High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenreoffantasy[1] defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot.[2] High fantasy is usually set in an alternative, fictional ("secondary") world, rather than the "real" or "primary" world.[2] This secondary world is usually internally consistent, but its rules differ from those of the primary world. By contrast, low fantasy is characterized by being set on Earth, the primary or real world, or a rational and familiar fictional world with the inclusion of magical elements.[3][4][5][6]
The Well at the World's End (1896) by William Morris is an early example of high fantasy fiction.
Many high fantasy stories are told from the viewpoint of one main hero. Often, much of the plot revolves around their heritage or mysterious nature, along with a world-threatening problem. In many novels the hero is an orphan or unusual sibling, and frequently portrayed with an extraordinary talent for magic or combat. They begin the story young, if not as an actual child, or are portrayed as being very weak and/or useless.[8]
The hero often begins as a childlike figure, but matures rapidly, experiencing a considerable gain in fighting/problem-solving abilities along the way.[9]
The progress of the story leads to the character's learning the nature of the unknown forces against them, that they constitute a force with great power and malevolence. The villains in such stories are usually completely evil and unrelatable.[10]
"High fantasy" often serves as a broad term to include a number of different flavors of the fantasy genre, including heroic fantasy, epic fantasy, mythic fantasy, dark fantasy, and wuxia.[11] It typically is not considered to include the sword and sorcery genre.[12]
High fantasy has often been defined by its themes and messages.[13] "Good versus evil" is a common one in high fantasy, and defining the character of evil is often an important theme in a work of high fantasy,[14] such as The Lord of the Rings. The importance of the concept of good and evil can be regarded as the distinguishing mark between high fantasy and sword and sorcery.[12] In many works of high fantasy, this conflict marks a deep concern with moral issues; in other works, the conflict is a power struggle, with, for instance, wizards behaving irresponsibly whether they are "good" or "evil".[15]
^"Defining the Genre: High Fantasy". fandomania. 11 May 2011. Archived from the original on 22 March 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2016. High Fantasy is probably one of the most recognizable subgenres of Fantasy.
^C.W. Sullivan has a slightly more complex definition in "High Fantasy", chapter 24 of the International Companion Encyclopedia of Children's Literature by Peter Hunt and Sheila G. Bannister Ray (Routledge, 1996 and 2004), chapter 24.
^Patricia A. McKillip, "Writing High Fantasy", p 53, Philip Martin, ed., The Writer's Guide to Fantasy Literature: From Dragon's Lair to Hero's Quest, ISBN0-87116-195-8
^Crawford, Jeremy; Perkins, Christopher; Wyatt, James, eds. (December 2014). Dungeon Master's Guide. Washington, United States: Wizards of the Coast. pp. 38–41. ISBN978-0-7869-6562-5.
^Wolfgang, Baur (2012). "How Real is Your World? On History and Setting". In Silverstein, Janna (ed.). Kobold Guide to Worldbuilding. Kobold Press. p. 27.
^Tom Shippey, J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century, p 120, ISBN0-618-25759-4
^Ursula K. Le Guin, "The Question I Get Asked Most Often" p 274, The Wave in the Mind, ISBN1-59030-006-8
^Snow, Cason (2008). "Dragons in the stacks: an introduction to role-playing games and their value to libraries". Collection Building. 27 (2): 63–70. doi:10.1108/01604950810870218. For Dungeons and Dragons, both TSR and WotC produced additional settings that can be used with the core rules, two of the most popular being the magic-punk Eberron ... and the high fantasy Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting.
^"Most role-playing games draw upon a universe based in high fantasy; this literary genre, half-way between traditional fantasy ..." Squedin, S., & Papillon, S. (2008). U.S. Patent Application 12/198,391.
"Fantasy Genre Lecture"—A paper by Michael Joseph discussing high fantasy and referencing Alexander's theories, via Rutgers' School of Communication and Information.
"The Flat-Heeled Muse" by Lloyd Alexander, the inventor of the term "high fantasy", discusses fantasy world-building and "the problems and disciplines of fantasy"
"Fantasy book writing: 7 tips"—Now Novel discusses the origin of the term, referencing Lloyd Alexander and offering high fantasy writing tips
