Celtic Myth in Contemporary Children’s Fantasy: Idealization, Identity, Ideology PDF
Preview Celtic Myth in Contemporary Children’s Fantasy: Idealization, Identity, Ideology
’ Critical Approaches to Children s Literature Series Editors Kerry Mallan Faculty of Education Children and Youth Research Centre Kelvin Grove Queensland Australia Clare Bradford School of Communication and Creative Art Deakin University Burwood Victoria Australia This timely new series brings innovative perspectives to research on chil- dren’sliterature.Itoffersaccessiblebutsophisticatedaccountsofcontem- porarycriticalapproachesandappliesthemtothestudyofadiverserange ofchildren’stexts–literature,filmandmultimedia.CriticalApproachesto Children’s Literature includes monographs from both internationally recognised and emerging scholars. It demonstrates how new voices, new combinationsoftheories,andnewshiftsinthescholarshipofliteraryand cultural studiesilluminate the studyof children’stexts. More information aboutthisseries at http://www.springer.com/series/14930 Dimitra Fimi Celtic Myth in Contemporary ’ Children s Fantasy Idealization, Identity, Ideology DimitraFimi Cardiff,UnitedKingdom CriticalApproachestoChildren’sLiterature ISBN978-1-137-55281-5 ISBN978-1-137-55282-2(eBook) DOI10.1057/978-1-137-55282-2 LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2017930353 ©TheEditor(s)(ifapplicable)andTheAuthor(s)2017 Theauthor(s)has/haveassertedtheirright(s)tobeidentifiedastheauthor(s)ofthisworkin accordancewiththeCopyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988. This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher,whetherthewholeorpartofthematerialisconcerned,specificallytherightsof translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilarordissimilarmethodology nowknownorhereafterdeveloped. Theuseofgeneraldescriptivenames,registerednames,trademarks,servicemarks,etc.inthis publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesare exemptfromtherelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse. Thepublisher,theauthorsandtheeditorsaresafetoassumethattheadviceandinformation in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publishernortheauthorsortheeditorsgiveawarranty,expressorimplied,withrespectto thematerialcontainedhereinorforanyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.The publisherremainsneutralwithregardtojurisdictionalclaimsinpublishedmapsandinstitu- tionalaffiliations. Coverillustration:©IvyCloseImages/AlamyStockPhoto Printedonacid-freepaper ThisPalgraveMacmillanimprintispublishedbySpringerNature TheregisteredcompanyisMacmillanPublishersLtd. Theregisteredcompanyaddressis:TheCampus,4CrinanStreet,London,N19XW,United Kingdom ToAlexander N S D OTE ON PELLING AND ATING For the spelling of Irish names and titles of medieval Irish texts, I have followed John T. Koch, ed., Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia (Santa Barbara; Oxford: ABC-Clio, 2006). However, where one of the fantasy authors discussed in this book has spelt a name differently, I have kept his/her spelling for the duration of the relevant chapter. So, for example, in Chapter 2 we have Mórrígan (as per Pat O’Shea’s spelling), while inChapter 3 Morrígan(asper Henry Neff’s spelling). Thedatingofallmedievaltextsreferencedinthisbookalsocomesfrom Koch, CelticCulture,unless otherwisestated. vii A CKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book has been long in the making. I was privileged to study for my MAinEarlyCelticStudiesatCardiffUniversityintheearly2000s,andto be taught by two top scholars in the field, Professor Sioned Davies and DrJulietteWood.AsIsoonfoundout,“doing”CelticStudiesisaprocess of demythologizing and de-romanticizing medieval texts, as well as an (often ruthless) process of schooling oneself as to which sources one can trust or discard. I couldn’t have had better guides and mentors in this journey thanSioned andJuliette. Beingabletowriteaboutbooksyouloveisagreatjoy.Butbeingableto speak to their authors is a rare privilege. I was extremely fortunate that authorshavebeenwillingtotalktomeandsharetheirownreflectionson thecreativeprocessthatledtomanyofthewonderfulfantasiesexploredin this book. I am immensely grateful to Susan Cooper, Jenny Nimmo, CatherineFisher,andHenryNeff.SpecialthankstoGeoffWindle,partner ofthelatePatO’Shea,withwhomIhadanextensivecorrespondenceand whogave meaninsight intoPat O’Shea’sbookshelves andresearch. A monograph like this has to rely on the expertise and efficiency of librariansandarchivists.ManythankstoChrisBrown,SpecialCollections Curator of the Children’s Literature Research Collection at the Free Library of Philadelphia, for his help with Lloyd Alexander’s papers. I am grateful to Ms Marianne Merola, whose help in securing permission to reproduce Lloyd Alexander’s map of Prydain (Fig. 4.1) was invaluable. Also, I wish to thank Carol James, Inter-Library Loan Co-ordinator at Cardiff Metropolitan University, for sourcing some really hard-to-find publications for me. Friend and Head of Access and Delivery Services at ix x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Rutgers University (and fellow Tolkien scholar) Janet Brennan Croft generously stepped inwhen afew items becamestubbornly elusive. Astheideaofthisbookstartedtotakeshape,Ihadthechancetoshare myinitialresearchandargumentswithalovelybunchofstudentsfromall over the world, through an online course I taught at the Mythgard Institute, Signum University. I am very grateful to Corey Olsen, President of Signum University, for giving me the opportunity to teach this course, and I am indebted to my students for engaging actively with the(prettydemanding)readinglistandaskingintelligentandchallenging questionsthatkeptmeonmytoesandmadethisabetterbook.Manyof these students later read draft chapters of this book and offered me feed- back: special thanks to Sparrow F. Alden, Jennifer Cragen, Sara Legard, KellyOrazi,andEmilyStrand.Iamalsoindebtedtomyresearchassistant, Katharine Sas, who consulted the Lloyd Alexander Papers at the Free Libraryof Philadelphiaonmy behalf. A number of other friends and colleagues helped in different ways by putting me in touch with the right people, checking archaeological details andWelshtrivia,lendingmeparticularlydifficult-to-locatebooks,andpro- viding images. Many thanks to Helen Azard, Catherine Butler, Andy Cochrane, David Cofield, Michelle Deininger, Ian Dennis, Peter Guest, Kirsty Harding, Dani Hofmann, Katherine Langrish, and Siwan Rosser. I am also grateful to Douglas Anderson, Andrew Higgins, Gerard Hynes, Meryl Hopwood, and Claire Richards for reading a selection of chapters and sending me feedback. Dr Juliette Wood read the entire draft at very shortnoticeandprovidedinvaluablefeedback,forwhichIamverythankful. IamindebtedtoCharlesNoadforcastinghisexperteyeoneachpageand spottingerrorsImissed. Last but not least, I need to thank once more my husband, Andrew Davies,notonlyforreadingeverywordofthisbookandnotbeingafraid to proofread my work ruthlessly, but also for supporting me andkeeping mesaneespeciallyduringthemadruntowardsthefinaldeadline.Ourson, Alexander, to whom this book is dedicated, had to live with mama being locked away in her office for what must have seemed like forever, but he hasbeenhisloving,affectionate,andmischievousselfandhasmadeevery day a brighter one. I look forward to reading him all of the fantasies exploredin thisbookin duecourse. C ONTENTS 1 Introduction:“Celticity,”Fantasy,andtheChildReadership 1 PartI Irish Myth 2 OtherworldlyIreland: PatO’Shea’sThe Houndsofthe Mórrígan andKateThompson’s TheNew Policeman 27 3 Celticityand theIrish Diaspora: RewritingFinn mac CumhallandCúchulain forAmerican Youngsters 71 PartII WelshMyth 4 LloydAlexander’s The Chroniclesof Prydain: Building FantasyuponForgery 115 5 WelshHeritagefor Teenagers:Alan Garner, JennyNimmo, CatherineFisher 157 6 SusanCooper’sThe Dark isRising Sequence andthe Arthur ofthe Welsh 219 7 Conclusion: Celticityand “Celtic” Heritage 263 xi
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