The Encyclopedia of Fantasy: Amazon.de: John Clute, John Grant: Englische Bücher

Aus der Amazon.de-Redaktion

Dieser Titel ist in englischer Sprache.
Als 1993 Science Fiction. Die illustrierte Enzyklopädie auf Englisch erschien, war den Autoren bereits klar, daß auch der Fundus der phantastischen Literatur nach einem solchen Werk verlangte. Erst 1997 war dann die Encyclopedia of Fantasy publikationsreif. Entgegen oberflächlichen Ähnlichkeiten unterscheiden sich die beiden Werke in der Tiefe radikal voneinander.

So befand man es für notwendig, nicht nur traditionelle thematische Begriffe wie "Commedia dell'Arte" neu zu fassen, sondern auch völlig neue Begriffe zu prägen: "crosshatch", "polder", "face of glory" sind nur einige der am häufigsten anzutreffenden Begriffe. Sie werden zu einem "Baum der Motive" zusammengefaßt, der die Struktur vieler phantastischer Geschichten bestimmt.

Im Gegensatz zum Begriff der Science Fiction ist Fantasy nur schwer zu begrenzen. Es ist einfacher, sie als "unscharfe Ansammlung" (fuzzy set) aufzufassen, für die es sehr viele Beispiele gibt. Daher fiel es den Autoren nicht schwer, Fantasy in ihren Formen Kunst, Film, TV, Theater, Musik, Comic usw. zu beschreiben und auch in den verschiedenen Untergruppen darzustellen: Horror (am Rande), Supernatural Fiction (recht zentral), Dark Fantasy, Weird Fiction, Otherworld-Stories, Wonderland, Magischer Realismus usw. Hierzu gehören auch abenteuerliche Phantasien wie etwa Homers Odyssee.

In der Behandlung der Autoren liegt der Schwerpunkt eindeutig auf allen innovativen und produktiven Autoren und Autorinnen von ca. 1815 (als sich feste Publikationsformen bildeten) bis Ende 1995 (als Redaktionsschluß war), angefangen mit E.T.A. Hoffmann und Edgar Allan Poe über George MacDonald, C.S. Lewis, Lewis Carroll und John Ronald R. Tolkien (4,5 Seiten) bis zu Marion Zimmer Bradley, Fritz Leiber und Walt Disney (6,5 Seiten!!). Die Zeitalter davor reichen zurück bis zum Gilgamesch-Epos, den griechischen Mythen und nordischen Göttersagen.

Ausgelassen wurden nur Autoren bzw. Werke in den Bereichen Horror, Supernatural Fiction oder TV/Film, die nicht zum Fantasy-Genre beigetragen haben. Doch sicherlich wäre es falsch gewesen, Stephen King komplett auszulassen (Drei. Der dunkle Turm ist ein Fantasy-Beitrag), daher ist er berücksichtigt, Richard Laymon, sein Kollege, aber nicht.

Fazit: The Encyclopedia of Fantasy ist -- trotz des hohen Preises -- für den ernsthaft Interessierten unverzichtbar. Für den Liebhaber von Fantasy ist sie eine schier unerschöpfliche Fundgrube, die auf jeder Seite eine Überraschung bereithält. Auszeichnungen bis Dezember 1998: HUGO Award, Locus Award, Mythopoeic Award und World Fantasy Award -- das sind praktisch alle wichtigen Preise in diesem Bereich. --Michael Matzer -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verf�gbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.

Amazon.co.uk

This masterful follow-up to the 1993 Encyclopedia of Science Fiction is an essential purchase for anyone who's serious about fantasy. Those who are serious about horror will also find it an excellent reference. The works of prolific and confusing authors such as Michael Moorcock, as well as authors such as J R R Tolkien, who have many posthumously published fragments are explained with admirable clarity. Especially fascinating are the numerous terms for motifs and themes, constituting what the editors call a map of the many "fuzzy sets" in the universe of fantasy fiction--terms such as "crosshatch," "polder" and "water margin." There are many entries on horror movies and the better-known horror writers (only writers who write no fantasy, such as Richard Laymon, are excluded). You'll also find carefully written definitions of horror, dark fantasy, supernatural fiction, gothic fiction, sychological thrillers and weird fiction. Locus calls The Encyclopedia of Fantasy "massive and welcome" and writes: "This will be the standard reference for years to come." --Amazon.com -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verf�gbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.

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An Academic Vocabulary for Fantasy -- Better Than It Sounds! 7. Juli 2000

Von Scholar-Gipsy

Format:Gebundene Ausgabe

WARNING: THIS REVIEW IS ANECDOTAL

I had coveted this book for quite some time before I ordered my copy. Aside from being a longtime and irredeemable fantasy geek, I am also an English teacher at a small independent school, and our reference library has a copy. This fact has enabled me to waste many happy free periods rifling through the _Encyclopedia_ instead of, say, grading papers or thinking deep, serious thoughts about the state of pedagogy in America. But before you write me off as a disgrace to my profession, hear me out:

_The Encyclopedia of Fantasy_ is a remarkable book, and any time I have spent with it in lieu of more mundane tasks is time very well spent indeed. I can even justify this frivolous perusal academically, because what really makes the _Encyclopedia_ a great resource isn't so much its exhaustive listing of authors or titles (much of which information is available elsewhere anyway), but the fact that Clute et al. have managed to accomplish nothing less than a rigorous, consistent, and phenomenally well cross-referenced taxonomy and analytical vocabulary for fantasy. I know, I know, that sounds awfully dry, but it isn't.

I'm a word junkie, so I love learning apt new terms for things, especially if those nameless concepts have gone begging for far too long. When Clute coins the term "thinning" to describe any fantasy world that, over time, loses its magic [Middle-earth, anyone?], you cannot help (assuming you're an aficionado of the genre) but say to yourself, "Aha! Now I know what to call it!" Furthermore, the fact that this vocabulary is employed consistently throughout the _Encyclopedia_ allows for thematic and formal juxtapositions of specific works, combinations and comparisons that might not occur even to the serious fantasy buff. Who needs hypertext when you've got such meticulous cross-indexing?

I recently received an Amazon.com gift certificate from thoughtful in-laws, and decided that even though I have access to a copy at school, I had to have an _Encyclopedia of Fantasy_ at home, both for reference while reading/writing and for couch-sprawl browsing.

I splurged and bought the $75.00 hardback. I had a hunch it would get a lot of use, and I wanted it to last. Money very well spent, as far as I'm concerned, and if you're a fantasy partisan, a literary theory wonk, or just someone who gets off on thousands of pages of really, really small type, you'll probably agree.

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The one indispensable fantasy reference work 20. Juli 2000

Von Robert James

Format:Taschenbuch

Like the companion volume, "The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction," "The Encyclopedia of Fantasy" tries to include everything within its thick volume. Finally, readers can find the name of every single book ever published by their favorite authors. This is not the kind of book one reads from cover-to-cover; the sheer staggering amount of detail alone would prevent any useful retention. Rather, it is the perfect playing ground for encyclopedia tag: pick a page, read a topic, then follow the bouncing references until you get hopelessly, wonderfully entangled in ideas and authors you've never encountered before! My only minor complaints are the too-brief biographies for the authors, and the occasional over-opinionated discussion of an author's works. But even then, the book sparks curiosity by leading a reader to want to know more about an author or idea. An excellent gift for readers who constantly have a fantasy novel in their hands (and for whom you're afraid to buy a book for fear they've already read it).

An excellent work for scholars and the curious. 6. Juli 2000

Von Ein Kunde

This book is indispensable. It reviews major films and books and also explains the history behind fantastic ideas (vampires, etc.). Not only that but it analyses plot motifs and language. The only problem is is that reviews films and books with only slight fantasy content, to detriment of more fantasy heavy cinema. But everyone should have this book. It will make you examine fantasy from many angles and perspectives.