The next book in George R. R. Martin’s fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire is going to be released (hopefully) next year, and I’m taking the time to write about just how this series has been not only popular, but changing the genre of fantasy.
In 1937, J. R. R. Tolkien published The Hobbit, and by the time he finished his Lord of the Rings trilogy, he had laid the foundations of a new genre. In his works, he employed many fantasy archetypes in his story. For example, when you think of fantasy, the things that come to your mind are things like wizards, princesses, evil dragons, etc. This is because fantasy mostly uses Eastern European influence, which means copying things like their class structures, like kings, queens and knights. This also means using their folklore, drawing on stories of dragons, tales of valor, wizards, elves, and fairies. The central conflict should be about good versus evil; since fantasy stems from being mostly children’s stories, the story typically has a good hero to root for. Evil is depicted in a clear, monstrous form. Villains are not too human.
Tolkien took all the archetypes of fantasy and raised it up to create the subgenre of high
fantasy. High fantasy is basically a fantasy book, but with larger, more sprawling worlds. Characters were different races, and served different kings, and the kings before those kings. Entire languages were created. Different races had different traditions, abilities, magical items, and styles of dress. Songs, histories, and lands were depicted in Charles Dickens level detail for each race in Tolkien’s Middle Earth. Since then, Tolkien has been the author whom most fantasy writers took inspiration from. High fantasy has remained largely static since then. Everyone wanted to emulate Tolkien, and nothing really changed for years.
But in 1996, George R. R. Martin moved fantasy to new depths again. People who I know that read much more fantasy than me said there was something new in this series. Martin also has a completely developed alternate world. But Martin takes inspiration from several, non-Eastern European cultures. He does not stay with the viewpoint of the protagonist, but switches to characters on every side of the conflict. By also switching to first person, Martin is able to delve into the minds of characters much more closely. Within this, we see that Martin does not portray one clear side of good or evil; he doesn’t even make his main characters the heroes. The series is fantasy in reverse because the obvious characters are not the key players in the story, it is not the kings or rulers but their children, wives, and friends whose viewpoints move the narrative. Even the most noble of his characters are flawed, and goodness in his books does not equal skill. A nice ruler does not mean a good ruler, or one that will survive. His graphic and explicit material also means he’s writing just for adults.
We’ve come a long way from the simple fairy stories told to kids. This is why I think George R. R. Martin is important, and there is speculation that he’s the American Tolkien. I personally think that he is, and I’m excited to be alive while a new trend in fantasy comes along and plucks the placid tradition from its roots in order to grow something new.
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