Twentieth-Century Fantasists

This collection of essays examines the way in which fantasy literature functions as cultural and social criticism. Essays on Tolkien, Le Guin, Angela Carter, H.G. Wells and C.S. Lewis are included, as well as works by William Burroughs, Ford Madox Ford and Salman Rushdie are discussed. There is an essay on sword and sorcery novels, on the use of Welsh myth in children's fantasy and on the fantastical elements in television news broadcasts. This book surveys the social and cultural changes of the 20th century as reflected in the works of fantasy writers. "Twentieth-Century Fantasists" is the companion volume to "The Victorian Fantasists", also edited by Kath Filmer as well as "The Fiction of C.S. Lewis: Mask and Mirror" and she publishes regularly in "Poetry Monash".