fallen hero retribution subtle manipulation points

If genre becomes too apparently constraining, it can even provide a creative opportunity, by allowing a creator to entertaingly violate its constraints and rewrite the rules, or it can spur a quest for new sources and wellsprings. Theres nothing wrong with genre: it gives a writer a place to hang his or her hat, a platform on which to stand, a prior organizing principle.

Thats what genres are: a set of implicit, understood rules and motifs that organize and typify creative work. I think, though, that Mieville is right in one respect: the further iterations of Tolkien have led to the withering of imagination, the forging of invisible chains on a generations creativity.

I recently read China Mievilles all-out assault on JRR Tolkien and Lord of the Rings, and disagreed vehemently with much of it, especially the specific criticism of Tolkien himself. Simple enough: after Lord of the Rings turned into a commercial success, use some of the recognizable motifs, characters and plot devices to bootstrap a ho-hum work to greater commercial success. Once upon a time, there were fairly straightforward retreads of Tolkiens Lord of the Rings like Terry Brooks first Shannara book.

Fallen hero retribution subtle manipulation points