Harry Potter is Love

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean it is not real?” (Albus Dumbledore, J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Ch 35, p. 723, US edition)

Harry Potter is a boy wizard with glasses, his father’s jet black hair, his mother’s green eyes, a lightning bolt scar on his forehead, and amazing powers that “the Dark Lord knows not”.  His story is told in ten books and one short story; there are the seven main novels, three related books which take place in the same magical world, and a short story prequel that is available online.

To me, Harry Potter is so much more than just pages and ink; it is another world into which one can be transported — another universe to explore, from which I can learn valuable truths about our own world.  J. K. Rowling has tapped into the true magic that does exist in this world:  the ability of the storyteller to transport her reader into the realm of imagination.

Reading the Harry Potter series (and waiting for the next book to come out) has been and continues to be an important part of my life.  I started reading the books when I was in sixth grade (so I must have been about eleven years old) and the most recent book was released in December of 2008, when I was in my third year of college.  Through all this time and even now, no matter what new challenges and circumstances life contains, Harry is still there.  The story inspires me and gives me hope.  Reading about characters who are brave enough to stand up against the most evil wizard of all time makes me feel that I can also face any challenges which come my way.  Reading about the characters who do the right thing, even when doing the right thing will put them in danger, inspires me to do the right thing, even if I am afraid.

It is for these reasons that I have added this page to my blog.  My already great love of reading and obsession with books takes on an added level of intensity when Harry Potter is the topic.  It is my hope that my writing about Harry will be a testament to the great impact that these books have had on my life.

Morality in the Harry Potter books

“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” (Albus Dumbledore, J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Ch 18, p. 333, US edition)

As an epic battle between good and evil, the Harry Potter series contains characters who must make important decisions in difficult situations.  We study their actions in detail and we especially look at what they do when they are placed in harm’s way.  As Professor Dumbledore points out, in the end of Goblet of Fire, there are times when we have to choose between what is right and what is easy; even in difficult times (perhaps especially in them) it is important to do the right thing.

I have learned a lot in life from reading the Harry Potter books.  The characters in these books have taught me and made me think.  As I read about their actions, I have hope that if humans can write about characters doing good things, then we must have within us the ability to understand what is right and wrong and also a willingness to do what is right.  As I read about Harry facing terrible danger and still doing the right thing, it gives me the courage and determination to also do the right thing.

Equal Rights

An important theme in the series is the importance of equal rights and the immorality of discrimination.  Whether one is a werewolf, Muggle-born, part-human, or a witch who likes to  read Hogwarts, a History for fun—no matter who a person is—every person deserves to have equal rights.  Harry, due to his fame, has the opportunity in the series to befriend some of the more popular students in the school and to use his fame to gain power, but he realizes that it is important to judge people based upon their character.  He stands by his friends, even though they are considered outcasts by some in the wizarding world.

Religion and Secularism in the Harry Potter books

• “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34KJV)
  • Quoted in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as the inscription on the tomb of Kendra Dumbledore and her daughter Ariana (page 325, US edition, hardcover)
• “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.”  (1 Corinthians 15:26KJV)
  • Quoted in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as the inscription on the tomb of James Potter and Lily Potter, Harry’s parents (page 328, US edition, hardcover)

Religion in Harry Potter is an interesting subject to discuss.  God is never explicitly mentioned and readers are never given messages suggesting conversion to the author’s faith; however, it is certain that the author was very much inspired by her religious beliefs and that this greatly affected the story she created.

While religious themes are present throughout the Harry Potter series, the society represented is also one in which religion is not directly mentioned often.  It is a secular society and the main characters place great importance on people’s actions and willingness to do the right thing.  The idea that this motivation to do the right thing was inspired by religion is not mentioned, but rather the characters show empathy and sympathy for one another.

Many of the ideas in the story have layers of meaning, with connections to Christianity and also connections to humanity in general.

The Canon

• The seven novels:

1. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
2. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
6. Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

• Harry-Potter related works:
  • Newt Scamander’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
  • Kennilworthy Whisp’s Quidditch Through the Ages
  • The Tales of Beedle the Bard
  • The Harry Potter Prequel
• J. K. Rowling’s content on Pottermore
• Information about the series revealed by J. K. Rowling

Related Reading by J. K. Rowling

• J. K. Rowling’s official website
• The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination
  • This is J. K. Rowling’s Commencement Address at Harvard University, June 2008.
• J. K. Rowling receives the Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award
  • Article (in Danish) with a video of her speech (in English)
• The Harry Potter prequel (written for charity)
  • Rowing’s handwritten version (with thanks to Mugglenet): Page 1; Page 2
  • Typed version (thanks to Mugglenet) [The typed story is no longer there.  I am not sure why.  It may have something do to with the fact that Mugglenet updated their site.]
  • Typed version (thanks to Delajoker at Copied Text)
  • Typed version (thanks to Wendy Boswell at Crushable)

The Commentary on the Canon:  Related Items by Fans

• Anelli, Melissa
  • Harry, A History: The True Story of a Boy Wizard, His Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon
    • Harry, A History website
• The Harry Potter Alliance:  ”The Weapon We Have is Love”
  • A Harry-Potter-inspired charity that focuses on literacy, equality, and human rights.
• The Leaky Cauldron:  “The Most Trusted Name in Potter”
• Mugglenet:  ”The World’s #1 Harry Potter Site”
  • MuggleCast
    • Episodes (audio)
    • Transcripts
  • Mugglenet.com Staff (books)
    • Mugglenet.com’s What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7: Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Fall in Love and How Will the Adventure Finally End (by Ben Schoen, Emerson Spartz, Andry Gorden, Gretchen Stull, and Jamie Lawrence)
    • Mugglenet.com’s Harry Potter Should Have Died: Controversial Views from the #1 Fan Site (by Emerson Spartz and Ben Schoen)
• Dear Mr. Potter
  • Website with letters from Harry Potter fans who write about how the book series has affected their lives.
  • There is a book of the same name, edited by Lily Zalon, which includes some of the letters that were submitted.  All proceeds go to The Harry Potter Alliance.

I solemnly swear that I am up to no good,

Ani Sharmin