a real-world history separates it from historical fantasy.
Historical fantasyHistorical fantasy takes two distinct forms. One encompasses stories set in the historical past but with fantasy elements introduced, much as contemporary fantasy is set in the present. The other is set in a created fantasy world that closely parallels our own, with recognisable analogs for countries, historical events or historical personages.
Celtic FantasyWithin the genre, further subgenres arise when a given historical era is popular. For instance, many fantasy settings have been in, or inspired by, Dark Age Celtic cultures have lead to the name of "Celtic fantasy."
SteampunkFantasy Steampunk is another subgenre of historical fantasy, being set in the Victorian or Edwardian eras, although certain technological features must also be present to label it as steampunk, and some works in this genre are alternate history. WuxiaW?xiá (Traditional Chinese: ??, Simplified Chinese: ??, Mandarin IPA: wu?i?, Cantonese Pinyin: mów hàb), literally meaning "martial (arts) heroes", is a sub-genre of the quasi-fantasy and martial arts genre in literature, television and cinema. W?xiá figures prominently in the popular culture of Chinese-speaking areas, and the most important writers have devoted followings. The w?xiá genre is a blend of the philosophy of xiá (?, "honor code", "an ethical person", "a hero"), and China's long history in w?shù ("kung fu" (pronounced gong fu, despite popular misconceptions) or "martial arts"). A martial artist who follows the code of xiá is called a swordsman, or xiákè (??/??, literally "chivalrous guest"). Japan's samurai bushid? traditions, England's knight chivalry traditions, and America's gunslinger Western traditions all share some aspects with China's swordsman xiá traditions. The swordsman, however, need not serve a lord or hold any military power and they are not required to be from an aristocratic class. Medieval fantasyPrehistoric fantasyThe characteristics of stories being set in prehistoric times and describe the lives of prehistoric people.
Book author - Jean Auel. Juvenile fantasyFantasies may be intended specifically for a juvenile audience. This subgenre usually overlaps with others.
Low fantasyLow fantasy is not a proper subgenre as such, but a catch-all term employed to describe works of fantasy literature described in an antagonistic relationship with the more well-defined high fantasy genre. As such, it can indicate fantasy that tries not to emphasise magic; fantasy set in the real world; fantasy that contains realism and a more cynical worldview; and Dark fantasy -- among others. Fantasy of mannersFantasy of manners, sometimes called "mannerpunk", is the fantasy genre's arena for the comedy of manners. Its worlds involve elaborately complex social hierarchies, and its plots revolve around its characters' interactions within those hierarchies in the traditions of Jane Austen or Anthony Hope. Many fantasy of manners could, by the setting, be classified as alternate history, high fantasy, or historical fantasy. The subgenre is marked out by tone and plot, and the centrality of etiquette to the characters' negiotations.
Mythic fiction
Romantic fantasyThe plots of romantic fantasies centre upon a romantic relationship between the protagonists, and the plots or settings include fantastical elements. Romantic fantasy has been published both as fantasy and as romance. Although this subgenre can overlap with almost every other fantasy subgenre, since its distinguishing traits are not the fantastical elements or setting that distinguish the others, most romantic fantasy shares setting elements that go beyond the focus on romantic relationships. Romantic fantasy novels usually feature valiant female warriors and in most of these books, female soldiers and mercenaries are either accepted and common in enlightened realms, or gain acceptance in the course of the story.
Science fantasyFantasy and science fiction jointly share the subgenre called science fantasy, which has many of the trappings of science fiction, such as space travel and laser guns, but also contains significant elements that bear more resemblance to magic than science or in some other way draw more from fantasy than from science fiction. One of the best known examples of science fantasy is the Star Wars series of films, set aboard spaceships and on alien planets but featuring swashbuckling knights, princesses in distress, a dark sorcerer who has enslaved the galaxy, a mystical source of magical power called the Force, and even an opening line that is a variant of "Once upon a time": A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
See also: Sword and PlanetA subgenre of science fantasy, it focuses on swashbuckling adventures on other planets.
Dying Earth fictionA subgenre of science fantasy, distinguished by its setting in the far-distant future. Superhero fantasySuperhero fantasy began in American comic books, evolving into a combination of science fantasy and contemporary fantasy. That is, it is a genre that is typically set in the contemporary world in where all fantastic concepts from extraterrestrials and futuristic technology to magic and classic mythological beings potentially co-exist. The feature characters, however, are costumed heroes often endowed with fantastic abilities, skills or equipment.
Sword and sorceryInspired primarily by the works of Robert E. Howard, especially Conan the Barbarian, sword and sorcery is more concerned with immediate physical threats and action than high fantasy, distinguishing the two genres. Further, sword and sorcery, in contrast to high fantasy, tends to portray amoral protagonists and/or worlds--there are rarely objective values, or any sort of cosmic justice. Even when the protagonists act morally and do incidental good deeds along the way, the usual protagonist's motivation is self-interest.
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