The Color of Magic

There are few authors who have had as great an impact on the fantasy genre as Terry Pratchett. Pratchett was born in 1948 in Buckinghamshire, England. He had his first story published when he was just 13. He continued to write throughout his teens and 20s, but The Color of Magic launched his commercial success in 1983. The Discworld series would go on to span 41 books, selling over 85 million copies worldwide.

Pratchett’s sharp social commentary and satire set his work apart from other fantasy. He feels that the fantasy genre, even some of its better examples, is prone—ironically enough—to a lack of originality. Pratchett conceived his Discworld books in loving protest against the cliches of dark lords and magical swords, characters who break into Old World English at inopportune moments, and women who lie around waiting for brawny heroes to save them from unfortunate fates.

Many other authors across varying genres use stories for social commentary. People tell stories to express profound ideas in narrative, to relive important developmental stages, and to practice dealing with stressful emotions. Even the most blatant escapism often incorporates the issues that challenge readers in their real lives.

The most enduring and best-loved fantasy series are those that stir the strongest and most universal emotions. J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, wrote about war, fear, and love; the desire for peace; and sacrifice and leadership. A Song of Ice and Fire’s George R. R. Martin writes about betrayal, family, and morality. Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time covers the relationship between wisdom and power and explores how knowledge is lost, distorted, and changed over time. These are all matters that affect readers on a profound emotional level. We hardly ever encounter dragons, but we understand the fear of confronting overwhelming forces and feeling powerless against them.

This holds true across the Discworld books as well, but Pratchett takes a unique approach. He looks at issues and experiences that reach readers at their core, but he approaches those issues from a place of satire. Pratchett lampoons broad swaths of society, including science, economics, psychology, literature, and gender roles. He does so from an intellectual distance that invites readers to see and understand things from new angles.

Despite his criticisms of its flaws, Pratchett loved the fantasy genre for its possibilities, particularly for its ability to spur a broadening of imagination. Great authors like Tolstoy, Steinbeck, or Hemmingway can plumb the depth of the human psyche, but Pratchett believed that it is our imagination, not our intelligence, that makes us human, and that imagination must be exercised to stay strong. We need to practice on small fictions like dragons and magical Luggage before we can believe in large fictions like justice and freedom, because if you grind the universe down to its smallest particles, you will never find an atom of justice. It has to be imagined in order to exist.

Terry Pratchett offers a unique and enlightening view of the real world through the lens of fantasy, while also making insightful—if not always flattering—commentary on human nature.