The Harry Potter Controversy
The “Harry Potter” series, written by J.K. Rowling, is a captivating story about a young wizard and his infinite battle with evil. Many Christians believe that these books are supportive of the occult and they seem to be against every aspect of Harry Potter. However, the books were not written under this belief, but as a remarkable tale, entirely to entertain those with open views. These fantasy filled stories are not based on the belief of the occult, but are incredible adventures of a young wizard who learns many life lessons to overcome difficulties.
The main group in the world that stands unshakable when it comes to Harry Potter is the extremist Christians. The rules of practicing the occult in the bible are very strict. In Deuteronomy 18:10-13 it says, “There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord….” Not only Christians, but schools are turning Harry Potter away. The Harry Potter series is on the top of the banning of books in school systems. “There were 26 challenges to remove the Harry Potter books from bookshelves in 16 states.” said Beverley Becker, assistant director for the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom. (Dianne Dunne) The chance of children being convinced that the behavior in the series is valid is obviously a big worry among adults. Christian parents seem to try and turn their children away from reading Harry Potter. A parent who is concerned with this is Barbara Sanders who says (against the series), “We have a duty, as Christian parents, to nurture our children in a way that they will develop good habits in their lives, so they will grow up to be good citizens as adults. We should guard against subjecting them to things that could possibly harm them, or be against the Word of God….” (Barbara Sanders) Many emotions and arguments have been stimulated for adults having strong feelings against Harry Potter.
J.K. Rowling’s stories took 17 years of her life to create. In 1990, Rowling began to create a story around her fully formed character, Harry Potter. As she had him pictured clearly in her mind, she constructed a full world around him, now known as the Wizarding world. With the series becoming a huge success around the globe, the series came to life on film. (Amy Brantley) It may come to relieve much distress to know that the magic performed in the films and books is purely mechanical and not occultic. Harry and his classmates are born with the ability to perform magic—much as real life kids are born with musical or mathematical ability. (Anne Morse) Many of the pro-Harry Potter Christians stand by J.K. Rowling stating that she does not believe magic exists, and she used it entirely as the plot for her stories. (Kelli Mahoney) With magic in the series, Harry is able to attend school and meet a range of different characters. In "The Sorcerer's Stone" the characters of Ron and Hermione are introduced, who eventually become Harry's best friends throughout the rest of his life. Though these three characters are all very different, and come from various backgrounds, they become inseparable and are able to overcome many difficulties such as a giant Basilisk in the second book, "The Chamber of Secrets." Though Harry meets many dangers in his years at Hogwarts, he always seems to defeat any fear or obstacle he faces, making him a good role model.
Harry Potter's achievements not only in the Wizarding world, but also in our world, are all reflected on the numerous talents of J.K. Rowling. Containing seven books in all, Rowling challenges the reader by enhancing the diction in the novels from each book to the next. As some may not know, the spells that are used in the books originate from Latin words. Such as in "The Goblet of Fire" Harry learns a spell which makes anything being summoned fly directly to the spell caster, only by saying "accio" The word accio is the Latin word meaning "to summon." (N.S. Gill) The series has affected the lifestyle of people worldwide. Interests seem to spark when Harry Potter is concerned, not only is it one of the best selling books over the past few years, but it has encouraged children to read other stories as well. With such a grasping story, children are easily lured away from internet and television. (Emily Woodrum) After reading "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" the series seems to become absolutely addicting. Rowling leaves the stories well enough detailed to where the reader can still maintain a broad sense of imagination. Not only is drama the main mood set, but humor is also common within the books. The character Ron is very likely to lighten up the mood with something funny to say, such as in "The Prisoner of Azkaban," while Harry and Ron are sitting in their Divination class, this conversation occurred, "Professor Trelawney: 'Would anyone like me to help interpret the shadowy realms within their orb?' Ron: 'I don't need help, it's obvious what this means: there's going to be loads of fog tonight.'"
Harry Potter's prime source of difficulties comes from the dark wizard, Lord Voldemort, who purposely murdered Harry's parents when he was just an infant, and failed to kill Harry as well. Rowling shows several conflicts between good and evil, and shows how daring young Potter is to eventually triumph over Voldemort. As if fighting Voldemort is not enough, Harry goes through problems that we face in real life. In many of the novels, Harry, Ron and Hermione struggle to maintain their friendship, and Harry has trouble adjusting to his life with his aunt and uncle, whom he has been forced to live with since his early years and they seem to have no problem with him suffering. The only way he escaped their endless torture is when in "The Sorcerer's Stone," Harry is admitted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After attending the school, he learns many good morals such as courage to overcome fears, a never ending friendship, and the loyalty to stand up for what he believes in.
The true magic presented in the Harry Potter series isn't about spells and wizards, but is about the true talent J.K. Rowling has to help to not just read a story, but to let children benefit from what these stories can teach. The conflict between the extremist Christian groups and the pro-Harry Potter Christians is one that is very complicated, and should not affect the way the children of our age learn. Fantasy is a wonderful way to communicate truths to children. (Belinda Elliott) The series is an incredible story in which many people around the globe have been inspired by and continue to read.
The main group in the world that stands unshakable when it comes to Harry Potter is the extremist Christians. The rules of practicing the occult in the bible are very strict. In Deuteronomy 18:10-13 it says, “There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord….” Not only Christians, but schools are turning Harry Potter away. The Harry Potter series is on the top of the banning of books in school systems. “There were 26 challenges to remove the Harry Potter books from bookshelves in 16 states.” said Beverley Becker, assistant director for the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom. (Dianne Dunne) The chance of children being convinced that the behavior in the series is valid is obviously a big worry among adults. Christian parents seem to try and turn their children away from reading Harry Potter. A parent who is concerned with this is Barbara Sanders who says (against the series), “We have a duty, as Christian parents, to nurture our children in a way that they will develop good habits in their lives, so they will grow up to be good citizens as adults. We should guard against subjecting them to things that could possibly harm them, or be against the Word of God….” (Barbara Sanders) Many emotions and arguments have been stimulated for adults having strong feelings against Harry Potter.
J.K. Rowling’s stories took 17 years of her life to create. In 1990, Rowling began to create a story around her fully formed character, Harry Potter. As she had him pictured clearly in her mind, she constructed a full world around him, now known as the Wizarding world. With the series becoming a huge success around the globe, the series came to life on film. (Amy Brantley) It may come to relieve much distress to know that the magic performed in the films and books is purely mechanical and not occultic. Harry and his classmates are born with the ability to perform magic—much as real life kids are born with musical or mathematical ability. (Anne Morse) Many of the pro-Harry Potter Christians stand by J.K. Rowling stating that she does not believe magic exists, and she used it entirely as the plot for her stories. (Kelli Mahoney) With magic in the series, Harry is able to attend school and meet a range of different characters. In "The Sorcerer's Stone" the characters of Ron and Hermione are introduced, who eventually become Harry's best friends throughout the rest of his life. Though these three characters are all very different, and come from various backgrounds, they become inseparable and are able to overcome many difficulties such as a giant Basilisk in the second book, "The Chamber of Secrets." Though Harry meets many dangers in his years at Hogwarts, he always seems to defeat any fear or obstacle he faces, making him a good role model.
Harry Potter's achievements not only in the Wizarding world, but also in our world, are all reflected on the numerous talents of J.K. Rowling. Containing seven books in all, Rowling challenges the reader by enhancing the diction in the novels from each book to the next. As some may not know, the spells that are used in the books originate from Latin words. Such as in "The Goblet of Fire" Harry learns a spell which makes anything being summoned fly directly to the spell caster, only by saying "accio" The word accio is the Latin word meaning "to summon." (N.S. Gill) The series has affected the lifestyle of people worldwide. Interests seem to spark when Harry Potter is concerned, not only is it one of the best selling books over the past few years, but it has encouraged children to read other stories as well. With such a grasping story, children are easily lured away from internet and television. (Emily Woodrum) After reading "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" the series seems to become absolutely addicting. Rowling leaves the stories well enough detailed to where the reader can still maintain a broad sense of imagination. Not only is drama the main mood set, but humor is also common within the books. The character Ron is very likely to lighten up the mood with something funny to say, such as in "The Prisoner of Azkaban," while Harry and Ron are sitting in their Divination class, this conversation occurred, "Professor Trelawney: 'Would anyone like me to help interpret the shadowy realms within their orb?' Ron: 'I don't need help, it's obvious what this means: there's going to be loads of fog tonight.'"
Harry Potter's prime source of difficulties comes from the dark wizard, Lord Voldemort, who purposely murdered Harry's parents when he was just an infant, and failed to kill Harry as well. Rowling shows several conflicts between good and evil, and shows how daring young Potter is to eventually triumph over Voldemort. As if fighting Voldemort is not enough, Harry goes through problems that we face in real life. In many of the novels, Harry, Ron and Hermione struggle to maintain their friendship, and Harry has trouble adjusting to his life with his aunt and uncle, whom he has been forced to live with since his early years and they seem to have no problem with him suffering. The only way he escaped their endless torture is when in "The Sorcerer's Stone," Harry is admitted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After attending the school, he learns many good morals such as courage to overcome fears, a never ending friendship, and the loyalty to stand up for what he believes in.
The true magic presented in the Harry Potter series isn't about spells and wizards, but is about the true talent J.K. Rowling has to help to not just read a story, but to let children benefit from what these stories can teach. The conflict between the extremist Christian groups and the pro-Harry Potter Christians is one that is very complicated, and should not affect the way the children of our age learn. Fantasy is a wonderful way to communicate truths to children. (Belinda Elliott) The series is an incredible story in which many people around the globe have been inspired by and continue to read.
Works Cited
Brantley, Amy. "The Road to Becoming One of the Richest Women in the World." Associated Content. 2007.
Dunne, Diane. "Look Out Harry Potter! -Book Banning Heats Up." Education World. 2000.
Elliott, Belinda. "Harry Potter: Harmless Christian Novel or Doorway to the Occult?" Christian Broadcasting Network. 2009.
Gill, N.S. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Latin Spells and Charms." The New York Times Company. 2009.
Mahoney, Kelli. "Should Christian Teens Be Reading 'Harry Potter'?" The New York Times. 2009.
Morse, Anne. "The Potter Magic." Christian Broadcasting Network. 2009.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. London: Bloomsbury, 1997.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. New York: Scholastic, 1999.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. New York: Scholastic, 1999.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. New York: Scholastic Press, 2000.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. New York: Scholastic Press, 2003.
Sanders, Barbara. "Harry Potter- The Controversy." Barbara Entourages. 2004.
TeSlaa, Shari, ed. True Images: The Bible for Teen Girls. Michigan: Zondervan, 2003.
Ryan Fortune.
April 16, 2009.
