Nature and the Numinous in Mythopoeic Fantasy Literature (Critical Explorations in Science Fiction and Fantasy, 46)

Product Description

This book makes connections between mythopoeic fantasy–works that engage the numinous–and the critical apparatuses of ecocriticism and posthumanism. Drawing from the ideas of Rudolf Otto in
The Idea of the Holy, mythopoeic fantasy is a means of subverting normative modes of perception to both encounter the numinous and to challenge the perceptions of the natural world. Beginning with S.T. Coleridge’s theories of the imagination as embodied in
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the book moves on to explore standard mythopoeic fantasists such as George MacDonald, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkien. Taking a step outside these men, particularly influenced by Christianity, the concluding chapters discuss Algernon Blackwood and Ursula Le Guin, whose works evoke the numinous without a specifically Christian worldview.

Review

“Brawley puts a fresh spin on classic mythopoeic fantasy…his ideas are intriguing…recommended”―
Choice; “enticing. Through interaction with fantasy literature, Brawley succeeds in widening the field of ecocriticism to include nonmimetic literature”―
Oxford University Press Journals Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and the Environment.

About the Author

Chris Brawley is a professor of religion, humanities and English at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Donald E. Palumbo is a professor of English at East Carolina University. He lives in Greenville, North Carolina.

C.W. Sullivan III is Distinguished Professor of arts and sciences at East Carolina University and a full member of the Welsh Academy. He is the author of numerous books and the on-line journal Celtic Cultural Studies.