Исследовательская работа "Reading Harry Potter Series"

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Исследовательская работа

«Reading Harry Potter Series»

 Работу выполнила: Данилова Анна,

Ученица 10 класса Б

Руководитель: Хапаева Е.В.,

Учитель английского языка

Смоленск, 2014

 Plan.

Rationale - 3

Chapter I.  Harry Potter series and their mythological context - 6

Chapter II.  Historical reference of the series - 11

Chapter III. Harry Potter series from a moral and educational viewpoint -16

Conclusion - 18

Literature - 20

Rationale

We believe it is useless to deny that there is hardly a person in the world who has never heard of the name “Harry Potter”.  In fact, for the last decade we‘ve been facing such a phenomenon as Potteromania. Teens and children even at an early age read and re-read Harry Potter series, watch films, play computer games, collect posters with favourite characters, imagine themselves being magicians and very often replace the reality to a magic world. Believe it or not, but The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a theme park land in Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure,  was opened in 2010 in America.

What is the secret of such popularity? It is not easy to answer. But many people try to find the explanation in the popularity of the genre the books are written in – this genre comes first in popularity among teenagers all over the world.  But still teens themselves and especially their parents admit that these series are purely entertaining and they tend to miss the hidden message the author J. Rowling has put in her books. May be it is because they are too much obsessed with all that magic interior the books are filled with.

So, is there anything beyond magic in Harry Potter series?

That is the main question we are going to answer carrying out the research paper.

We are sure that still there is something beyond magic in these books. And we’ll  to try to prove it in our research paper.

So, the main aim of our paper is – search for hidden messages in the multilayered  series, examining the books from  different angles.

The objectives that we pursued while working at this paper are the following:

1.  To analyze the series from the mythological viewpoint;

2.To find the historic reference to the world’s history of the 20th century and its most tragic pages such as Nazism;

3. To give a brief analysis of the series from the moral and educational viewpoint in the attempt to  prove that the books are not only entertaining.

Considering the main aim and the objectives we can single out the object, the subject of the investigation and we can formulate the hypothesis of our research.

          The object to investigate – is the genre of fantasy as a phenomenon of culture.

The subject to investigate - is Harry Potter series in search of hidden messages that the books contain beyond magic.

.        The hypothesis of the research is: we claim that Harry Potter series contain a deep philosophic sense which can be revealed only to a serious reader and that examining the books layer after layer we can find the hidden messages J. Rowling has attributed to her books.

 In fact, we are sure that there is something beyond magic in the series. May be it can explain the secret of its popularity.

Speaking about the motive which encouraged me to start this research, it should be mentioned that I belong to the numerous number of fans of the series. Having read the books for many times in the original, having watched the films and having read all the materials relevant to the subject of the investigation, I start to think that  these books are not as simple as they might seem at first sight.  To prove this we can quote J. Rowling herself.

The truth is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution. ― J.K.Rowling  

We suppose that our research can also contribute something new to the general understanding of the series and investigating the books from a bit different perspective we can get not only a teenager but even a more experienced reader interested in them. So, we believe the research will be of some interest not only for the above –mentioned age-group, but for the general public as well.

Chapter I.

Harry Potter series and their mythological context

"I've taken horrible liberties with folklore and mythology, but I'm quite unashamed about that, because British folklore and British mythology is one of the richest folklores in the world, because it's so varied.

 So I feel no compunction about borrowing from that freely, but adding a few things of my own."

 J.Rowling

To begin our research let us dwell on the series themselves.

The Harry Potter books make up the popular series written by author J. K. Rowling. The series spans seven books (one for each of Harry Potter's years at Hogwarts). The books have been made into movies by Warner Bros.

The books concern a wizard called Harry Potter and his journey through Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Each novel corresponds to a year-long period of time, usually in reference to Harry Potter's year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The first book, Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone, was published in 1997 by Bloomsbury in London. The last book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, sold more than 12 million copies in the U.S.

When reading the Harry Potter series, the first thing that occurs to your mind is its resemblance to myths: heroic deeds of the main character, mystic creatures, the fight between the Good and the Evil.

Myths have always attracted people. Legends from all corners of the world, from the dawn on civilization pervade her alternate universe. All of the popular myths pop up, and apart from the obvious wizards and witches, we also come across ghosts, shaggy dogs and werewolves, vampires and giants. Sundry other small fantastical creatures raise their heads, usually in the care of magical creatures section.  Let me quote Neil Gaiman (a  well-known English sci-fi wrieter), who, as we suppose, managed to reveal the real essence of myths.

“I liked myths. They weren't adult stories and they weren't children's stories. They were better than that. They just were.” ―, The Ocean at the End of the Lane..

Now let us try to analyse the series form a mythological context, because we believe that finding such references to myths will give us a better understanding of the characters and their deeds.

1.Harry Potter – the main character of the books.

 Having analysed the series, we found a lot of characters that have the same personality traits. First of all, on the one hand, you can compare Harry to Achilles , the bravest of Greek warriors. Harry’ mother made him invincible by her love like Achilles is made invincible by his mother when she plunged him into the river Styx.

 But at the same time, on the other hand, Harry like Beowulf from an old British tale is a superhero who doesn’t see himself as one. Harry Potter has a lot of hero stereotypes and because of that you can compare him to pretty much any hero of old mythologies and recent stories.

Then, surprisingly, we also found out that Harry’s story and the story of Cinderella and Alice in Wonderland have something in common.  For instance,  Harry like  Cinderella  lives in a  mean family and is rescued magically and like Alice tumbling down the rabbit hole he is going through his life in Hogwarts which is full of surprises just like Wonderland.

So, Harry really does a number of heroic deeds within the series of the books, but he doesn’t consider himself to be a hero. And of course, having escaped from  the cruelties of life in a family, he finds loving friends and  pleasant surroundings and becomes quite happy.

2.Minerva McGonagall – a teacher of Transfiguration in Hogwarts.

We found a Roman goddess named Minerva and the greek counter part Athena who were both fierce goddesses of battle but also brought knowledge like agriculture and horse riding to people. That fits to Minerva McGonagall in our story not only because of the her shared surname. She is also the one that brings knowledge to the students (transfiguration is often described as the hardest of all subjects) but can also be fierce and merciless in punishing the students if they do something  wrong.

So, the character of Minerva McGonagall reflects the image of a Teacher: - a person who gives knowledge, gets her students interested in the subject, strict but fair at the same time.

3.Hogwarts – the school for young magicians.

Hogwarts has similarities to the Greek mountain Olympus where the gods and goddesses lived. It was a high mountain that could not be reached by the human world. Hogwarts also cannot not be reached by humans and is inhabited by the wizards who are also not human like the gods.

We suppose that Joan Rowling implied this comparison  because Hogwarts was the best place to study magic and to trasn – сама допишу предложение, нет идей пока)

4.Dumbledore – the school headmaster and the chief magician.

We think that the character of Dumbledore is closely related to Merlin who was the main character in the Stories of King Arthur. He is described as a very wise and powerful man who mostly stood in the background, never interfering with the story except some few times in major situations. Merlin was often asked for his advice which was highly respected in King Arthur’s castle Camelot. He is also described as a little bit  mad character and a mystery to the people surrounding him.

In general, that is pretty much the same character Dumbledore resembles.

5.  Hagrid – is a half-giant and a half-man.

The Titans in the Greek mythology are creatures of enormous size and strength and are older than the gods (Zeus the first god was a son of the Titans and defeated them in a battle and locked them away under the earth). It is said that the Titans spread chaos and destruction all over the world. They were very close to nature and drew power from it (Zeus could only defeat his father Chronus after he lifted him off the ground. After that Chronus wasn´t invincible anymore). Titans also weren’t that bright.

We think that Hagrid has some similarities with those creatures in his character. He is also of enormous size and strength and is very close to nature ... and not too clever sometimes.

6.Fluffy: - a many-headed  dog.

The dog Cerberus in the Greek mythology had fifty heads and was guarding the entrance of Hades, the underworld. Fluffy is guarding the Trapdoor and has also several heads. Like Cerberus he is a monstrous and veracious watchdog.

There is also the story of Orpheus who tried to rescue his wife from the underworld after she got killed by a snake. He was a great singer and lured Cerberus into sleep with a lullaby played on his harp. This way he could sneak past the giant dog just like Harry does in the final showdown.

We suppose Rowling took her ideas of the appearance of Fluffy from this part of the Greek mythology.

7.Sorting Hat – a magic hat.

The Stone of Destiny that travelled around Europe and Egypt before arriving in Scotland in the ninth century.  This stone is used in coronation ceremony of the Scottish royalty to identify the true king.

 The sorting hat also identifies the students and sorts them to the different houses at Hogwarts.

8.Philosopher’s Stone –a magic artefact.

Legends hold that whoever kisses the Blarney Stone situated in the Castle of Blarney will be given the art of flattery and telling lies.

         The Philosopher’s Stone also gives the one who owns it special abilities; in this case it is not flattery but eternal youth and wealth.

Joseph Campbell, American famous mythologist, writer and lecturer, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion, believed that as a person goes through his life, many psychological challenges will be encountered.  A myth may serve as a guide for successful passing through the stages of one's life. For example, most ancient cultures used rites of passing from  youth  to the adult stage. Later on, a living mythology taught the same person to let go off material possessions and earthly plans as they prepared to die.

Campbell believed that if myths are to continue to fulfill their vital functions in our modern world, they must continually transform and evolve because the older mythologies, untransformed, simply do not address the realities of contemporary life, particularly with regard to the changing cosmological and sociological realities of each new era. ( оформи как цитату и сделай сноску)

So, to sum up everything that has been said we can draw a conclusion that mythological contexts help the author , first of all, to reveal the characters, to understand the motives of their deeds and may be in some cases to predict their actions and , of course, they attribute some authenticity to the genre of fantasy.

Chapter II.

 The Historical Reference of the Series

“I was ripped from my body, I was less than spirit,

 less than the meanest ghost . . . but still, I was alive.”

 Voldemort, “ Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”

We claim that Harry Potter series, besides their mythological context, also possess rather a deep philosophic meaning making allusions to the tragic pages of the world’s history.  Everything: the division of the society, constant clashes between different classes of creatures, the philosophy of the superiority that one of the groups preaches -  all those aspects testify that the story about a young magicians is not that simple.

Analyzing  the chief  villain in the series – Voland De Mort – we came to a conclusion that this character has much in common with notorious Adolf Hitler.

The parallels between Voland De Mort and Adolf Hitler, born worlds apart, the one is history while the other  is literary, a human  being and one with magic, the other kills with guns while the other uses wands. With their distinct beginnings, life, and way of livings, they are  juxtaposed  (?)with their way of thinking.

Childhood

 Surprisingly, but Hitler and Voldemort have uncommon beginnings. Voldemort was deserted by his father leaving him to his mother. Adolf had a strict and brutal father who was very disapproving of him. At the same time Tom’s mother was empathetic and loving towards his son and so was young Adolf’s mother who was always supportive and loving.  What unifies them most in childhood is that they were terribly unhappy, and both felt hatred toward their fathers.

Who pulled the trigger?

 As adolescence came to dwell they slowly found themselves on their road to ambition. Adolescent Tom was excellent in all his academic subjects while at Hogwarts. After learning that his muggle (non-magical) father left her mother (witch) to death and misery, his hatred for muggles grew and blossomed as he finished school.

Adolf, on the other hand, pursued Arts in Vienna after his father died. Unfortunately the artworks that he presented were rejected by the professor. In addition of having a difficult time accepting his rejection, his mother died of cancer. In time he had known that the professor that rejected his artwork was a Jew and so did the doctor that was responsible for his mother’s death, that became the solid ground of his hatred for the Jews. (нужна ссылка) During these stages in both of their lives, they developed a hatred of no other kind that caused the death and misery of many.

        The Path to Terror

 How they acquire supreme power is the question. Tom Riddle was not socially interactive back in Hogwarts but in terms of achievement he clearly caught the eye of his professors and headmaster that he was given an Award for Special Services to the School.

Adolf Hitler enlisted in the military during the World War 1 in Germany. He was said to be not that much of a good mixer and rarely went out with his comrades due to his lack of his social skills. But what he lack socially he made up in field work where he proved himself to be an asset for his bravery.  Though he may have been unpopular with his comrades, his bravery was recognised by his officers. Hitler was awarded Germany’s highest award for bravery—the Iron Cross.

Tom Riddle started to spread his influence at school. He gathered allies who also believe in the same ideology (pureblood).

Hitler worked within the Education Department of the army, his work is to conduct lectures for the returning soldiers about the  dangers of communism, socialism, and pacifism. This was the time that he discovered his talent, weapon, his greatest skill—public oratory.

Tom Riddle also discovered his, as it was shown how he persuaded Professor Slughorn to tell him about the Horcrxes, and when Hepzibah Smith showed him her magical heirlooms. Both are skilled in persuasion. The way they spoke their words were their key to gain loyal supporters.

The Uncanny similarity:

        The Ideology

After gaining masses of audiences and supporters, both tyrants started to spread reign and terror among multitudes. Hitler oppresses the Jews. Voldemort tormented the Muggleborns. Here comes the pivotal parallelism they both share. Adolf Hitler is rumored to be part jewish yet he despises anyone of jewish heritage. He was a brown haired with piercing blue eyes who claimed that blue eyes and blond hair was the master race. Lord Voldemort was not a pureblood himself but his goal was to purify the Wizarding race against muggle-borns, and half-bloods which is where he belongs.

In fact, they promote ideologies that both of them were not a part of.

        Friends and Foes

         Hitler had the Nazi’s at his hand while Voldemort had the Death Eaters at his command. Both strike fear to their enemies and simply followed their orders to kill men that are similar to the men they serve. And then there are the Snatchers who were formed by Lord Voldemort when he took control of the Ministry of Magic. They were an informal group to catch Muggle-borns and Half-bloods. The counterpart of the Snatchers to Hitler’s regime is the Gestapo, Hitler’s secret police who rounds up the jews. They both act in secrecy, spreading fear that they would strike at random. They even kidnap, murder, and terrorize those who speak out against them.

        Ways and Methods of conducting policies

 In order to acquire additional power and finance, Hitler tried to get the support of families with strong German heritage. While Lord Voldemort’s supporters were those from the oldest wizarding families like the Malfoys.

         Voldemort had his own signature, “The Dark Mark” while Hitler used “Swastika” which he adapted from the Hindus. Re-envisioning themselves, Tom Riddle changed his name to Lord Voldemort to get rid of his muggle name, while Adolf Hitler claimed his own title “Der Führer” which means the leader.

In light of everything we strongly believe that they weren’t monsters at birth but they were made one by experience. As Professor Slughorn once told Harry “If a monster existed, it was buried deep within.” Professor Slughorn. J.K.Rowling If only Tom had accepted his heritage and if Adolf dwelt more into the arts, many lives could’ve been spared in fiction and in reality.

They may have different ways of capturing and killing their victims but their common denominator is that with contempt and scorn to their bloodline which they could not change, it became their fuel and catalyst to their plans of global domination.

 By describing the idealistic views on society held by characters of the magical world such as Grindelwald and Salazar Slytherin as well as their similarity to Anti-Semitism, by comparing Voldemort’s life and personality to Hitler’s and finally by comparing both dictators’ regimes, a clearer understanding of Rowling’s use of parallels will arise

To sum up, we can say that fiction literature isn’t pure fiction at all.  Of course, we can’t be   sure that J.K. Rowling may or may not use Hitler’s history as an inspiration for the character of Lord Voldemort. But we are absolutely  sure  that in every fantasy book there is always a glimpse of reality. And with the use of a little literature we have the power in our hands to turn realities and histories that were once forgotten into stories that the next generation will soon to read.  We agree with Henry James, a famous literary critic of the late 19th and early 20th centuries,  once said: “It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature.”

Chapter III

Harry Potter series from a moral and educational viewpoint

"Friendship... is not something you learn in school. But if you haven't learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven't learned anything."

Muhammad Ali

Another essential aspect deserving attention in the Harry Potter series is friendship, since without it nothing would be accomplished.

According to Aristotle, relationships between individuals can be divided  into three types:

- the first is friendship founded on utility;

- the second is friendship based on pleasure;

- the third type, true friendship, is founded on goodness, where the friends admire each other for this quality.

People who expect pleasure and those who expect benefits from their “friends” are at two poles; the true friendship of virtuous people is between these extremes. The best of friendships are based on the virtuous characters of the parties:

“Complete friendship is that of good people, those who are alike in their virtue: they each alike wish good things to each other in so far as they are good, and they are good in themselves.”Harry, Ron and Hermione’s friendship is of this precious type. They appreciate in each other the willingness to put themselves in danger for the sake of their peers. In fact, their friendship began because of such an incident: Ron and Harry rescued Hermione from a mountain troll set loose in the Hogwarts castle by Quirrell. Their readiness to help others, their outspoken sense of justice, their bravery, and resourcefulness are traits that make them both virtuous, and similar. This friendship is indeed of the “complete” type and it is very important for the plot of the novels as well as the children’s moral development, since “everything Harry is able to accomplish is rooted in the collaborative efforts of many”. Tom Morris

From Aristotle’s viewpoint, friendship between young people is a means of keeping them from making mistakes; in the old, for helping them finish jobs they cannot do on their own; and in those in their prime, in assisting them to do noble deeds, since with friends by one’s side, the reasoning process as well as the exploits one undertakes become effortless.

 Aristotle’s description underlines the friendship between Harry, Ron, and Hermione, since they keep each other from making mistakes, help each other out to finalise assignments or undertakings and finally support each other through action and in discussions that analyse issues and lead to correct and virtuous decision-making. The three children constantly collaborate and hold each other in high esteem for their respective strengths. This constant interaction and peer collaboration is just what Piaget, a well-known Swiss developmental psychologist and philosopher, advises as the best avenue to achieve genuine morality. In Piaget’s view, it is not the parents or other adults in the children’s life who advance the child’s moral development. What parents and teachers need to encourage are the norms of co-operation and mutual respect developed in a context of social equality.

To conclude, we shouldn’t deny the fact the Harry Potter series can be appreciated from an educational point of view, besides all the above-mentioned aspects, as well. Love, friendship, support, trust, mutual understanding, sharing, caring – all these moral values are being preached in the books. Of course, the books show the readers what is good and what is bad, teaching us to give a helping hand to people in trouble, to be decent, not to betray friends, not to give up even in the most difficult situations overcoming all the hardships together.

Conclusion

Having analyzed Harry Potter series from a mythological, educational, moral points of view, and finding some historical references between the imaginary  world depicted in the books and the real world, we can draw the following conclusions:

1.   J.K. Rowling is known to have created not only a detailed and captivating story

but also an entirely new magical world in which her characters live. Thus, we see that even though this world is considered fictional, the author creates a world that maintains all the aspects of the real world. She shows that the human values (love, friendship, trust, support etc)   are timeless, universal and relevant in even the magical world.

2.Through her parallels, the author  attempts to teach her readers, who are predominantly children and teenagers, the dangers of bigotry and power hunger as well as the importance of unity, bravery and compassion.

3. Harry Potter series are not aimed only at entertaining the readers, but at educating, bringing up, broadening their minds, preaching essential human values – all in all, educating people’s hearts and souls.

To summarize everything, we should note that magic in the series is something that lies on the surface. But, no doubt, there is much beyond magic there. We suppose we managed to prove it in our research.

So, the aims and objectives of the research are fulfilled and the hypothesis is proved.

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