Lord Dunsany constructed his fantasy worlds in ways that may provide an alternative model for fantasy fiction, while also prompting deeper reflections on the practice of myth-making (mythopoeia) and the shifting, complex relationship between fantasy and reality.

Dunsany studies the role of the first-person narrator, a narrative device frequently employed by Dunsany to present the fantastic tale as a personal experience and to involve his readers in the story. Finally, it analyses the use of irony in Dunsany’s fiction and its importance in prompting reflections on the nature and role of fantasy literature.

Narrator: Mark Bowen

Listening Length: 00:11:38