The History Of Elves And How They Relate To Modern Literature
If you read any type of Fantasy Fiction or Futuristic literature, you will see a growing trend where elves or elf-like humans are the main characters. This can be seen in theatres such as with the movie ‘Bright’, starring Will Smith, and the highly rated book series, The Wand Chronicles, by author Michael Ross which depicts a futuristic version of our planet that focuses on the inter-relationships of humans and Elves.
While Elven culture isn’t anything new, it is changing the face of modern literature and creating the potential for new sub categories, 'Space Fantasy' being one. However, The Wand Chronicles fits very nicely within the sub-category 'Epic Fantasy' for now, where readers can find interesting tales of modern day elves written by some of today's leading authors.
With that being said, where exactly, did elves comes from? What are they? Who are they and why are they so deep seated in our culture? To answer these questions, we need to take a look at the history of elves and learn more about how they came to be. Let’s take a look:
The History Of Elves
Whatever form you envision elves to take, they are all rooted in primarily Germanic cultures. This includes the region from Germany to England, and upwards throughout Scandinavia. Elves are often described as mystical rather than magical and they are depicted as beautiful creatures in most modern novels. Culture and specific beliefs to have an effect on the way we depict elves in our own culture and these depictions can vary greatly.
Depending on your version, elves can be evil, monstrous beings, always up to no good, or they can be saviors of the people, championing good over evil and right over wrong. This is typical of Germanic folklore, whereas Norse mythology sees elves and elf-like creatures as a completely different species than our own, living in their own world apart from ours.
The Creation Of Light And Dark Elves
As with any type of fictional literature, we need a struggle. It is usually good versus evil or some other adaptation of that idea and that created the need for light and dark elves. We can thank historian and poet, Snorri Sturluson, for this concept as he took the Norse idea of elves and made it less clear what was Norse folklore and what was the new Christian version of that folklore. By changing the traditional beliefs about elves and the ‘hidden people’ of Icelandic culture, and making it more accepted in a modern, for the times, culture, Sturluson has made it possible for us to still have access to ancient folklore and the story of the elves.
Now, it is up to modern day writers to keep the spirit of elf culture alive and to continue creating new and interesting novels based on these mysterious creatures that are so very human-like.
Visit The Wand Chronicles
To learn more about elves or The Wand Chronicles series of novels, visit The Wand Chronicles online today!
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