What is the best non-European fantasy setting?
Well it looks like there's almost NO chance this poll won't go into at least a semifinal round, so we don't have to be quite so rushed trying to tabulate our nominations, semifinals will run into July and the poll will be finished at the end of July. However while some nominations were flooded with seconds, we need more. And of course this is our last call for any new nominations.
Please head over help us shape our poll.
Please head over help us shape our poll.
However, please do remember the rules for the poll. This is not about 99% European-trope conforming fantasy setting that happens to take place in a world that simply isn't labeled Europe or is on another planet. It's not about the Scandinavian comitatus that you haven't read much about in typical Tolkien knock offs. The key word is distinctly non-European.
There is one interesting entry, and its popularity threatens to unbalance the poll. I'm going to let you all tell me your opinions in the comments to this post. Dresden. Dresden is definitely not your typical European fantasy, and it technically classes as fantasy (even though urban fantasy is a bit different). But I didn't explicitly say it had to be high fantasy or medieval fantasy. It's out of what I envisioned, but I'll go with the consensus here. So chime in in our comments and tell me what you think about that.
There is one interesting entry, and its popularity threatens to unbalance the poll. I'm going to let you all tell me your opinions in the comments to this post. Dresden. Dresden is definitely not your typical European fantasy, and it technically classes as fantasy (even though urban fantasy is a bit different). But I didn't explicitly say it had to be high fantasy or medieval fantasy. It's out of what I envisioned, but I'll go with the consensus here. So chime in in our comments and tell me what you think about that.
Please please please go back to the original page. It'll make my life so much easier when I make the poll to have all the nominations in one place.
Europe is full of distinctly different cultures. Lumping them into one bag is fine, but if you're gonna do that, then I think you need to also exclude the cultures that grew out of that. Like the modern US and Canada.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm comfortable saying that, because I raised an eyebrow over Dresden when I read it in the noms, and was trying to figure out how to phrase my objection. So, thanks!
*Exclude from the poll, not from the metaphorical bag.
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ReplyDeleteDresden is American. I considered that European for the sake of the poll just because we are a product of Europe. That and, though we don't have castles, our building styles are distinctly descended from our European roots. To be fair, America wasn't excluded from the poll options but I felt the intent of the poll was to force us into something we weren't familiar with and American Urban fantasy has a setting that we're pretty comfortable in or it wouldn't be so prevalent.
ReplyDeleteYes this. Well said!
Delete^^ I kind of had the same reaction to Dresden that you did. This is my reasoning on why I didn't pick the Hollows.
DeleteHarry Dresden seems European-American in two ways. First, the USA culture and setting could be ported to London more easily than to, say, Tokyo or Tripoli. Second, the magic involves elements familiar to European fantasy: fairies, vampires, werewolves, magic circles. Did they come over the Atlantic with the post-Columbus settlers, a la Gaiman's "American Gods"? They do co-exist with American critters such as the Navajo skin-walkers. If Dresden went to Japan, would he meet tengu, kappa, oni, etc.?
ReplyDeleteAs one of the folks who nominated it, my reasoning is that it's much more global in its cultural focus (there's native American mythology built into a couple of the volumes), but I certainly do appreciate if it feels too European for some. It certainly does not sit with the Euro-centered high fantasy tradition, which is why I suggested it. Just my thoughts here - I'm certainly open to this discussion!
ReplyDeleteI really honestly see both sides (and find this discussion awesome to boot).
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