I was originally going to post this as a comment on Sean's post about Fantasy Noir, but it grew into something larger.
I think some of the discussion taking place on Holly's site stems from a flawed/altered view of what "noir" is, at least as I am reading it. Yes, noir is dark and gritty and explores the hidden underbelly of society, but it is also, I would argue, vindicating as well.
Noir is not just about the elements stated above, but also - and even arguably more so - about a moral commentary on one or more aspects of society. The classic noir protagonist is a loner for that reason - he or she stands outside of society, on a (arguably) higher moral plain, precisely so he can examine and reveal the less savory aspects of the world he walks through. He is no ideal paladin or uber-hero, but he is a hero in the sense that he had values and sensibilities above those around him. He may be flawed and hard and know far too much about the darker aspects of himself and the world, but he is not dark himself. He is the reader's strongest touch-stone to what is right and just and, yes, "normal" in the story.
In this sense, there is a sense of vindication and hope in the classic noir story. The main difference, on this level, is that in "regular noir" (if there is such a thing), resolution is found through the solving of a puzzle and the delivery of justice. Justice can come in either the institutional or private varieties, but more often than not it is the latter. That justice may arrive too late is secondary - the important thing is that the dysfunctional/unjust has been exposed, even if only to the protagonist and the audience.
By contrast, Fantasy Noir cannot rely on institutional justice to remedy the story's problem, since the nature or source of the conflict (magic, elves, etc.) is beyond the scope of mortal enforcement/justice. You can't lock up a wizard in the state pen, and odds are good that a well applied sap isn't going to solve your problem for you. The solution requires extra-normal means.
And this, I think, is where we get into the wonderful irony of Urban Fantasy. Even though it has taken on many of the trappings and tropes of classic noir, it has departed from the core aspect - the protagonist as commentator on society - the most. A Fantasy Noir hero *must*, by definition, be extra-normal in some way, even if it is only through the knowledge they have about the "true" world that lies underneath the mundane one. Where a classic noir hero is solidly grounded in the reality of his day, the fantasy noir hero is dancing on the edge of the normal, ever threatening to tip off (if they haven't already). That isn't to say a fantasy noir hero can't comment on society, but more often than not, it is through the lens of the fantastic, not the mundane.
Noir shines the light of "normal" society on the dysfunctional, while Fantasy Noir uses the light of the exceptional to contrast itself with the normal. The method is similar, but the end result is different in terms of focus and values. Noir, at it's core, reinforces the normal, while Fantasy Noir glorifies the "not normal." The tone may be the same in both, but (many of) the underlying themes are quite different.
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3 comments:
Nice post, Doug,
This goes deep into one of the sets of issues involved in the discussion.
The other big one, at least from my point of view, is the desire to stuff all of urban fantasy into one box. I guess that's a tendency inherent in the human way of thinking — pattern making. But there are huge differences not just in the field as a whole, but even on a very fine level.
My WebMage, Lyda's Tall Dark & Dead, Eleanor's Daughter of the Bear King, and Emma Bull's War for the Oaks, are all set at least partially in Minneapolis. Beyond that, and the fact that they're all fantasy they don't have much in common, because as writers the things that really get us going are very different. And yet, it's very easy to bin them as Urban/Contemporary Fantasy of the Minneapolis school. It's also easy to add in the book Naomi's currently working on and my Urbana stories, neither of which have enormous amounts in common with the other stuff listed.
I think a distinction needs to be made between "Urban Fantasy" and "Fantasy Noir", to be honest. The first is more focused on setting and is, as Kelly points out, a very general label. I mean, if it's fantasy and it's in a modern urban setting...well, you get the idea. The latter is more of a matter of tone, IMO. There is a shadowed nature, a grittieness and narrower theme to Fantasy Noir.
Of course, the two can overlap, but being one does not make it the other. Too many paople make the leap when it isn't warranted. If anything, noir is more of a sub-set, or niche, of the broader Urban Fantasy classification.
Urban Fantasy has become the catch-all label for just about anything that involves magic/the fantastic in a modern urban setting (horror excluded). You can find exceptions, of course, but unless we want to start sub-categorizing everything, I think we'll have to accept that the label is perhaps more all-encompassing, and therefore less descriptive, than we might like. Then gain, we write in a field that, for many, lumps Fantasy and Science Fiction together on te same shelf. How picky can we be when we have that hanging over our heads? :)
The great irony for me in all of this is that I have been thinking about urban fantasy and fantasy noir a lot for the past several months, to the point that I have two stories itching to come out. With all this talk, I may need to get to them sooner than I anticipated. :)
Hmm. No wonder I don't read more "urban fantasy" than I do. Normal? I don't read for normal, even by reflection. And especially not fantasy.
This may also explain why I almost never feel the stakes are worth the pain in noir. And in the noirish stuff I do enjoy, the protagonist is generally as interested in living a life that doesn't require normal as in preserving the option of normal for someone else.
I think you're onto something. And I'd love to see the stories when you're done. I'm really curious how this kind of self-awareness would affect them.
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