The Use of Fantasy in the Work of Terry Pratchett Nuno Guilherme
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MESTRADO EM ESTUDOS ANGLO-AMERICANOS The Human in the Fantastic: The Use of Fantasy in the Work of Terry Pratchett Nuno Guilherme Cabral Joanaz de Melo M 2018 Nuno Guilherme Cabral Joanaz de Melo The Human in the Fantastic: The Use of Fantasy in the Work of Terry Pratchett Dissertação realizada no âmbito do Mestrado em Estudos Anglo-Americanos, orientada pelo Professor Doutor Jorge Miguel Pereira Bastos da Silva Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto setembro de 2018 The Human in the Fantastic: The Use of Fantasy in the Work of Terry Pratchett Nuno Guilherme Cabral Joanaz de Melo Dissertação realizada no âmbito do Mestrado em Estudos Anglo-Americanos, orientada pelo Professor Doutor Jorge Miguel Pereira Bastos da Silva Membros do Júri Professor Doutor Rui Manuel Gomes Carvalho Homem Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto Professor Katarzyna Anna Pisarska Faculty of Humanities of Maria Curie-Skłodowska University Professor Jorge Miguel Pereira Bastos da Silva Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto Classificação obtida: 17 valores To Sir Terry Pratchett, who was inspiring to me not only for his unparalleled genius as a writer and thinker, but for his courage to remain such an inspiration through the harshest hardship. To the woman that inspires every single word I write, regardless of context. Contents Declaração de honra .................................................................................................................. 8 Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................... 9 Resumo ........................................................................................................................................ 10 Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... 11 Index of Illustrations ................................................................................................................... 12 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 13 Chapter 1 – Building a Flat World .............................................................................................. 15 1.1. Fantasy in Criticism ......................................................................................................... 15 1.1.1. Defining Fantasy ....................................................................................................... 15 1.1.2 Elements of Fantasy ................................................................................................... 20 1.1.3 Importance of Fantasy Literature ............................................................................... 43 1.2. Visualizing a “New” World ............................................................................................. 47 Chapter 2 – From “Anthropomorphic Personification” to (almost a) Person: Death’s Journey of Self-Discovery ............................................................................................................................. 56 2.1. Mort .................................................................................................................................. 60 2.2. Reaper Man ...................................................................................................................... 70 2.3. Soul Music, Hogfather, Thief of Time .............................................................................. 79 Chapter 3 – Accepting your Fellow Man (or Dwarf, or Troll, or Undead, or Golem or even Goblin): How the Anhk-Morpork City Watch becomes a Multicultural Beacon ....................... 87 3.1. Guards! Guards!, Men at Arms ........................................................................................ 88 3.1.1. Corruptive Power: Gonne-Violence and Monarchy .................................................. 93 3.1.2. Speciesism ............................................................................................................... 102 3.1.3. The Commander ...................................................................................................... 113 3.2. Feet of Clay, Jingo ......................................................................................................... 117 3.3. The Fifth Elephant, Night Watch, Thud!, Snuff .............................................................. 126 Conclusion................................................................................................................................. 131 Works Cited .............................................................................................................................. 133 Annexes ..................................................................................................................................... 135 7 Declaração de honra Declaro que a presente dissertação é de minha autoria e não foi utilizada previamente noutro curso ou unidade curricular, desta ou de outra instituição. As referências a outros autores (afirmações, ideias, pensamentos) respeitam escrupulosamente as regras da atribuição, e encontram-se devidamente indicadas no texto e nas referências bibliográficas, de acordo com as normas de referenciação. Tenho consciência de que a prática de plágio e auto-plágio constitui um ilícito académico. Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto, 30 de Setembro de 2018 Nuno Guilherme Cabral Joanaz de Melo 8 Acknowledgments First and foremost, I want to thank my family, mostly for wholeheartedly believing I could actually write a dissertation such as this, but in no small measure for dealing with my, at times rather difficult, character throughout the gruelling process, particularly: my fiancé, for being too good to be true, and for making every single day easier with her uncharacteristically unending patience and all matter of seemingly small huge gestures; my parents’ for their generosity in allowing me more than my fair share of mistakes and detours on the path to get here, but more importantly, my mother for her unwavering, even if largely unspoken, faith in my abilities and my father for his constant questioning, equal shares the voice that berated me for my lack of discipline and provider of extensive discussions about Pratchett and the Discworld; my sister for her simple support, watching without comment and yet being always present when needed; my future parents-in-law for undersanding how useless I became in the daily duties of sharing a house, particularly my future mother-in-law for allowing me to keep her usually spotless living-room a right shambles for the duration of my writing. Secondly, I would like to thank Professor Jorge Bastos for his invaluable advice and for keeping my stubbornly fanciful mind in a more academically-appropriate frame. Similarly, I could never forget the advice and support of Professor Lucy Collins, who went above and beyond her duties as mentor of an Erasmus student, and helped make my time in Ireland a wonderful, life-changing experience. Last but not least I want to mention all the friends and colleagues that were by my side during this time. Hghlighting Ana Sofia Ferreira, who not only challenged me as she went through the same, but also kept reminding me that writing a dissertation is not the same as writing a long text about a subject one is passionate about, there are “logistics” to consider, and if not for her I would certainly have not completed this in time. I would also like to show my appreciation for the staff and management at Lello Bookshop, for their support and understanding. 9 Resumo Terry Pratchett, criador do Discworld, foi um escritor de literatura fantástica de grande sucesso, sendo aquela um tipo de literatura que tem mecanismos específicos para lidar com temas humanos de um modo particular. O objetivo deste estudo é explorar como o corpo de trabalho deste autor pode contribuir para entender duas dimensões diferentes da experiência humana: a descoberta do que significa ser humano a nível individual e o significado de ultrapassar preconceitos e fazer parte de uma comunidade. No primeiro capítulo, é considerada uma seleção de conclusões tiradas da crítica literária sobre fantasia e é feita uma análise dos materiais que deram forma ao Discworld. No segundo capítulo são analisados alguns romances centrados na personagem da Morte para discutir o que significa ser um indivíduo. No terceiro capítulo são analisados alguns romances centrados na Guarda da Cidade de Ankh-Morpork para discutir o ultrapassar de preconceitos e a integração numa comunidade. Para além das conclusões específicas retiradas em cada capítulo, este estudo pretende demonstrar que acima de tudo o Discworld é um mundo, e um mundo que não só mostra o que é fantástico na imaginação humana, mas também o humano no fantástico. Palavras-chave: Literatura Fantástica, Terry Pratchett, Discworld, Auto-Descoberta, Preconceito 10 Abstract Terry Pratchett, the creator of the Discworld, was an extremely successful author of fantasy literature, a type of literature with specific mechanisms to deal with human matters in a particular fashion. The aim of this study is to explore how his work can provide insight into two different dimensions of the human experience: the discovery of humanity on an individual level and the understanding of what it means to overcome prejudice and be part of a community. In the first chapter, a selection