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Evil in Urban Fantasy Literature Cassandra Ashton a Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate S SYMPATHY FOR THE ORCS: EVIL IN URBAN FANTASY LITERATURE CASSANDRA ASHTON A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN HUMANITIES YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO JANUARY 2018 © Cassandra Ashton, 2018 Abstract This dissertation argues that urban fantasy—fantasy set in cities—has a more nuanced conception of evil than high fantasy, which favours pastoral settings, and which was heavily influenced by the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien wrote his Lord of the Rings trilogy in part as a critique of the effect of industrialism on the English countryside and on human lives in general. His work has been so influential that the effect has been an anti-urban tradition in high fantasy, and his portrayal of absolute good versus absolute evil has carried forward into many other fantasy works. The factors that create compelling and satisfying stories do not necessarily reflect or shed light on human behaviour, and it is useful to be able to distinguish what Robert Ellwood calls moral evil and mythical evil, and to understand when each is being deployed, to what end. The urban fantasy genre arose in the early 1980s, and derives from its setting a greater level of comfort with multiplicity, uncertainty, and ambiguity. In short, the urban setting itself affects how evil is portrayed. This argument is supported with close reading and content analysis of twenty-four novels by four authors of urban fantasy: Charles de Lint, Mercedes Lackey, Kelley Armstrong, and China Miéville. My analysis asks about the nature and source of evil in each text, the values that are associated with evil and set in opposition to it, the text’s handling of moral and mythical evil, and the role of the urban landscape. ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank: My supervisor Dr. Allan Weiss for patience, tolerance, and guidance, and the other members of my committee, Dr. Steve Bailey and Dr. Art Redding, for their excellent advice and support. Dr. Kathryn Denning for making suggestions that have proven immeasurably helpful, inside and outside of academia. Dr. Sherry Rowley, Dr. Matthew Clark, and Dr. Markus Reisenleitner for their help, insight, and kindness. My beloved partner, William Johnston, for putting up with all of this for so very long. My parents, Wayne and Wendy Ashton, for material, emotional, and financial support, and general awesomeness; my brother, Mike Ashton, for hot chocolate and pie at Fran’s; my stepgrandfather William Allan Ireland for his love and encouragement all the way through; and the rest of my extended family, who contributed, at various times, dinner, respite, and comfort. The staff of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, the Department of Humanities, the York University Graduate Students' Association, and Local 3903 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees for their assistance. The staff of the National Trust, Killerton Estate, St. Michael’s Mount, Geevor Tin Mine, the Levant Mine and Beam Engine, Dolacauthi Gold Mine, the Black Country Living Museum, the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry, the Discovery Museum at Newcastle- upon-Tyne, the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, Sarehole Mill, the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, and the Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life, as well as all the transit workers, hostel workers, hotel workers, and service industry personnel who made my research trips a joy. My friends and colleagues for their support, indulgence, commiseration, and helpful advice: Paula Massicotte, Dave McCulloch, Carolyn Hibbs, Jennifer Hyland, Alicia Grudzinskas, Damon Lazzarra, Gus Blanco-Lazzarra, Graham Potts, Melonie Fullick, Beth Washburn, Vivia Kieswetter, Mark Celinsak, Cynthia Klinowski, Sarah Erik Sackville-McLauchlan, Sahar Rizvi, Colleen Williamson, Jeremy Pirri, Mary Margaret Scrimger, Amy Arsenio, Kevin Gairns, Eric Krumins, Tatiana Potkonjak, Julie James and Mike Stygal, Catherine and Simon Cocks, Irene Angelopoulos, Christopher Felske, Noel Choi, Wendy Chan, Ryan Fairley, Jamie Farquahar, Steve Kwok, Adam Pearce, Jeremy Burman, Ben Mitchell, Derek Newman-Stille, Grant Dempsey, Clare Wall, Cathérine du Chastel, Bridget Liang, Hilda Smith, Jason Tenter, Tamara Kozier, Milana Bodiroga, Kaaren Tamm, Steven and John Enman-Beech, Gabrielle Bychowski, Sonja Honkala, Love Suárez, chaoticellum, humbae, jonpertwee, and many, many others. iii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................................ iii Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................................ iv Foreword ............................................................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter 1 - Introduction: Fantastic Maps, Evil Territories ............................................... 7 Fantasy .................................................................................................................................................. 9 Evil ...... ................................................................................................................................................... 20 Mythical Evil ......................................................................................................................... 21 Moral Evil ............................................................................................................................... 36 Chapter 2 - The Story of Fantasy I : From Fairy Tales to Tolkien .................................... 74 Evil is Tempting ................................................................................................................................. 95 Evil Pollutes ........................................................................................................................................ 98 Evil is Palpable ................................................................................................................................... 100 Evil is Viciously Competitive ........................................................................................................ 101 Evil is Dehumanizing ....................................................................................................................... 102 Evil is Disembodied .......................................................................................................................... 104 Chapter 3 - The Story of Fantasy II: High Fantasy After Tolkien ..................................... 108 Negotiating British Identity .......................................................................................................... 109 American Fantasy, and Sword and Sorcery ............................................................................ 118 Formula Fantasy ............................................................................................................................... 125 Notable Exceptions .......................................................................................................................... 139 Chapter 4 - Magic Takes Manhattan: Urban Fantasy ........................................................... 145 Notable Texts ...................................................................................................................................... 154 Chapter 5 - “I believe we’re all here to look out for each other, even when the other’s a person like you”: Charles de Lint................................................................. 184 Context and Reception .................................................................................................................... 184 Construction of the Worlds ........................................................................................................... 187 The Role of the City .......................................................................................................................... 194 Protagonists ........................................................................................................................................ 198 i. Sara Kendell ...................................................................................................................... 199 ii. Isabelle Copley ................................................................................................................ 200 iii. Jilly Coppercorn............................................................................................................. 203 iv. Raylene Carter ............................................................................................................... 207 v. Saskia Madding and Christiana Tree ...................................................................... 213 vi. Aaran Goldstein, Rabedy Collins, and Adrian Dumbrell ................................ 216 vii. The Cousins .................................................................................................................... 220 De Lint and Race ................................................................................................................................ 222 Sources of Evil ...................................................................................................................................
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