Beyond Imagination: Fantasy Novels

           

A day dreaming student in class is often easy to find: a blank look in their eyes as they stare off into space, their mind on anything but the task at hand.  A fantasy novel might keep their eyes to actual content as their imagination and the plot of the novel takes them far away.  They may not want to come back once they find themselves so deeply absorbed into the novel.  Fantasy encourages the mind to be imaginative and creative while also thoughtful and strategic at the same time.

           

Dedicating a unit to fantasy would capture the attention of those who daydream as well as those who want action and adventure in their reading.  Fantasy novels consist of so many aspects, from everything being purely imaginary to including historical content, mythology, science, action, adventure, and many more.  Fantasy can be for any age, taught from 6th grade and up, even to university level where the novels are dissected and taken apart.  And considering that fantasy novels can and do have a fast-moving plot, it can be a difficult book to put down.

           

The central subject of this unit is a very well known series, often recognized by the second novel�s title, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, as the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.  Each novel in the series has its own distinctive plot and characters (although some characters are found in more than one novel), which are magically connected together.  The world of Narnia is introduced to the reader in the first novel, The Magician�s Nephew, in which �On a daring quest to save a life, two friends are hurled into another world, where an evil sorceress seeks to enslave them.  But then the lion Aslan�s song weaves itself into the fabric of a new land, a land that will be known as Narnia.  And in Narnia, all things are possible�� (Amazon.com).

LAUNCHING THE UNIT

To launch the unit (or in this case, the imagination), students will be asked to think of popular or well-known mythical creatures, draw the creature (if possible), and then have the students answer a few questions.   Examples of mythical creatures (source can be from games, legends, books, mythology, etc):

1)    Would you want to own one as a pet?  Why or why not?  And what would you name it?

2)    Write a short story describing the day in the life of you and your pet.

REPLACING THE CHARACTERS

Choose a character from the book you have read, find a significant scene your character is involved in, and write a short story about what you would have done as your chosen character in that scene. 

MEDIA FOR CLASS

Many fantasy novels have been turned into movies, such as Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  There is also a movie version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which is currently in the works.  Select a movie to be seen in class, and have the students write a response paper about it.  **Should the chosen novel have a movie version, have the students write their response paper comparing the movie and the novel.

VIDEO GAMES

There are many video games that fall under the fantasy genre, often with other aspects included, such as history, action, demonic, the traditional role-playing game (rpg), and many more.  Fantasy games often have missions that need to be completed, with enemies to defeat and items to be found.  In RPGs, your character�s decisions can determine the outcome of your game, positively or negatively.  Here are some examples of popular video games in the fantasy genre:

Select a game suitable for the classroom and on rainy days or using as examples to define components of fantasy, play through a few scenes and point out what places that game under the fantasy genre.  Or, if the instructor has a collection of games, they can be borrowed by students to learn more about fantasy game components.   

JAPANESE ANIMATION (ANIME)

Japanese animation is a popular form of media that contains many components of fantasy.  There is always a hero/heroine that not only must deal with the challenges of their new situation, but also challenges at home.  The journey in their new situation teaches them many aspects such as teamwork, strategy, friendship, survival, courage, and other life lessons.  Here are some popular fantasy anime series:

Feel free to show a series or a few episodes in class, particularly scenes that portray the hero or heroine in situations that define the fantasy genre. 

YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE SELECTION

Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

The Magician�s Nephew: Digory and Polly discover a secret passage that links their houses, and are tricked into vanishing out of this world and into the World of Charn, where they wake up the evil Queen Jadis.  There, they witness the creation of the Land of Narnia, as it is sung into being by the Great Lion, Aslan.  

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy  find their way through an old wardrobe into the world of Narnia.  There, they unite with Aslan to fight the White Witch and save Narnia from perpetual Darkness.

The Horse and His Boy: Shasta escapes from the land of Calormen with a Narnian warhorse, Bree.  Along with Aravis and her horse Hwin, they uncover a Calormene plot to conquer Narnia and must find a way to save Narnia and its people. 

Prince Caspian: Troubled times have come to Narnia as it is gripped by civil war.  Prince Caspian is forced  to blow The Great Horn of Narnia, summoning the help of past heroes, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy.  Now they must overthrow Caspian�s uncle, King Miraz, to restore peace to Narnia. 

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: Lucy,  Edmund, and their cousin Eustace, are magically transported onto the ship, Dawn Treader, where King Caspian is searching for the seven lost friends of his father.  On the voyage, the children meet many fantastical creatures, including the great Aslan himself.

The Silver Chair: King Caspian�s beloved son Prince Rilian has disappeared.  Aslan sends Eustace and his school friend Jill to Narnia on a quest to search for the young price and defeat the evil Witch.

The Last Battle: A false Aslan is roaming Narnia, commanding everyone to work for the cruel Calormenes.  Can Eustace and Jill find the true Aslan and restore peace to the land?  The last battle is the greatest of all and the final struggle between good and evil. 

Source: http://www.narnia.com

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer�s Stone: Harry Potter has never been the star of a Quidditch team, scoring points while riding a broom far above the ground.  He knows no spells, has never helped to hatch a dragon, and has never worn a cloak of invisibility. 

All he knows is a miserable life with the Dursleys, his horrible aunt and uncle, and their abominable son, Dudley � a great big swollen spoiled bully.  Harry�s room is a closet at the foot of the stairs, and he hasn�t had a birthday party in eleven years.

But all that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives by owl messenger: a letter with an invitation to an incredible place that Harry � and anyone who reads about him � will find unforgettable.

For it�s there that he finds not only friends, aerial sports, and magic in everything from classes to meals, but a great destiny that�s been waiting for him�if Harry can survive the encounter. 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Dursleys were so mean and hideous that summer that all Harry Potter wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.  But just as he�s packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange, impish creature named Dobby who says that if Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.

And strike it does.  For in Harry�s second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor, Gilderoy Lockhart, a spirit named Moaning Myrtle who haunts the girls� bathroom, and the unwanted attentions of Ron Weasley�s younger sister, Ginny. 

But each of these seem minor annoyances when the real trouble begins, and someone � or something � starts turning Hogwarts students to stone.  Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever?  Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told?  Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects�Harry Potter himself! 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban:  For twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black, convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord Voldemort.  Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where  he might be headed: Harry Potter�s defeat of You-Know-Who was Black�s downfall.  And the Azkaban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, �He�s at Hogwarts�he�s at Hogwarts.�  Harry Potter isn�t safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends.  Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst. 

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: It�s the pivotal fourth novel in the seven-part tale of Harry Potter�s training as a wizard and his coming of age.  Harry wants to get away from the pernicious Dursleys and go to the International Quidditch Cup with Hermione, Ron, and the Weasleys.  He wants to dream about Cho Chang, his crush (and maybe do more than dream).  He wants to find out about the mysterious event that�s supposed to take place at Hogwarts this year, an event involving two other rival schools of magic, and a competition that hasn�t happened for a hundred years.  He wants to be a normal fourteen-year-old wizard.  Unfortunately for Harry Potter, he�s not normal � even by wizarding standards.  And in his case, different can be deadly. 

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: �I say to you all, once again � in the light of Lord Voldemort�s return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.  Lord Voldemort�s gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great.  We can fight it only be showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust.�

So spoke Albus Dumbledore at the end of Harry Potter�s fourth year at Hogwarts.  But as Harry enters his fifth year at wizard school, it seems those bonds have never been more sorely tested.  Lord Voldemort�s rise has opened a rift in the wizarding world between those who believe the truth about this return, and those who prefer to believe it�s all madness and lies � just more trouble from Harry Potter.

Add to this a host of other worries for Harry�

-A Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher with a personality like poisoned honey

-A venomous, disgruntled house-elf

-Ron as keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch team

-And of course, what every student dreads: end-of-term Ordinary Wizarding Level exams

---and you�d know what Harry faces during the day.  But at night it�s even worse, because then he dreams of a single door in a silent corridor.  And this door is somehow more terrifying than every other nightmare combined.

Source: http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/home.asp

Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others.  But the one Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him.  After many ages, it fell by chance in to the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

From his fastness in the Dark Tower of Mordor, Sauron�s power spread far and wide.  He gathered all the Great Rings to him, but always he searched for the One Ring that would complete his dominion.

On Bilbo�s eleventy-first birthday, he disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin, Frodo, the ruling ring and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord, and destroy of the Ring by casting it in to the Cracks of Doom. 

The Lord of the Rings tells of the great quest undertaken by Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring: Gandalf the Wizard; the hobbits Merry, Pippin, and Sam; Gimli the Dwarf; Legolas the Elf; Boromir of Gondor; and a tall mysterious stranger called Strider. 

Source: The Lord of the Rings inside front cover

 

Works Cited

Donelson, Kenneth L. and Alleen Pace Nilsen (2001).  Literature for Today�s Young Adults.  Boston: Person Education Inc. 

Lewis, C.S.  (1955).  The Magician�s Nephew.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1950).  The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.  New Work: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1954).  The Horse and His Boy.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1951).   Prince Caspian.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1952).  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1953).  The Silver Chair.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Lewis, C.S.  (1956).  The Last Battle.  New York: Harper Collins Publishers.   

Rowling, J.K.  (1998).  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer�s Stone.  New York: Scholastic Inc.

Rowling, J.K.  (1999).  Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.  New York: Scholastic Inc.

Rowling, J.K.  (1999).  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.  New York: Scholastic Inc.

Rowling, J.K.  (2002).  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.  New York: Scholastic Inc.

Rowling, J.K.  (2003).  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.  New York: Scholastic Inc.

Tolkien, J.R.R.  (1954).  The Fellowship of the Ring.  New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Tolkien, J.R.R.  (1954).  The Two Towers.  New York: Houghton Mifflin Company

Tolkien, J.R.R.  (1955).  The Return of the King.  New York: Houghton Mifflin Company

http://www.narnia.com (December 2004)

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/home.asp (December 2004)