Dear Christian, Is Fantasy a Waste of Time?

I’ve heard the opinion in the Christian world that reading speculative fiction (eg fantasy, sci-fi, steampunk) is a waste of time. It’s been called ‘escapist.’ I’ve already gone over the topic of escapism before, but I’d like to reiterate that something is only an escape when someone makes it into that. Fantasy isn’t inherently escapist because it creates a different world with different rules from our own.

But is reading fantasy a waste of time?

Depends.

Anything can become a waste of time when it serves no good purpose. Anything can be abused or used in harmful amounts. But is picking up a fantasy novel automatically bad?

No. There is nothing inherently wrong with the speculative fiction genre. Now, if one reads so much that they neglect to serve, worship, fellowship, or in any other way obey God, then of course there’s a problem. But that’s the person’s fault, not the object’s. Love can be misdirected or used to spoil a child, but that doesn’t make love wrong. Logically, the accusation falls apart.

Now, some might object that fantasy serves no good purpose, and as such, is a waste of time, some form of entertainment, harmless or not, that distracts from living our lives to glorify God. Well, is it? Are you the better Christian for having read the book? If not, and the book merely wasn’t some brief, unabused period of relaxation or entertainment (which there’s nothing wrong with, in appropriate quantities,) then perhaps the book was a waste of time.

But certainly, things like Narnia are not a waste of time. Stories reach people in ways that sermons and lectures can’t. As Steven Lawhead put it in Merlin,

“And it came to me while I was singing — watching the ring of faces around the night’s fire, their eyes glinting like dark sparks, gazing raptly as the song kindled and took light in their souls — it came to me that the way to men’s souls was through their hearts, not through their minds. As much as a man might be convinced in his mind, as long as his heart remained unchanged all persuasion would fail. The surest way to the heart is through song and story: a single tale of high and noble deeds spoke to men more forcefully than all of blessed Dafyd’s homilies.

The cynic might snort and point out that this passage is from a fictional book in which myth plays a prominent part, so of course it would say something like that. Indeed it is, but the mythology is contrasted with Christian beliefs and the contrast allows Christianity to shine in a special light one will likely not get from a book of theology. It’s one thing to read about the distinctions. It’s another to see men living them. There’s nothing wrong with nonfiction, sermons, and lectures. But appealling solely to the head will not do — the heart must be reached as well.

To whoever might criticize me here by pointing out that I am merely trying to defend my being a speculative fiction author, I shall say that is both an error in reasoning (ad hominem circumstantial,) and that I feel that I am doing nothing wrong. I am not convicted of any guilt when I sit down to write, unless I know that what I have just been writing is me venting or going about some topic in the wrong way. Writing stories is not forbidden in the Bible, and I am doing my work ‘heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.’ If Jesus told stories, I do not see why either listening to them or writing them is a waste of time.

To those who would say that the reader wastes his time with works of fiction and should be reading stories of the saints or works of nonfiction instead, I say that fiction shows in a way that nonfiction can’t. Jesus taught in parables and sermons. Stories provide role models in a way history cannot. History is full of men who did great things and yet awful things — think King David. But good heroes should never disappoint. Oh, they may struggle, and indeed, it would be telling a lie if they didn’t, but they should overcome as well. This isn’t to say the same can’t be true of historical figures, but humans being humans, you’ll probably have an easier time finding a fictional hero to look up to.

Fiction teaches us also about ourselves, for we can often better connect with a fantastic hero than with a figure of history, and in that hero see traits alike to our own, or challenges that we too struggle with, or what we could be ourselves one day. In general, fiction has a way of communicating knowledge and experience in vivid ways through situations that are rarely or not at all present in real life. And as well, who is better equipped to hope for a world beyond his own — the one who reads of what could be or the one who reads only of the material ‘is‘?

Now, I’ve also seen this step taken — not outright forbidding fiction, but only permitting fiction written by Christian authors. Now, in general will this be cleaner and more moral? Yes, but keep in mind that goodness can come out of secular works. All truth is God’s truth, and quite frankly, I’ve seen certain topics tackled better by secular authors — responsibility, perserverance, and leadership by Sanderson’s characters of Kaladin and Dalinar, or tons of food for thought in the Captain America trilogy’s handling of patriotism, guilt, and loyalty. Christie and Doyle were not Christian, and yet they didn’t fail to remind the world of humanity’s fallen nature or bring about justice in their story worlds.

To be clear, a speculative story world overloaded with R-rated content or propaganda or purposeful deception about reality and the laws of morality is another matter. Such things should be avoided, ClearPlayed, or discussed. And I see where the Christian parent is coming from when they limit their children to Christian material.

I also understand why Christian teachers might be inclined to see fantasy as a waste of time. There are certainly works of fiction out there that do not improve. Books like Harry Potter or The Color of Magic are meant merely to entertain, outright deny the existence of God, and deliver few, if any, wholesome values. Films fall into this category too, like Pirates of the Caribbean or Night at the Museum. They’re good for a few laughs, and that’s all, and otherwise hold to a materialistic worldview. But we would be comitting a fallacy to extend this to the entire scope of fiction. There’s plenty of good literature out there, and some good films too.

Fantasy is not a waste of time, so long as your habits regarding it aren’t.

Have a good week, guys. Thoughts? Counterarguments? Leave them in the comments section, I’d love to chat with you.

Ciao!

For Further Reading: Josiah DeGraaf: How Reading Epic Fantasy Helps Me Be Brave