Reality vs Fantasy



  " Confronting reality by reading fantasy in Harry Potter" 



One thing we cannot deny is the popularity of fantasy in our modern culture. For confirmation, just look at the sales of fantasy video/ computer games, the popularity of the television show The X-Files, or the box-office draw of Star Wars and its related merchandise sales. Why are fantasy items so popular? While some educators write off fantasy as escapist and not sufficiently serious for young people to read (Charnas), others suggest that fantasy replaces the boredom of everyday life with the strange and unusual and provides an escape from the problems of modern society (Sanders). With its appeal to the senses, fantasy may provide adolescents with a feeling of overcoming the odds and being triumphant at a time when their own lives are often a series of "battles" that they lose or never even get to fight.

There is fantasy and good story telling in the Harry Potter books. At the same time, the stories are infused with references to actual occult practices,  some of which I once studied and practiced. But since these practices are mixed in with fantasy, readers may think these practices are fantasy, too.


The hero of the book is a wizard who attends a school, Hogwarts, where he is learning how to use his powers through studying and learning occult arts such as divination, casting spells, astrology, magical potions, and others. He is not a figure of contemporary pagan religions (such as Wicca), nor is he an imaginary wizard, but he is presented as a real boy who comes to the school to hone his innate magical abilities and develop into a practitioner of occult arts.


That Harry was born as a wizard is fantasy (though there are Witches today who believe they are born that way), but several occult arts referred to in the books are part of the real world and are not fantasy. In addition to those already mentioned above, other real occult practices in the books are: the Runes, numerology (arithmancy), and crystal gazing (scyring). The books also refer to alchemy, amulets, charms, contact with the dead, Nicolas Flamel (a real historical alchemist), the Dark Side, and many other occult practices or concepts. Using "good" magic to fight "bad" magic is a major component of the plot.


fiction and fantasy can be powerful vehicles of ideas and beliefs. The issue is not whether readers know the difference between reality and fantasy, but whether they realize that some things in these books are not fantasy and are used by real people in the real world as a good thing. 

Works Cited

Chris Crowe, Katherine T. Bucher and M. Lee Manning. "Young Adult Literature: A Boy's Alternative to Bodice-Rippers. Harry Potter Update: Is It for YAs?" The English Journal 89 (2000): 135-138.

Montenegro, Marcia. THE HARRY POTTER BOOKS: Just Fanasy? February 2007. 14 February 2018 <http://www.christiananswersforthenewage.org/Articles_HarryPotter.html>.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Critical analysis of Tughlaq

Image
Tughlaq Girish Karnad , (born May 19, 1938, Matheran Bombay Presidency [now in Maharashtra], India), Indian playwright, author, actor, and film director whose films and plays, written largely in Kannda, explore the present by way of the past. He has written many plays and ‘Tughlaq’ is very famous. Girish Karnad is a modern Indian playwright who draws the contours of contemporary reality upon the mythological canvas. Drawing the plots of his plays from Indian history, myths and legends, he presents them in such a way that they assume contemporary significance. This is the story about a monarch who ruled over India for more than twenty years. He presented as both wise and foolish, kind and cruel in the play. He made may decision during his kingdom. Such as to transform his capital from Delhi to Daultabad and changing of currency. He killed many people including his mother. At the end he is totally shattered as a ruler. The characters like Aziz, Aazim, the
Read more

A.K Ramanujan

Image
      A.K. Ramanujan as a Translator and/or Translation Theorist Name: Gausvami Surbhi A. SEM: 4 M.A English. Smt. S. B. Gardi, Department of English Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Bhavnagar University. Email: gausvamisurbhi17@gmail.com Mobile: 7490920184 # Abstract:   An attempt has been made in this paper to investigate the theory and methods that A.K Ramanujan used in Translation. A.K. Ramanujan was remarkable translator who helped foreign readers to appreciate the beauty of ancient Indian texts other than the Sanskrit ones. A.K. Ramanujan occupies a unique position among Indian and postcolonial theorists and practitioners of translation.   This paper explores how Ramanujan was well aware of his responsibilities of having to convey the original to the target reader and also of having to strike a balance between the author's interest and his own interest. His task was made all the more difficult when it came to the translation of ancient Tamil or Kann
Read more

Creatures in Harry Potter

Image
   " Magical and Mythical Creatures in Harry Potter" Magical creatures  comprise a colourful and integral aspect of the fictional wizarding world in the  Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. Throughout the seven books of the series, Harry and his friends come across many of these creatures on their adventures, as well as in the Care of Magical Creatures class at Hogwarts. Rowling has also written  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , a guide to the magical beasts found in the series. Mythical creatures played a vital role in Harry Potter. Works Cited Care of Magical Creatures. 17 February 2018 <http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Care_of_Magical_Creatures>. Creatures. 17 February 2018 <https://www.pottermore.com/collection/creatures>. Mythical Creatures In Harry Potter. 17 February 2018 <http://www.harrypotterforseekers.com/symbols/creatures.php>. Pinyerd, Terri. "The Integration of Mythical Cr
Read more