Why it matters....

(If the little slideshow below doesn't load properly, try refreshing the page...)

"The job of a storyteller is to speak the truth. But what we feel most deeply can't be spoken in words alone. At this level, only images connect. And here, story becomes symbol; symbol is myth. And myth is truth." -- Alan Garner

"At its best, fantasy rewards the reader with a sense of wonder about what lies within the heart of the commonplace world. The greatest tales are told over and over, in many ways, through centuries. Fantasy changes with the changing times, and yet it is still the oldest kind of tale in the world, for it began once upon a time, and we haven't heard the end of it yet." -- Patricia A. McKillip

"Fairy stories are related to dreams, which are maybe most people's first experience of unreal narrative, and to myths. Realism is related to explanations and orderings -- the tale of the man in the bar who tells you the story of his life, the historian who explains the decisions of generals and the decline of economies. Great novels, I believe, always draw on both ways of telling, both ways of seeing. "  -- A.S. Byatt

"Fantasy is not antirational, but pararational; not realistic but surrealistic, a heightening of reality. In Freud's terminology, it employs primary not secondary process thinking. It employs archetypes which, as Jung warned us, are dangerous things. Fantasy is nearer to poetry, to mysticism, and to insanity that naturalistic fiction is. It is a wilderness, and those who go there should not feel too safe . . . A fantasy is a journey. It is a journey into the subconscious mind, just as psychoanalysis is. Like psychoanalysis, it can be dangerous, and it will change you." -- Ursula K. Le Guin

(The slideshow above comes from the blog section of Endicott's MySpace page, where you'll also find a slideshow of mythic art by Alan Lee, Brian & Wendy Froud, Charles Vess, Mark Wagner and other Endicott-associated artists.)

Comments

[Sam Taylor]

Great quotes. Especially the LeGuin and Garner quotes.

I've never seen it expressed so clearly beofore: how you can tell lies to show the truth. :)

[Grey Walker]

Thank you for reminding me of this.

[Matt Metzgar]

Saw your site was featured on Typepad. Very cool! I like the quotes as well.

[Stace Dumoski]

What a great set of quotes. Thanks for posting them!

[Carl V.]

What a conundrum! Should I stop watching and post, or keep watching? That was a wonderful slideshow of fantastic cover art. They were wonderful to look at without thinking about the stories they represented, and were even more amazing when considering that there is a magical story behind each and every one of those covers. This was very cool!