By the fantastic, I mean something that is exotic, outlandish, or shocking (apparently, it is trying to get our attention), something that actually happened in both the material and mental domains, which are in turn being mediated by the imagination. I will define and nuance this opening definition extensively in what follows. Still, it is worth italicizing immediately. By the fantastic, I mean something that is often very physical, empirical, and sometimes even witnessed by many people. I mean something that possesses its own agency and purpose and often changes history, be it of a single
...more