Comments on: A Bout of Aboutness: Urban Fantasy and Sword-and-Planet

By: John R. Fultz

John R. Fultz — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 01:44:47 +0000

I guess the “problem” with Steampunk (IMHO) is not that it brought something new into the fantasy culture, but that tons of writers then jumped on it as the “new” way that fantasy “should be.” Hence, the current glut of Steampunk books that are crowding the bookstores shelves alongside all the Tolkien clones.

Carl: Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll have to check out Blalock’s St. Ives stories!

By: James Enge

James Enge — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 23:48:15 +0000

Thanks, you guys, for the comments and kind words.

John: Interesting thoughts about Barsoom and steampunk. John Carter, of course, does step straight from the American southwest to Barsoom: there has to be a connection there. I’m not sure about the genesis of steampunk: it may be, as you say, just an attempt to get some new colors onto the fantasist’s palette. But they do seem to be pretty gloomy colors. (Of course, so were REH’s.)

Carl: Thanks for the Blaylock suggestion. I blush to admit I’ve never read anything by him, but the stuff mentioned on his Wikipedia page sounds pretty promising.

By: Carl V.

Carl V. — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 18:37:50 +0000

What a fascinating article. I certainly never considered these potential similarities between sword and planet and urban fantasy. The closure of the frontier certainly sounds like a logical catalyst for the genre fiction of the time. Perhaps that is why stories like ERB’s Martian stories and REH’s Conan stories have such a deep sense of adventure and wonder to them. If the writer’s were consciously or unconsciously reacting to the idea that the undiscovered country was in many ways no more, it would in part account for the fact that one can pick up these stories today and feel that spirit of exploration and adventure in the pages.

I tend to have a pretty broad way of defining things, and that would be true for Steampunk as well. That being said I would answer John’s question about whether or not there is heroic steam punk with a recommendation to read James P. Blaylock’s Langdon St. Ives stories. I find them very heroic and if not wholly steampunk they certain contain elements of the steampunk genre.

By: John R. Fultz

John R. Fultz — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 02:33:31 +0000

Another fascinating post, James. I think you’re right about the rise of adventure fantasy (particularly sword-and-planet) as a response to the end of the frontier. The only frontiers left were those of the imagination. Even though Gene Roddenberry called space the “final frontier” it never was…
I’ve often thought of ERB’s Martian Chronicles as an allegory of the Old West, with the “red” Martians representing idealized versions of Native Americans, and the green Martians (and other colors) representing other aspects of the “savage” cultures that fascinated Americans ever since the first settlers arrived in the New World. In a very real way, Barsoom was the frontier of the Old West magnified to the Nth degree…complete with swords flashing and guns blazing.
Your thoughts on Urban Fantasy as an expression of changing female roles is fascinating. What about the whole “Steampunk” movement? Where does that fit in? I’ve never been able to wrap my head around these steam-powered behemoths that seem to be replacing more traditional fantasy series. (Yeah, I read “Perdido Street Station” and found it imaginatively interesting, but bleak as hell and entirely depressing.)
This whole Steampunk thing might be a response to the millenium changeover. That is, “traditional” fantasy usually based its creations on some variation of Medieval or Middle Eastern culture; maybe the fantasy genre is trying to “update itself” by placing its focus more on twisted urban steam-scapes where technology and its failures are integrated into the whole magical/heroism background. In the case of “Perdido,” it also seems to be a rejection of the entire concept of the “hero.” (All the characters are simply sad, screwed-up, and ultimatedly doomed. Is all Steampunk this anti-heroic?)
Personally, I still prefer my fantasies sans technology. Does that mean I’m hopelessly 20th Century?