Blog Post 1

 

One genre that Rowling integrates thus far into the Harry Potter series is an epic, specifically that of a quest. As a reader, I am taken on so many different adventures with Harry, Ron, and Hermoine and find myself trying to work through difficult situations and solve problems alongside them. In Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone these three go on a quest, involving several different obstacles, in order to ultimately find the Sorcerer’s Stone before anyone else gets to it. When entering the room with the three headed dog, Rowling writes, “It wasn’t really a tune, but from the first note the beast’s eyes began to droop” (275). This is the first of many obstacles we face on the way to acquiring the stone. Notice, rather than saying Harry, Ron, and Hermoine, I said “we”.  Rowling pulls the audience into the story by allowing us to make connections with the characters and yearn for them to successfully reach their end goal, thus causing us to become more emotionally involved and hang on to every detail along the way. This becomes a quest for the reader as much as it is for the characters and it is Rowling’s ability to captivate me completely in a way that allows me to enter this new and magical world that entices me so much within the first two books.

These two books also contain elements of mystery within them. As a reader I find that the mystery and epic aspects go hand in hand and complement one another in a way that pulls me into the novels. There are many unsolved questions in Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets such as who the heir of Slytherin is, where the Chamber of Secrets is, and what creature is endangering the students. I love the idea of trying to piece subtle hints together to try and figure out the unanswered questions and solve the big mysteries. Rowling drops hits, which, after completing the second book, become clear when they may not have been before. After the first occurrence of finding wringing on the wall Rowland writes,”They’ll catch the manic who did it and have him out of here in no time. I just hope he’s got time to petrify Filch before he’s expelled. I’m only joking- Ron added hastily as Ginny blanched” (146). I have thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity to reread these books because I find it so interesting how cleverly Rowling integrates insights that lead one directly to the answers to the mysteries, such that Ginny is the one who wrote on the wall and opened the Chamber of Secrets. In doing so, Rowling has caused me to pay close attention to small details that may seem insignificant as I search for possible pieces of the puzzles laying blatantly, yet so strategically, within the pages.

Jessica Woeste