In Defense of Fantasy

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1 Aug 2025

Episode 6.07 - In Defense of Fantasy

Riddle: What do Beowulf, Palmolive dish liquid, and Sarah Maas have in common? Hint: Ursula K. Le Guin knows!
Today we wonder at both the disdain of fantasy as genre and its enduring popularity, examine some of Le Guin’s arguments for it as literature, and take a crash course in the history of fantasy across the millennia.

Some key texts discussed in this episode:

Ancient Texts: Gilgamesh, The Iliad, The Odyssey
Roman Epics: The Aeneid, Africa
Chanson de Geste: The Song of Roland; Beowulf
Amadis of Gaula
Edmund Spenser: The Faerie Queen
Cervantes: Don Quixote
Works of Sir Walter Scott
William Morris: The Well at the World’s End
Lord Dunsany: The Gods of Pegana
J. R. R. Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings
C. S. Lewis: Narnia series
Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson: Dungeons and Dragons

Readings on Fantasy Recommended:

Tolkien, J. R. R. - “On Fairy Stories” - https://archive.org/details/on-fairy-stories_202110
Le Guin, Ursula K. - “From Elfland to Poughkeepsie”
Carter, Lin - Any of his essays or books on fantasy history

New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

CHAPTERS

00:00 Geekdom and Down-the-Nose POV
07:40 Opening Theme
08:10 Un-Trashing Mass Culture
15:49 Truths of Fantasy
22:12 History of the Fantastic
38:39 You’re Soaking In It
41:56 The Fantasy Formal
46:33 Closing Theme and Credits

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Transcript: https://waywordsstudio.com/general/transcript/6-07-in-defense-of-fantasy/

Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8

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Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

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CREDITS:

Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

USING THIS WORK:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

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