Sword and sorcery
Encyclopedia
Sword and sorcery is a sub-genre of fantasy
and historical fantasy
, generally characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent conflicts. An element of romance is often present, as is an element of magic
and the supernatural
. Unlike works of high fantasy
, the tales, though dramatic, focus mainly on personal battles rather than world-endangering matters.
A genre closely related to this is sword-and-sandal, though its subjects tend to be less fantasy-oriented and more historical as they are set in historic time periods rather than entirely fictional worlds or cities, which are mostly the primary setting of this genre.
author
Michael Moorcock
published a letter in the fanzine Amra, demanding a name for the sort of fantasy-adventure story written by Robert E. Howard
. He had initially proposed the term "epic fantasy". However, the celebrated American
sword and sorcery author Fritz Leiber
replied in the journal Ancalagon (6 April 1961) suggesting "sword-and-sorcery as a good popular catchphrase for the field". He expanded on this in the July 1961 issue of Amra, commenting:
Though not explicitly mentioned in Leiber's letter, the originally Italian film genre known as "Sword and Sandal
", depicting heroic adventures in settings derived from the Bible
or Greek Mythology
, was at the peak of its popularity in the US at the time when the letter was written.
Since its inception, many attempts have been made to redefine precisely what "sword and sorcery" is. Although many debate the finer points, the consensus characterizes it by a strong bias toward fast-paced, action-rich tales set within a quasi-mythical or fantastical framework. Unlike high or epic fantasy
, the stakes tend to be personal, the danger confined to the moment of telling.
Many sword and sorcery tales have been turned into a lengthy series of adventures. Their lower stakes and less than world-threatening dangers make this more plausible than a repetition of the perils of epic fantasy. So too the nature of the heroes; most sword-and-sorcery protagonist
s, travellers by nature, find peace after adventure deathly dull. At one extreme, the heroes of E. R. Eddison's The Worm Ouroboros
grieve for the end of the war and that they have no more foes equal to those they defeated; in answer to their prayers, the gods restore the enemy city so that they can fight the same war over again.
's Odyssey
and the Norse sagas.
It is also influenced by historical fiction
, begun by Sir Walter Scott, under the influence of Romantic collection of folklore and ballads. However, very few of his works contain fantastic elements; in most, the appearance of such is explained away, but in its themes of adventure in a strange society, this led to the adventures set in foreign lands by H. Rider Haggard
and Edgar Rice Burroughs
. Haggard's works included many fantastic elements.
However, sword and sorcery's immediate progenitors are the swashbuckling tales of Alexandre Dumas, père
(The Three Musketeers
(1844), etc.), Rafael Sabatini
(Scaramouche (1921), etc.) and their pulp magazine
imitators, such as Talbot Mundy
, Harold Lamb
and H. Bedford-Jones
, who all influenced Robert E. Howard
. However, these historical "swashbucklers" lack the truly supernatural element (even though Dumas' fiction contained many fantasy tropes ). Another influence was early fantasy fiction such as Lord Dunsany's "The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth" (1910) and A. Merritt
's The Ship of Ishtar
(1924). All of these authors influenced sword and sorcery for the plots, characters and landscapes used.
In addition, many early sword and sorcery writers, such as Robert E. Howard
and Clark Ashton Smith
, were heavily influenced by the Middle Eastern tales of the Arabian Nights, whose stories of magical monsters and evil sorcerers
were a major influence on the genre-to-be.
It can also be noted that in its frequent depictions of smoky taverns and smelly back alleys, sword and sorcery draws upon the picaresque genre; for example, Fritz Leiber
's city of Lankhmar
bears considerable similarity to 16th Century Seville
as depicted in Cervantes
' tale Rinconete y Cortadillo.
Sword and sorcery proper only truly began in the pulp fantasy magazines, most notably Weird Tales
.
and Kull of Atlantis, mostly in Weird Tales from 1932 and 1929 respectively.
Other books and series that define the genre of sword-and-sorcery include:
Other pulp fantasy fiction—such as Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom
series and Leigh Brackett
's Sea Kings of Mars—have a similar feel to sword and sorcery, but, because alien science replaces the supernatural, it is usually described as planetary romance
or sword and planet
, and considered to fall more in the area of science fiction
.
, a select group of writers formed the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA)
to promote and enlarge the Sword and Sorcery genre. From 1973 to 1981 five anthologies featuring short works by SAGA members were published: edited by Carter, these were collectively known as Flashing Swords!
.
Despite such authors' best efforts, sword and sorcery has more colloquially come to be known as a catch-all phrase for low grade, derivative fantasy as well as fiction written in such universes. During the 1980s, influenced by the success of the 1982 feature film
Conan the Barbarian many cheaply made fantasy films were released that came to be derisively known as "Sword & Sorcery". The term is sometimes used in a derogatory manner by writers and readers of the fantasy genre. However, in recent years magazines such as Black Gate
and Flashing Swords
(not to be confused with the Lin Carter
anthologies) are attempting to return the genre to the status it enjoyed during the pulp era of the twenties and thirties.
to be rescued or protected. Marion Zimmer Bradley
's Sword and Sorceress
anthology series (1984 onwards) attempted the reverse. Bradley encouraged female writers and protagonists: the stories feature skillful swordswomen and powerful sorceresses. The series was immensely popular and Bradley was editing her final volume at the time of her death (the series continued under other editors). Today, active female characters who participate equally with the male heroes in the stories are a regular feature in modern sword and sorcery stories, though they are also relied upon for sex appeal.
Introduced as a minor character in a non-fantasy historical story by Robert E. Howard
, "The Shadow of the Vulture
", Red Sonya of Rogatino would later inspire a fantasy heroine named Red Sonja
, who first appeared in the comic book
series Conan the Barbarian
written by Roy Thomas
and illustrated by Barry Windsor-Smith
. Red Sonja received her own comic book title and eventually a series of novels by David C. Smith
and Richard L. Tierney
, as well as Richard Fleischer
's unsuccessful film adaptation
in 1985.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
and historical fantasy
Historical fantasy
Historical fantasy is a sub-genre of fantasy and related to historical fiction, which makes use of specific elements of real world history. It is used as an umbrella term for the sword and sorcery genre and sometimes, if fantasy is involved, the sword-and-sandal genre too...
, generally characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent conflicts. An element of romance is often present, as is an element of magic
Magic (fantasy)
Magic in fiction is the endowing of fictional characters or objects with magical powers.Such magic often serves as a plot device, the source of magical artifacts and their quests...
and the supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
. Unlike works of high fantasy
High fantasy
High fantasy or epic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that is set in invented or parallel worlds. High fantasy was brought to fruition through the work of authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, whose major fantasy works were published in the 1950s...
, the tales, though dramatic, focus mainly on personal battles rather than world-endangering matters.
A genre closely related to this is sword-and-sandal, though its subjects tend to be less fantasy-oriented and more historical as they are set in historic time periods rather than entirely fictional worlds or cities, which are mostly the primary setting of this genre.
Defining sword and sorcery
The term was first coined in 1961 when the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
published a letter in the fanzine Amra, demanding a name for the sort of fantasy-adventure story written by Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
. He had initially proposed the term "epic fantasy". However, the celebrated American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sword and sorcery author Fritz Leiber
Fritz Leiber
Fritz Reuter Leiber, Jr. was an American writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theatre and films, playwright, expert chess player and a champion fencer. Possibly his greatest chess accomplishment was winning clear first in the 1958 Santa Monica Open.. With...
replied in the journal Ancalagon (6 April 1961) suggesting "sword-and-sorcery as a good popular catchphrase for the field". He expanded on this in the July 1961 issue of Amra, commenting:
I feel more certain than ever that this field should be called the sword-and-sorcery story. This accurately describes the points of culture-level and supernatural element and also immediately distinguishes it from the cloak-and-sword (historical adventure) story—and (quite incidentally) from the cloak-and-dagger (international espionage) story too! (Fritz LeiberFritz LeiberFritz Reuter Leiber, Jr. was an American writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theatre and films, playwright, expert chess player and a champion fencer. Possibly his greatest chess accomplishment was winning clear first in the 1958 Santa Monica Open.. With...
, Amra, July 1961)
Though not explicitly mentioned in Leiber's letter, the originally Italian film genre known as "Sword and Sandal
Sword and sandal
The Peplum , also known as Sword-and-Sandal, is a genre of largely Italian-made Historical or Biblical Epics that dominated the Italian film industry from 1957 to 1965, eventually being replaced in 1965 by the "Spaghetti Western"...
", depicting heroic adventures in settings derived from the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
or Greek Mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, was at the peak of its popularity in the US at the time when the letter was written.
Since its inception, many attempts have been made to redefine precisely what "sword and sorcery" is. Although many debate the finer points, the consensus characterizes it by a strong bias toward fast-paced, action-rich tales set within a quasi-mythical or fantastical framework. Unlike high or epic fantasy
High fantasy
High fantasy or epic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that is set in invented or parallel worlds. High fantasy was brought to fruition through the work of authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, whose major fantasy works were published in the 1950s...
, the stakes tend to be personal, the danger confined to the moment of telling.
Many sword and sorcery tales have been turned into a lengthy series of adventures. Their lower stakes and less than world-threatening dangers make this more plausible than a repetition of the perils of epic fantasy. So too the nature of the heroes; most sword-and-sorcery protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
s, travellers by nature, find peace after adventure deathly dull. At one extreme, the heroes of E. R. Eddison's The Worm Ouroboros
The Worm Ouroboros
The Worm Ouroboros is a heroic high fantasy novel by Eric Rücker Eddison, first published in 1922. The book describes the protracted war between the domineering King Gorice of Witchland and the Lords of Demonland in an imaginary world that appears mainly medieval and partly reminiscent of Norse sagas...
grieve for the end of the war and that they have no more foes equal to those they defeated; in answer to their prayers, the gods restore the enemy city so that they can fight the same war over again.
Sources
The subgenre has old roots. Ultimately—like much fantasy—it draws from mythology and Classical epics such as HomerHomer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
's Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
and the Norse sagas.
It is also influenced by historical fiction
Historical fiction
Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional...
, begun by Sir Walter Scott, under the influence of Romantic collection of folklore and ballads. However, very few of his works contain fantastic elements; in most, the appearance of such is explained away, but in its themes of adventure in a strange society, this led to the adventures set in foreign lands by H. Rider Haggard
H. Rider Haggard
Sir Henry Rider Haggard, KBE was an English writer of adventure novels set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and a founder of the Lost World literary genre. He was also involved in agricultural reform around the British Empire...
and Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...
. Haggard's works included many fantastic elements.
However, sword and sorcery's immediate progenitors are the swashbuckling tales of Alexandre Dumas, père
Alexandre Dumas, père
Alexandre Dumas, , born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie was a French writer, best known for his historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world...
(The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
(1844), etc.), Rafael Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini was an Italian/British writer of novels of romance and adventure.-Life:Rafael Sabatini was born in Iesi, Italy, to an English mother and Italian father...
(Scaramouche (1921), etc.) and their pulp magazine
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
imitators, such as Talbot Mundy
Talbot Mundy
Talbot Mundy was an English writer. He also wrote under the pseudonym Walter Galt.-Life and work:...
, Harold Lamb
Harold Lamb
Harold Albert Lamb was an American historian, screenwriter, short story writer, and novelist.Lamb was born in Alpine, New Jersey. He attended Columbia University, where his interest in the peoples and history of Asia began. Lamb's tutors at Columbia included Carl Van Doren andJohn Erskine. ...
and H. Bedford-Jones
H. Bedford-Jones
Henry James O'Brien Bedford-Jones was a Canadian historical, adventure fantasy, science fiction, crime and Western writer who became a naturalized United States citizen in 1908. After being encouraged to try writing by his friend, writer William Wallace Cook, Bedford-Jones began writing dime...
, who all influenced Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
. However, these historical "swashbucklers" lack the truly supernatural element (even though Dumas' fiction contained many fantasy tropes ). Another influence was early fantasy fiction such as Lord Dunsany's "The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth" (1910) and A. Merritt
A. Merritt
Abraham Grace Merritt — known by his byline, A. Merritt — was an American editor and author of works of fantastic fiction.-Life:...
's The Ship of Ishtar
The Ship of Ishtar
The Ship of Ishtar is a fantasy novel by A. Merritt. Originally published as a magazine serial in 1924, it has appeared in book form innumerable times.-Plot introduction:...
(1924). All of these authors influenced sword and sorcery for the plots, characters and landscapes used.
In addition, many early sword and sorcery writers, such as Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
and Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith was a self-educated American poet, sculptor, painter and author of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne...
, were heavily influenced by the Middle Eastern tales of the Arabian Nights, whose stories of magical monsters and evil sorcerers
Magician (fantasy)
A magician, mage, sorcerer, sorceress, wizard, enchanter, enchantress, thaumaturge or a person known under one of many other possible terms is someone who uses or practices magic that derives from supernatural or occult sources...
were a major influence on the genre-to-be.
It can also be noted that in its frequent depictions of smoky taverns and smelly back alleys, sword and sorcery draws upon the picaresque genre; for example, Fritz Leiber
Fritz Leiber
Fritz Reuter Leiber, Jr. was an American writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theatre and films, playwright, expert chess player and a champion fencer. Possibly his greatest chess accomplishment was winning clear first in the 1958 Santa Monica Open.. With...
's city of Lankhmar
Lankhmar
Lankhmar is a fictional city in the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber. It is situated on the world of Nehwon, just west of the Great Salt Marsh and east of the River Hlal, and serves as the home of Leiber's two anti-heroes....
bears considerable similarity to 16th Century Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
as depicted in Cervantes
Cervantes
-People:*Alfonso J. Cervantes , mayor of St. Louis, Missouri*Francisco Cervantes de Salazar, 16th-century man of letters*Ignacio Cervantes, Cuban composer*Jorge Cervantes, a world-renowned expert on indoor, outdoor, and greenhouse cannabis cultivation...
' tale Rinconete y Cortadillo.
Sword and sorcery proper only truly began in the pulp fantasy magazines, most notably Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
.
Seminal sword and sorcery
The genre has been defined, strongly, by the work of Robert E. Howard, particularly his tales of Conan the BarbarianConan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...
and Kull of Atlantis, mostly in Weird Tales from 1932 and 1929 respectively.
Other books and series that define the genre of sword-and-sorcery include:
- Clark Ashton SmithClark Ashton SmithClark Ashton Smith was a self-educated American poet, sculptor, painter and author of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne...
's ZothiqueZothiqueZothique is an imagined future continent featured in a series of short stories by Clark Ashton Smith. Zothique is also the title of the cycle of tales which take place there. In terms of number and extent, the Zothique cycle is the largest collection of stories written by Smith...
and HyperboreanHyperborean cycleThe Hyperborean cycle is a series of short stories by Clark Ashton Smith that take place in the fictional prehistoric setting of Hyperborea . Various elements in Smith's cycle have been borrowed by H. P. Lovecraft, most notably the "toad-god" Tsathoggua...
tales, beginning with "The Empire of the Necromancers" and The Tale of Satampra ZeirosThe Tale of Satampra Zeiros"The Tale of Satampra Zeiros" is a short story written in 1929 by Clark Ashton Smith as part of his Hyperborean cycle, and first published in the November 1931 issue of Weird Tales...
in 1932 and 1931 respectively. - C. L. MooreC. L. MooreCatherine Lucille Moore was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, as C. L. Moore. She was one of the first women to write in the genre, and paved the way for many other female writers in speculative fiction....
's Jirel of JoiryJirel of JoiryJirel of Joiry is a fictional character created by American writer C. L. Moore, who appeared in a series of sword and sorcery stories published first in the pulp horror/fantasy magazine Weird Tales. Jirel is the proud, tough, arrogant and beautiful ruler of her own domain—apparently somewhere in...
tales, beginning with "Black God's Kiss" (1934), which introduced the first notable sword and sorcery heroine. - Fritz LeiberFritz LeiberFritz Reuter Leiber, Jr. was an American writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theatre and films, playwright, expert chess player and a champion fencer. Possibly his greatest chess accomplishment was winning clear first in the 1958 Santa Monica Open.. With...
's Fafhrd and the Gray MouserFafhrd and the Gray MouserFafhrd and the Gray Mouser are two seminal sword-and-sorcery heroes appearing in stories written by Fritz Leiber . They are the protagonists of what are probably Leiber's best-known stories....
sequence, beginning with "Two Sought Adventure" (1939). - Michael MoorcockMichael MoorcockMichael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
's Elric sequence, beginning with The Dreaming City (published in Science FantasyScience Fantasy (magazine)Science Fantasy, which also appeared under the titles Impulse and SF Impulse, was a British fantasy and science fiction magazine, launched in 1950 by Nova Publications as a companion to Nova's New Worlds. Walter Gillings was editor for the first two issues, and was then replaced by John Carnell,...
1961), notable for its adherence to counterstereotypeCounterstereotypeA counter-stereotype, reverse stereotype, or anti-stereotype is the reverse of a stereotype.Although counter-stereotypes arise in opposition to stereotypes, they may eventually become stereotypes themselves if they are too popular....
. - Sprague de Camp's Swords and SorcerySwords and SorcerySwords and Sorcery is a 1963 anthology of fantasy short stories in the sword and sorcery subgenre, edited by L. Sprague de Camp and illustrated by Virgil Finlay. It was first published in paperback by Pyramid Books...
the first sword and sorcery anthology, Pyramid Books, December 1963. - Karl Edward WagnerKarl Edward WagnerKarl Edward Wagner was an American writer, editor and publisher of horror, science fiction, and heroic fantasy, who was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and originally trained as a psychiatrist. His disillusionment with the medical profession can be seen in the stories "The Fourth Seal" and "Into...
's KaneKane (fantasy)Kane is a literary character created by Karl Edward Wagner in a series of sword and sorcery novels and short stories between 1970 and 1985. The stories are set in a grim, pre-medieval world which is nonetheless ancient and rich in history...
novels, beginning with Darkness Weaves (1970), credited with reinvigorating the genre. - Charles SaundersCharles R. SaundersCharles R. Saunders also credited as Charles Saunders is an African American author and journalist currently living in Canada. During his long career, he has written everything from novels both fiction and non-fiction, to screenplays and radio plays.- Background :Saunders was born in Elizabeth,...
' Imaro novels, beginning with Imaro (1981), a collection of short stories first published in the seventies for Dark Fantasy fanzine. Notable for being the first notable black sword and sorcery character. - David GemmellDavid GemmellDavid Andrew Gemmell was a bestselling British author of heroic fantasy. A former journalist and newspaper editor, Gemmell had his first work of fiction published in 1984. He went on to write over thirty novels. Best known for his debut, Legend, Gemmell's works display violence, yet also explore...
's Druss stories, especially LegendLegend (novel)Legend, published in 1984, is the first and most famous novel of British fantasy writer David Gemmell. It established him as a major fantasy novelist and created the character of Druss, who would appear in several subsequent books. It was also the first novel to be published in what later became...
Other pulp fantasy fiction—such as Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom
Barsoom
Barsoom is a fictional representation of the planet Mars created by American pulp fiction author Edgar Rice Burroughs, who wrote close to 100 action adventure stories in various genres in the first half of the 20th century, and is now best known as the creator of the character Tarzan...
series and Leigh Brackett
Leigh Brackett
Leigh Douglass Brackett was an American author, particularly of science fiction. She was also a screenwriter, known for her work on famous films such as The Big Sleep , Rio Bravo , The Long Goodbye and The Empire Strikes Back .-Life:Leigh Brackett was born and grew up in Los Angeles, California...
's Sea Kings of Mars—have a similar feel to sword and sorcery, but, because alien science replaces the supernatural, it is usually described as planetary romance
Planetary romance
Planetary romance is a type of science fiction or science fantasy story in which the bulk of the action consists of adventures on one or more exotic alien planets, characterized by distinctive physical and cultural backgrounds...
or sword and planet
Sword and planet
Sword and Planet is a subgenre of science fantasy that features rousing adventure stories set on other planets, and usually featuring Earthmen as protagonists. The name derives from the heroes of the genre engaging their adversaries in hand to hand combat primarily with simple melee weapons such as...
, and considered to fall more in the area of science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
.
SAGA and the revival of sword and sorcery
From the 1960s up till the 1980s, under the guiding force of Lin CarterLin Carter
Linwood Vrooman Carter was an American author of science fiction and fantasy, as well as an editor and critic. He usually wrote as Lin Carter; known pseudonyms include H. P. Lowcraft and Grail Undwin.-Life:Carter was born in St. Petersburg, Florida...
, a select group of writers formed the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA)
Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA)
The Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America is the name of a literary group of American fantasy authors active from the 1960s through the 1980s, noted for their contributions to the fantasy subgenre of heroic fantasy or "Sword and Sorcery."...
to promote and enlarge the Sword and Sorcery genre. From 1973 to 1981 five anthologies featuring short works by SAGA members were published: edited by Carter, these were collectively known as Flashing Swords!
Flashing Swords!
Flashing Swords! was a series of fantasy anthologies published by Dell Books from 1973 to 1981 under the editorship of Lin Carter. It showcased the heroic fantasy work of the members of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America , a somewhat informal literary group active from the 1960s to the...
.
Despite such authors' best efforts, sword and sorcery has more colloquially come to be known as a catch-all phrase for low grade, derivative fantasy as well as fiction written in such universes. During the 1980s, influenced by the success of the 1982 feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
Conan the Barbarian many cheaply made fantasy films were released that came to be derisively known as "Sword & Sorcery". The term is sometimes used in a derogatory manner by writers and readers of the fantasy genre. However, in recent years magazines such as Black Gate
Black Gate (magazine)
Black Gate is a glossy, quarterly fantasy magazine founded in 2000 and published by New Epoch Press. Using the slogan "Adventures in Fantasy Literature," Black Gate primarily features original short fiction up to novella length....
and Flashing Swords
Flashing Swords ezine
, is a quarterly zine publishing short works of Heroic Adventure fiction, poetry and art. Each issue carries six or more stories by both established and novice writers, as well as occasional reprints. In addition, it regularly features art, articles and interviews related to these genres.Founded...
(not to be confused with the Lin Carter
Lin Carter
Linwood Vrooman Carter was an American author of science fiction and fantasy, as well as an editor and critic. He usually wrote as Lin Carter; known pseudonyms include H. P. Lowcraft and Grail Undwin.-Life:Carter was born in St. Petersburg, Florida...
anthologies) are attempting to return the genre to the status it enjoyed during the pulp era of the twenties and thirties.
Sword and sorcery heroines
Despite the early work of C. L. Moore and others, sword and sorcery has had a strongly masculine bias. Female characters were generally distressed damselsDamsel in distress
The subject of the damsel in distress, or persecuted maiden, is a classic theme in world literature, art, and film. She is usually a beautiful young woman placed in a dire predicament by a villain or monster and who requires a hero to achieve her rescue. She has become a stock character of fiction,...
to be rescued or protected. Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Many critics have noted a feminist perspective in her writing. Her first child, David R...
's Sword and Sorceress
Sword and Sorceress series
The Sword and Sorceress series is a series of fantasy anthologies edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley, and originally published by DAW Books. As she explained in the foreword to the first volume, she created the anthology to redress the lack of strong female protagonists in the sub-genre of sword and...
anthology series (1984 onwards) attempted the reverse. Bradley encouraged female writers and protagonists: the stories feature skillful swordswomen and powerful sorceresses. The series was immensely popular and Bradley was editing her final volume at the time of her death (the series continued under other editors). Today, active female characters who participate equally with the male heroes in the stories are a regular feature in modern sword and sorcery stories, though they are also relied upon for sex appeal.
Introduced as a minor character in a non-fantasy historical story by Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
, "The Shadow of the Vulture
The Shadow of the Vulture
"The Shadow of the Vulture" is a short story by Robert E. Howard, first published in The Magic Carpet Magazine, January 1934. The story introduces the character of Red Sonya of Rogatino, who later became the inspiration for the popular character Red Sonja, archetype of the chainmail-bikini clad...
", Red Sonya of Rogatino would later inspire a fantasy heroine named Red Sonja
Red Sonja
Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, is a fictional character, a high fantasy sword and sorcery heroine created by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith, and loosely based on Red Sonya of Rogatino in Robert E. Howard's 1934 short story "The Shadow of the Vulture"...
, who first appeared in the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series Conan the Barbarian
Conan (comics)
Conan the Barbarian by Robert E. Howard was first adapted into comics published Marvel Comics beginning with the series Conan the Barbarian in 1970...
written by Roy Thomas
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
and illustrated by Barry Windsor-Smith
Barry Windsor-Smith
Barry Windsor-Smith, born Barry Smith is a British comic book illustrator and painter whose best known work has been produced in the United States....
. Red Sonja received her own comic book title and eventually a series of novels by David C. Smith
David C. Smith (author)
David C. Smith, born August 10, 1952, is an American author of fantasy, horror, and suspense fiction, a medical editor, and an essayist. He is best known for his heroic fantasy novels, including his collaborations with Richard L. Tierney featuring characters created by Robert E...
and Richard L. Tierney
Richard L. Tierney
Richard L. Tierney is an American writer, poet and scholar of H. P. Lovecraft. He is the coauthor of a series of Red Sonja novels, featuring cover art by Boris Vallejo. Some of his standalone novels utilize the mythology of Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos.-Youth:Tierney was born in Spencer, Iowa...
, as well as Richard Fleischer
Richard Fleischer
-Early life:Fleischer was born in Brooklyn, the son of Essie and animator/producer Max Fleischer. He started in motion pictures as director of animated shorts produced by his father including entries in the Betty Boop, Popeye and Superman series.His live-action film career began in 1942 at the RKO...
's unsuccessful film adaptation
Red Sonja (1985 film)
Red Sonja is a 1985 sword and sorcery/action film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in a supporting role and introducing Brigitte Nielsen as the title character...
in 1985.
See also
- Heroic fantasyHeroic fantasyHeroic fantasy is a sub-genre of fantasy which chronicles the tales of heroes in imaginary lands. Unlike stories of sword and sorcery, heroic fantasy narratives tend to be intricate in plot, often involving many peoples, nations and lands. Grand battles and the fate of the world are common themes,...
- Low fantasyLow fantasyLow fantasy is a term used to describe a variety of works within the sub-genres of fantasy fiction. Low fantasy places relatively less emphasis on typical elements associated with fantasy, setting a narrative in real-world environments with only vague elements of the fantastical, sometimes just...
- Sword and planetSword and planetSword and Planet is a subgenre of science fantasy that features rousing adventure stories set on other planets, and usually featuring Earthmen as protagonists. The name derives from the heroes of the genre engaging their adversaries in hand to hand combat primarily with simple melee weapons such as...
- Sword and sandalSword and sandalThe Peplum , also known as Sword-and-Sandal, is a genre of largely Italian-made Historical or Biblical Epics that dominated the Italian film industry from 1957 to 1965, eventually being replaced in 1965 by the "Spaghetti Western"...
- Sword and sorcery filmsSword and sorcery filmsFollowing the 1982 release of the feature film Conan the Barbarian an influx of cheaply made fantasy films with similarly bare chested protagonists and scantily clad damsels in distress were released that came to be derisively referred to as "Sword & Sorcery" largely to cash in on the popularity of...
- High fantasyHigh fantasyHigh fantasy or epic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that is set in invented or parallel worlds. High fantasy was brought to fruition through the work of authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, whose major fantasy works were published in the 1950s...