Culture Watch
In this issue:
What Makes Harry Sell? - Page Two
These are profoundly moral books. They bring up questions about friendship and loyalty and honesty in ways with which children can readily identify. Rowling keeps us on the hook by creating all sorts of possible foes for Harry. Some are true enemies who seem at first like friends, and some turn out to have been on the right side all along despite seeming ominous initially. While Voldemort and his crew are irredeemably black, there are also characters that are shades of gray, and even Harry himself is refreshingly imperfect despite his good intentions.
The author's depiction of Hogwarts is a delicious send-up of a British public (i.e. private) school, with all its rules and traditions and bullying and eccentrics on the faculty. At the same time, it is a haven for the young Harry, who considers it his true home.
Those of us who have known and loved an 11-year-old boy or two may suspect Ms. Rowling of channeling one. At the very least, anyone who can describe the moment when Harry thrusts his wand up the nose of a rampaging troll knows her audience. The book is full of little nods to pre-pubescent, gross-out tastes. If things like vomit-flavored jelly beans disgust you deeply, you'd be well-advised to put the book down now.
Some of the most wonderful bits of the books are Rowling's endlessly inventive games and tricks. Wizard Chess, for one: the pieces move themselves where instructed, and comment on the player's skill as they do so. They decapitate or topple each other as real warriors would do. At the end of the game, the players can always re-constitute the pieces by pointing a wand and commanding: "Repario!" In Harry's world, portraits move and talk; chocolate frogs hop away if you don't eat them fast, and they come with collecting cards of favorite wizards that nod and wink at you.
And then there's Quidditch. This high-flying (literally) game is beloved of the wizarding world, and Harry discovers that he has a real gift for it. Can there be anything quite so appealing to those of us who love sports but excel at none, as to watch the proverbial 98-lb-weakling star in a wild, all-out victory on the Quidditch field (excuse me, the Quidditch pitch)?
The Harry Potter series has raised some hackles among groups who see it as Satanic because it takes place in a world where magic exists. Quite recently I saw an interview with J.K. Rowling in which she stated plainly that this is a story, and that she herself does not believe in magic. She pointed out that in all her travels and meetings with her readers, she has never had one of them tell her that he or she truly believes in magic, let alone Satanism; never has one of them asked her about black magic or Satanic rites. From the children I know, I would have to say that they are on exactly the same page as Ms. Rowling. They regard the books as great fun, an imaginative romp that features a very appealing hero who has a couple of equally appealing friends. More sophisticated adults may interpret this very long coming-of-age series as metaphor, but the children simply enjoy the rattling good adventure.
There is never any doubt here that good will triumph, although as Harry has aged the books have taken on a darker tone. In fact the fifth book has been less than universally applauded. In it, Harry has moved into adolescence, and is beset by difficult circumstances that at times turn him petulant and full of self-pity. The murder of his godfather and some less than pleasant information about his late father are real shockers. It will be interesting to see how the author approaches the next book. I'm betting on yet another change of tone as Harry emerges from the worst of the teen years, and must take up the challenge of dispatching Lord Voldemort.
Rowling has created not just a story, but an entire industry. The endless spin-offs and the movies have all the merchandising glitter that one would expect, but it's the books themselves that should be read. They possess a dimension and resonance and sense of good fun that no toy or movie can touch.
Page One of What Makes Harry Sell?
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