Issues surrounding Fantasy:

Do ancient literary forms, such as epic, have any use today?  I think that ancient forms of literature still have use in terms of inspiring writers for ideas in creating stories aswell as for producing screenplays , even today through Greek and Roman Mythology do we see comparisons made from films and shows such as Sparticus , the Immortals and Wrath of the Titans etc. An example of an ancient literary text that  I would hope be made into a movie would be the  Aenied. I think the themes and Heroic nature of the stories can be seen in many texts and films today. Examples would be Piety that displays humility in a particular character or the complete opposite which would be that also taken from Virgils Aenied , this being furor;  which means violent madness. Fantasy is not only for historic interest . I support this from a extract taken from an article written by Gloriana St. Clair,  Tolkien's Cauldron: Northern Literature and The Lord of the Rings. “I have read and reread Tolkien’s works and have worked with the texts closely at hand. My approach has not been that of a fan, although I do have a great love for his work, but that of a scholar of medieval literature.Yet, fans, rather than scholars, still write most of the books and articles onTolkien. Many of these have some good ideas and insights but few reflect acareful knowledge of either Tolkien’s work or of medieval literature. Ruth S,Noel’s The Mythology of Middle-earth is one such work. If Tolkien had not been popular, he would now be given more serious consideration. When scholars do come to write about Tolkien’s work, they frequently talk about what he did not accomplish rather than what he intended and produced.This book concentrates on placing Tolkien in a tradition of Northern literature.”( Claire, 2000) .This extract shows that work produced by Tolkien still has a place amongst Scholars who seem to critique his work for what it didn’t do.

Is fantasy a genre for children? Although the ideas of fantasy could appeal to many at a young age, examples being romance between a Knight and a Woman or Dragons fighting against dwarves , there are cases where fantasy isn’t for children. If knowing that the Hobbit and Game of Thrones are of the same genre it can be noted that the level of Violence is different, there is more treachery in Game of Thrones and that’s the most modest part. The violence is that of a different nature in a way that seems more life like compared to goblins and beasts . If surely not for the violence than the sex scenes would most likely prove that the fantasy genre isn’t always aimed at children. George R.R Martin is not shy when it comes to incest and homosexuality along with raunchy sex scenes in written texts aswell as the HBO series. Although fantasy has the idea of taking you away from reality , and although the Hobbit was aimed at children in one way or another, fantasy may not be a genre for children. This is supported by Kieran Egan; “The range of distorted beliefs people hold may not all derive from fantasy stories, of course, but some of the greatest educational thinkers, such as Plato, Rousseau, Montessori, and others, have been implacable foes of fantasy for children because they concluded that it certainly contributes to falsehood and confusion in profound ways.”