Conan Fascisten? En Idéanalytisk Studie I Sword & Sorcery Och Robert E
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
MAGISTERUPPSATS I BIBLIOTEKS- OCH INFORMATIONSVETENSKAP VID BIBLIOTEKS- OCH INFORMATIONSVETENSKAP INSTITUTIONEN/BIBLIOTEKSHÖGSKOLAN 2006:71 ISSN 1404-0891 Conan fascisten? En idéanalytisk studie i sword & sorcery och Robert E. Howards fiktive barbar THOMAS ROVINSKY © Thomas Rovinsky Mångfaldigande och spridande av innehållet i denna uppsats – helt eller delvis – är förbjudet utan medgivande. Svensk titel: Conan fascisten? – En idéanalytisk studie kring sword & sorcery och Robert E. Howards fiktive barbar Engelsk titel: Conan the fascist? – An idea study of sword & sorcery and Robert E. Howard’s fictional barbarian Författare Thomas Rovinsky Kollegium 1 Färdigställt: 2006 Handledare Christian Swalander Abstract: This thesis falls within the realm of social studies, specifically social studies in literature, and attempts to establish whether the sub-genre of fantasy literature known as sword & sorcery contains elements which resemble the tenets of fascism. Robert E. Howard is considered the progenitor of the sub-genre and his stories have an influence on the nature of sword & sorcery literature today, 70 years after his death. Howard’s creation of the sub-genre coincides with the spread of fascist ideologies around the world in the 1930’s and the study attempts a societal mirroring analysis of Howard’s texts. With the help of an analytical model based on fascism expert Robert O. Paxton’s so-called “mobilizing passions” of fascism, Howard’s stories of Conan the barbarian have been deconstructed and analyzed. The study shows clearly that certain elements of the stories do indeed correspond to basic ideological elements of fascism. However, the results of the study are inconclusive as to whether this indicates that sword & sorcery was inspired by the widespread surge of fascism which occurred at roughly the same time, or if they simply sprang from the same sociocultural soil. The similarities are tempered by the issue of context and the presence of numerous exceptions. Further studies with different scientific tools and parameters would be required to establish the nature of a possible connection between fascist ideology and sword & sorcery based on the similarities found. Nyckelord: litteraturstudier, fantasy, Robert E. Howard, Conan, fascism, Robert O. Paxton INNEHÅLLSFÖRTECKNING 1 INLEDNING/BAKGRUND .............................................................................1 1.1 Syfte och frågeställningar.............................................................................................................. 3 2 SWORD & SORCERY OCH ROBERT E. HOWARDS CONAN ...................5 2.1 High Fantasy................................................................................................................................... 5 2.2 Sword & Sorcery............................................................................................................................ 6 2.3 Pulptidningarnas era ..................................................................................................................... 7 2.4 Robert E. Howard .......................................................................................................................... 9 2.5 Conan .............................................................................................................................................10 3 LITTERATUR OCH TIDIGARE FORSKNING.............................................12 3.1 Sökstrategier..................................................................................................................................12 3.2 Genomgång av litteratur och tidigare forskning........................................................................13 4 TEORI OCH METOD...................................................................................20 4.1 Teoretiska överväganden..............................................................................................................20 4.1.1 Studiens placering inom biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap ...............................................25 4.2 Metod .............................................................................................................................................26 4.3 Avgränsningar...............................................................................................................................31 5 MATERIAL ..................................................................................................33 6 UPPLÄGG AV UNDERSÖKNING...............................................................35 6.1 Analys.............................................................................................................................................35 6.2 Diskussion, slutsatser och kommentar ........................................................................................36 7 ANALYS......................................................................................................37 7.1 Krisbild/problem...........................................................................................................................37 7.2 Individ/kollektiv ............................................................................................................................39 7.3 Gruppens utsatthet........................................................................................................................41 7.4 Gruppens integritet/sammanhållning..........................................................................................41 7.5 Det rena samhället.........................................................................................................................42 7.6 Ledare/protagonist........................................................................................................................43 7.7 Instinkter/rationalitet ...................................................................................................................45 7.8 Våldsskildringen............................................................................................................................46 7.9 De utvaldas/starkas rätt................................................................................................................47 8 DISKUSSION OCH SLUTSATSER.............................................................49 8.1 Krisbild/problem...........................................................................................................................49 8.2 Individ/Kollektiv ...........................................................................................................................53 8.3 Gruppens utsatthet........................................................................................................................56 8.4 Gruppens integritet/sammanhållning..........................................................................................57 8.5 Det rena samhället.........................................................................................................................58 8.6 Ledare/protagonist........................................................................................................................60 8.7 Instinkter/rationalitet ...................................................................................................................63 8.8 Våldsskildringen............................................................................................................................65 8.9 De utvaldas/starkas rätt................................................................................................................68 8.10 Slutsatser........................................................................................................................................70 8.11 Förslag på fortsatt forskning........................................................................................................73 8.12 Kommentar....................................................................................................................................74 9 SAMMANFATTNING ..................................................................................76 KÄLLFÖRTECKNING ........................................................................................78 BILAGOR ...........................................................................................................81 Presentation av empirin..............................................................................................................................81 Krisbild/problem .........................................................................................................................................81 The Frost Giant’s Daughter ......................................................................................................................81 The God in the Bowl.................................................................................................................................81 The Tower of the Elephant .......................................................................................................................81 Rogues in the House .................................................................................................................................82 Shadows in the Moonlight ........................................................................................................................82 Black Colossus .........................................................................................................................................82