Empire of Magic - by Geraldine Heng (Paperback)

About the Book

Empire of Magic is expansive in scope, spanning the eleventh to the fifteenth centuries, and detailed in coverage, examining various types of romance--historical, national, popular, chivalric, family, and travel romances, among others--to see how cultural fantasy responds to changing crises, pressures, and demands in a number of different ways. Boldly controversial, theoretically sophisticated, and historically rooted, Empire of Magic is a dramatic restaging of the role romance played in the culture of a period and world in ways that suggest how cultural fantasy still functions for us today.

Book Synopsis

Empire of Magic is expansive in scope, spanning the eleventh to the fifteenth centuries, and detailed in coverage, examining various types of romance -- historical, national, popular, chivalric, family, and travel romances, among others -- to see how cultural fantasy responds to changing crises, pressures, and demands in a number of different ways. Boldly controversial, theoretically sophisticated, and historically rooted, Empire of Magic is a dramatic restaging of the role romance played in the culture of a period and world in ways that suggest how cultural fantasy still functions for us today.

Review Quotes

Empire of Magic is a book that will set the terms of debate on medieval postcolonialism for some time to come. It is a must read.--Laurie A. Finke "Arthuriana"

Empire of Magic is a... fascinating study of medieval romance.-- "Forum for Modern Language Studies"

Empire of Magic is on of the most thorough - and thoroughly engaging - examples to date in the emerging theoretical field of "postcolonial medievalism."... Heng's Empire of Magic is a "must read."-- "e 3w Review of Books"

Fearless and provocative... Heng's scholarship and sweep are admirable. This is a must-read.--Christine Chism "Studies in the Age of Chaucer"

Heng offers a broad-reaching study of the intellectual and cultural origins of medieval romance... She is especially good at isolating and explaining the historical points of contact between West and East.-- "Choice"

Her observations about literature, which are everywhere cogent and show the presence of a subtle and wide-ranging sensibility--John Block Friedman, Kent State University "Speculum"

About the Author

Geraldine Heng is director of medieval studies at the University of Texas at Austin and associate professor of English and Comparative Literature. Her articles have appeared in PMLA, differences, Genders, and the Yale Journal of Criticism.