Should Christians Read Fantasy?
By Miriam R. Dumitra
Part 1: The Problem of Escapism
Should Christians read fantasy?
To a non-Christian, this may seem like a weird question. Why on earth should it matter whether someone reads fantasy or not? Just read whatever you like… right? However, just like any person has types of media and fiction they refrain from consuming, many Christians try to avoid anything that contradicts their faith. Fantasy, with its many unnatural elements especially comes under fire.
When you mention the word ‘fantasy’ in a Christian context, you often get mixed reactions. It’s not that people don’t understand the draw to the supernatural—to God, to the Maker, the Creator, to His might, whether expressed in nature or our own technological and creative prowess; in short, to magic, but known by another word. No, the problem lies not with the idea of magic or fantasy itself, but often with one of several perceptions of it.
The first perception is what I’ve decided to call ‘The Problem of Escapism,’ and it maintains that escaping into fantasy is inherently wrong because we leave our own world behind, expressing a sense of displeasure for the way God created us and the way our lives have turned out.
However, I would argue that (good) fantasy does the complete opposite! Fantasy is a celebration of our creativity, a way in which we can showcase big ideas and worldviews. Ultimately it is another way we reflect our Creator.
1. Ursula K. Le Guin: fantasy is descriptive
One of my favorite quotes of all time comes from the foreword to Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. This quote encompasses a foundational aspect of fantasy and science fiction that has often afforded me a sense of meaning and place in my own life situation. Namely, that at its heart, fantasy isn’t about escaping. The heart of fantasy is the desire to know and feel at home in our own world. It is a way to understand our present circumstances through the metaphor of fiction:
“I am not predicting, or prescribing. I am describing. I am describing certain aspects of psychological reality in the novelist’s way, which is by inventing elaborately circumstantial lies.
In reading a novel, any novel, we have to know perfectly well that the whole thing is nonsense, and then, while reading, believe every word of it. Finally, when we’re done with it, we may find – if it’s a good novel – that we’re a bit different from what we were before we read it, that we have been changed a little, as if by having met a new face, crossed a street we never crossed before.”
When one looks at fantasy through this lens of understanding, Christian arguments to the contrary can be put to rest. A drive to escape and dissociate from present circumstances simply becomes a playful way of being able to learn more about this world. Fantasy ultimately helps us learn and change and feel at home in our own two shoes.
2: Narnia: made for another world
While fantasy as allegory is a topic for another day, the portal fantasy Narnia highlights some useful elements of fantasy. For one thing, the protagonists literally escape to another world. They are still clearly told that they’re meant to be in the real world, but their experiences in Narnia change them (for the better). C. S. Lewis reminds us of the value of fairy tales and the lessons we can learn from them.
Perhaps my favorite illustration from the books is that of the wood between the worlds, a physical representation of being completely at peace even while caught between different conflicts and cultures. As a TCK, that image has comforted me, knowing that I’m not the only one caught between two worlds, and that some people are even able to see those worlds in front of them. That’s a great relief when you’re used to feeling different but looking the same as everyone else.
Ultimately, the protagonists learn that they really don’t belong in the real world. They were made for something bigger and better, and as they travel further up and further in, we readers get to wander alongside them and discover Narnia for ourselves. Although we can’t go to Narnia, we don’t have to. We can use the lessons we learn in the books’ pages and apply them to the real world, just as we wait for the other world that’s still to come.
3. Harry Potter: love is stronger than death
While Narnia is the fantasy perhaps praised most by Christians, Harry Potter tends to be criticized. Magic, witchcraft, and death are all associated with evil in the Bible, and this turns many Christians away from a series they might just love if they only gave it a chance. (I’d like to add that I’m not throwing the magic is evil argument out of the window; I’m simply leaving it for my next blog post.)
Harry Potter is a series seemingly obsessed with death, but the true theme of the books is that love is stronger than death. The plot follows Harry Potter’s fight against the dark wizard Voldemort who killed his parents. Spoiler alert: In the end, Voldemort’s true downfall comes about because he failed to learn to love, and Harry triumphs because of his own love and that of his parents, his mentors, and his friends. That’s one of the cool things about fantasy. You can write a story about fantastical wizards and imaginary worlds, but in the end, the themes remain relevant to our own circumstances.
4. Tamora Pierce: fantasy as metaphor
Another series that comes to mind is Tamora Pierce’s… well, any of her series, really. Her Protector of the Small quartet has an especially special place in my heart because, Narnia aside, it was my introduction to fantasy. It let me come to terms with experiences and circumstances that affected my childhood.
Growing up, I was often told that “Girls can’t do ____.” Not (usually) by my parents, but by well-meaning adults, church and Sunday school leaders, and even random people who didn’t really know me. Books, media, and music all seemed to do this as well (and, despite recent strides, often still do). I was given the message that I couldn’t be myself. I couldn’t build fire pits, couldn’t climb trees, couldn’t dress for comfort, couldn’t shoot slingshots or bows… all because of my gender. Keladry in the PotS quartet was told these same things. And you know what? She didn’t listen. Her parents supported her in becoming a knight, just like my mom supported my clothing choices and my dad taught me to unclog drains and build a fire. Her closest friends protected her, even when they didn’t understand the discrimination she was facing just like my friends did when we climbed trees, wrestled, and played video games together.
Now, Pierce’s books deal with sexism, but fantasy can be used as a metaphor to call our attention to any number of issues such as racial equality (Stormlight Archive), epidemics (Elantris), remembering WW2 (Fullmetal Alchemist), special needs (Percy Jackson), or personal identity (Graceling). Just like bedtime stories or parables, fantasy’s unlimited possibilities enable it to play with big ideas in a unique and entertaining way.
5. Wheel of Time: imitating God's character
Then there is epic fantasy. Now, Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings may still get brownie points since its author was a believer, but what about a series like Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time? 14 books, 147 unique POVs, over 3 million words? The length alone suggests an extreme form of escapism, and the series features magic, battles of good vs. evil, and (Le Gasp!) partially reversed gender roles.
Perhaps not-so-shockingly, Tolkien himself advocated for epic fantasy. In his essay “On Fairy-Stories,” he states: “the story-maker proves a successful ‘sub-creator.’ He makes a Secondary World which your mind can enter.” Basically, Tolkien argued that mimicking our Creator by creating imaginary worlds was a way of pointing to His own creation and sovereignty.
Now, WOT is not written from a Christian perspective, but that doesn’t mean there is anything inherently wrong with it either. In the same way Christians can enjoy a good song, a poem, a painting and recognize in them the subtle mirroring of the Creator, in the same way they can enjoy the wonders of fantasy. Fantasy can help us think critically about current issues, recognize truths about our world, and feel at home both in these fictional worlds and in our world. At its heart, fantasy isn’t prescriptive: it doesn’t tell you what to do or think or how we will be in a hundred years. At its heart, fantasy is about ourselves, not about how we could be, but about how we already are.
While the problem of escapism is one Christian critique of fantasy, there are two more that I’m going to tackle in the upcoming weeks. Stay tuned for ‘The Problem of Magic’ and ‘The Problem of Allegory.’
What are your thoughts? Is fantasy perfect for Christians, or do you see them as incompatible? Drop me a line on Facebook, or share your favorite book cover with me on Instagram.
Cheers,
Miriam R. Dumitra
I wrote my first book in high school and have continued writing ever since. I also enjoy participating in theatre productions, drawing, and blacksmithing (yes, that’s the thing where you hit the hot thing with the heavy thing, and no, it’s not a dead art form).
To read about me writing about myself in the third person, check out my about page. Or if you want super-awesome-YA-fantasy-books, I’ve got those too.