Friday, 16 May 2014

Magic Analysis - JK Rowling vs Tolkien and CS Lewis

When developing an imaginary fantasy world, magic becomes an essential part of the lore that is to be approached with much caution and discernment. My own personal project, Insignia, is no exception.

Growing up watching Disney movies and playing japanese RPG games such as Final Fantasy and Tales of Eternia, I've always wondered, what is it that makes magic in some fictions appear to be okay while in others, magic could seems to be so occultic? How come nobody (or very few at least) ever suspected the Cinderella's Fairy Godmother of being evil, where as Harry is immediately put in the hot seat?

In pursuit of answers, I found this article on the internet that helped shed some light on the matter:


The 7 hedges mentioned in the article, helped me to understand why Tolkien and Lewis' books, although having incorporating magic in it, resulted in a very different atmosphere compared to J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter.

I plan on using these 7 points as a supplementary guide to shape Insignia's magic lore.
 

No comments:

Post a Comment