Talk:Bangsian fantasy

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[edit] Hades

Hades was a God, not a location. His domain was the Underworld, which is the correct synonym for Hell, not Hades.

This contrasts with Hades, please sort it out there. Vagary 08:01, 24 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Hell" doesn't sound right

Bangsian fantasy is the school of fantasy writing that sets the plot wholly or partially in Hell.

Based on the two existing Bangs book articles, this opening sentence sounds just plain wrong. As is pointed out in these articles and in the Bangsian fantasy article itself:

  1. "Hell" clearly has a modern connotation of a Christian afterlife for a selected set of evil people.
  2. Bangs wrote about a universal afterlife, modelled after the Greek Hades.

Does the literary term follow the Hell connotation or the Bangsian approach? The article text seems to be ambiguous and even self-contradicting on this rather critical point. I'm especially interested in the answer because, if "Bangsian fantasy" follows Bangs' writings more than Dante's Inferno, then one of my all-time favorite stories, Philip José Farmer's Riverworld series, is surely one of the best modern takes on this concept, including both the universality of the afterlife and the use of notable historical figures as chief protagonists and antagonists. In fact, it sounds like Farmer's work was inspired directly by Bangs. — Jeff Q 03:31, 9 Sep 2004 (UTC)

I've read that Riverworld was a "direct descendent" of Bangsian fantasy. In any case, Bangsian fantasy deals with the afterlife. Perhaps Hades is, in fact, the best description. -Litefantastic 10:45, 9 Sep 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Bangers Society

A relatively new secret society, the Bangers Society, is based on Bangsian fantasy. It is a society that anyone can join. The members express their opinions through writing (fiction and non-fiction), art, philosophy, film, theatre, and other such things.

Usually there is an annual Bangers Ball that the society holds. The attendants are usually dressed as dead people or ghosts or grim reapers. The Bangers Ball is not usually held on Halloween, but in the spring.

The Bangers Society is usually a society that is formed at universities and colleges. Usually members start by watching Bangsian fantasy films and reading books on the theme. Examples of these sort of things would be: 'The Inferno' by Dante, John Kendrick Bangs' Associated Shades series of books, books by Jean-Paul Sartre, 'Beetlejuice', 'Meet Joe Black', 'Death Takes A Holiday', and tv shows like 'Dead Like Me'. The group will usually review these and have group discussions. The Bangers Society also promotes and encourages its members to express their views through art and literature and by any other means. The Bangers Society is also known to hold seances fairly regularly in order to learn anything new.

[edit] Dragonball?

I'm not 100% sure I understand this concept, but the Dragonball saga features the afterlife very prominently. Would it qualify as a Bangsian fantasy? --Feitclub 00:16, Apr 14, 2005 (UTC)

Nevermind, I forgot the "mostly historical figures" aspect.--Feitclub 00:17, Apr 14, 2005 (UTC)
  • Well, the historical figure aspect is secondary, so maybe we should reconsider this? Jack Cain 08:30, 27 August 2005 (UTC)
    • Also, Disgaea, which also takes place almost entirely in a sort of afterlife. Jack Cain 08:32, 27 August 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Read or Die

This Anime features clones of historical figures prominently, should it be mentioned?

So does Clone High, from which I've just removed the description as "Bangsian". It's not. The most salient feature of Bangsian fantasy is that it takes place in the afterlife, not that it features historical characters (though prominent, it's a secondary feature). 82.92.119.11 28 June 2005 11:11 (UTC)

[edit] Dante wrote fanfiction?

"For his part, Dante's works verge into the territory of fan fiction at times, using not just the dead but famous fictional personae as well." Is this a joke? Please tell me it's a joke.-Silence 07:35, 28 May 2006 (UTC)


I strongly suggest that the above phrase ("For his part, Dante's works verge into the territory of fan fiction at times, using not just the dead but famous fictional personae as well") be removed from this article as it is not directly related to the topic covered in this article, is questionable in its accuracy, and appears to qualify as original research. — James.S 07:35, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sources, anyone?

While the phrase "Bangsian fantasy" can be understood by anyone who has read John Kendrick Bangs, I'm not aware of it being widely used as a descriptive term by critics, scholars, writers, or literary taxonomists. It's not often applied to stories set in an afterlife--perhaps because so few people have read Bangs. Phil Farmer has, and copped the idea of a boatload of famous dead folk interacting for Riverworld. But that's about it. Or have I missed a notable and widely-used term? RLetson 03:52, 25 July 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, it would seem a lot more appropriate to me for there at least to be a more inclusive title, as one of the earliest and most famous titles under this moniker is 'The Divine Comedy', which of course greatly predates Bangs himself. Why not, in the absence of a more agreed-upon neutral term, something like 'Fictional depictions of the afterlife'?Rdr0 (talk) 12:56, 25 April 2008 (UTC)