Imaginary Animals: The Monstrous, the Wondrous and the Human

by Boria Sax

 Fire-breathing dragons, beautiful mermaids, majestic unicorns, terrifying three-headed dogs—these fantastic creatures have long excited our imagination. Medieval authors placed them in the borders of manuscripts as markers of the boundaries of our understanding. Tales from around the world place these beasts in deserts, deep woods, remote islands, ocean depths, and alternate universes—just out of our reach. And in the sections on the apocalypse in the Bible, they proliferate as the end of time approaches, with horses with heads like lions, dragons, and serpents signaling the destruction of the world. Legends tell us that imaginary animals belong to a primordial time, before everything in the world had names, categories, and conceptual frameworks. In this book, Boria Sax digs into the stories of these fabulous beasts. He shows how, despite their liminal role, imaginary animals like griffins, dog-men, yetis, and more are socially constructed creatures, created through the same complex play of sensuality and imagination as real ones. Tracing the history of imaginary animals from Paleolithic art to their roles in stories such as Harry Potter and even the advent of robotic pets, he reveals that these extraordinary figures help us psychologically—as monsters, they give form to our amorphous fears, while as creatures of wonder, they embody our hopes. Their greatest service, Sax concludes, is to continually challenge our imaginations, directing us beyond the limitations of conventional beliefs and expectations. Featuring over 230 illustrations of a veritable menagerie of fantastical and unreal beasts, Imaginary Animals is a feast for the eyes and the imagination.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Animals, Mythology, Art, Folklore

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

I first became interested in the literature of animals around the end of the 1980's, not terribly long after I had obtained my PhD in German and intellectual history. I was feeling frustrated in my search for an academic job and even study of literature. By accident, I came across an encyclopedia of animals that had been written in the early nineteenth century. There, without any self-consciousness, was a new world of romance and adventure, filled with turkeys that spoke Arabic, beavers that build like architects, and dogs that solve murders. Within a few months, I had junked my previous research and devoted my studies to these texts.

Today, I shudder how nervy the switch was for a destitute young scholar, who, despite one book and several articles, had not managed to obtain any steady job except mopping floors. But soon I had managed to publish two books on animals in literature, The Frog King (1990) and The Parliament of Animals (1992). Around 1995, I founded Nature in Legend and Story (NILAS, Inc.), an organization that combines storytelling and scholarship. It was initially, a sort of rag-tag band of intellectual adventurers who loved literature but could not find a niche in the scholarly world. We put together a few conferences, which generated a lot of excitement among the few who attended, but little notice in academia or in what they sometimes call "the real world."

From fables and anecdotes, I moved to mythology, and published The Serpent and the Swan (1997), a study of animal bride tales from around the world. This was followed by many further publications including an examination of the darker side of animal studies, Animals in the Third Reich (2000), and a sort of compendium, The Mythical Zoo (2002), and a cultural history of corvids entitled Crow (2003). My most recent book is City of Ravens: London, its Tower and its Famous Ravens (2011), and Imaginary Animals will be published soon by Reaktion Books in London.

When I embarked on the study of animals in myth and literature, even graduate students did not have to mention a few dozen books just to show that they had read them. In barely more than a couple decades, the literature on human-animal relations has grown enormously in both quantity and sophistication. NILAS, I am proud to say, has become a well established organization, which has sponsored two highly successful conferences together with ISAZ.

But as the study of animals, what I like to call "totemic literature," becomes more of a standard feature of academic programs, I fear that something may be lost. It is now just a little too easy to discourse about the "social construction" and the "transgression" of "boundaries" between animals and human beings. Even as I admire the subtlety of such analysis, I sometimes find myself thinking, "So what?"

Having been there close to the beginning, part of my role is now to preserve some the sensuous immediacy, with that filled the study of animals in literature when it was still a novelty. That sort of "poetry" is not simply a luxury in our intellectual pursuits. With such developments as cloning, genetic engineering, and the massive destruction of natural habitats, we face crises so unprecedented that traditional philosophies, from utilitarianism to deep ecology, can offer us precious little guidance. The possibilities are so overwhelming, that we hardly even know what questions to ask. But neither, I am sure, did the fugitive who once encountered a mermaid in the middle of the woods.

Reviews

[Eli]

Not planning to finish this one. Some really interesting history about like, the thin veil between symbolism and belief in creatures like unicorns, but also kind of poor academic work in terms of drawing broad generalizations about humanity's relationship with other animals based on a pretty culturally narrow lens termed "the west". Too bad because definitely a big interest of mine but I don't really trust the analysis because it feels like the author is grasping at whatever sources support his beliefs about human-animal relationships.

[Chase · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bit more philosophical than I was looking for. It contains a lot of information on history and art and is lavishly illustrated. A decent addition to my cryptozoology collection.

[Elisabetta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice read, an essay on the historical develpemnt of imaginary animals through history

[Achtung Englander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly the name Boria Sax is perfect for the nature of the book subject - imaginary animals. Boria Sax sounds like a character right out of Harry Potter.

The book reads like a PhD thesis on imaginary animals. Sax colours his theory with some pretty sophisticated sentences that could put off many from reading this. Although not for the faint of heart Sax has a lot of interesting things to say about the origins of where, why and how imaginary animals came into being and whether we have the right to even call them "imaginary". There is some pretty deep stuff here but, for me, the book really shone when he got into the subject of how these animals made it into the Zeitgeist in numerous times of human history and how these animals metamorphosed from being one thing for some people, to another thing, for others.

The book has some amazing pictures and templates that truly takes this book into the 4 or 5 star category. To be honest, without those pictures, this book is pretty dry. It is a great coffee table book and definitely worth a read, but just be warned....be sure to have your dictionary at the ready !. This is not a light read by any stretch of the imagination.

[Mouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down, one of the best books I've read in years. This is one of those eclectic books that goes great on a coffee table, den, or simply in your library. However, it's not one of those books that you simply just put away. It should be read, preferably with hot cocoa, coffee, or wine if that's your thing. It's both relaxing and stimulating. It's artsy, witty, philosophical, and meaty. Anyone interested in folklore, religion, politics, symbolism, heraldry, or history will enjoy this book. If you have any interest in animals, both real and of legend then you will enjoy delving into this book. Did Unicorns exist? Well according to many they did. Dragons, Chimera, Bigfoot, Yeti even the good ol' Chupacabra, they're all featured in this book but in the end is it man that is the strangest creature of all?

[Kerfe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a visual and literary treasure. If you are at all interested in mythology and the fantastic breadth of the human imagination, many hours of delight await. Profusely illustrated with historical artwork. Also thoughtful on the relations between humans and animals.

[Keri · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a book that I had to read for class it was a great book to read!! I learned so much! Any one who has an interest in the world of magical animals should read this book.