Approaching Fantasy

I've been contemplating my rationale and approach to teaching fantasy. I will be using several fantasy novels in my classes, starting in two weeks, and I wonder what I would say if any parents raise questions about my particular choices. Sometimes people seem to view fantasy as unique among fiction, and it obviously is its own genre for a reason. But in a way, the "rules" I've come up with for approaching a fantasy work equally apply to the other genres of fiction.

• Recognize that fantasy is just that: a created world, not the real world. Even if it takes place in a setting meant to resemble our universe, it is still a made-up place, and the author can create whatever rules and truths he wants for that universe.
• Fantasy can be a useful medium for spiritual truth. Jesus often used fantasy - think of the parables He told. Remember the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Abraham's bosom? Scholars debate whether this story really occurred, but if it didn't, it's a superb example of a fantasy in the Bible. (Thanks to Bryan Davis for pointing that out.)
• The reader's job is to discern differences between the fantasy world and the real world, and to choose how to respond to them. A reader should never approach a book written by a fallible human being and unthinkingly accept the message presented in it. He should always be prepared to evaluate the author's intent (for every author has one) and to respond to it from a Biblical perspective (if he is a Christian).

I hope I can teach my students to remember these principles so they won't have to fear fantasy. Anything (aside from Scripture) we take in has potential to harm us or confuse us spiritually, so we must always be alert and thinking as we read, and careful as we write.

Learning from Others

As part of my inspiration for writing my own fantasy novel, I've been reading Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis. Reading the work of others is a great way for beginning (and experienced!) writers like myself to learn. It also helps me to see that an idea can be explored in many ways without wearing out. Davis explores the concepts of humans turning into dragons, dragons being viewed as evil, the existence of dragon slayers -- all ideas that I explore in my current project or others on the back burner. We use these ideas in very different ways, however -- one of the reasons fantasy can tread the same ground and still be unique.