blog # 3 Christopher Day

Thought on the End of the Harry potter series .

I felt that J.K.Rowling did a good job to ending these series that had be building up to the end for a very long time and beloved by so many fans. there are other ways she could of end it but i do not feel that anyone of them would of be particularly better than the way she had chosen to end it. i feel see did what was need with the end and was able to answer almost all if not all of the loss types we had throughout the series.

One of the part of the end i particularly like was the way she used the camping within the last book. To real being us to the the end of the book. she use real play on and build up our emotion like are fear. along with real focusing on the friendship between the three. The way she made us feel engulfed in war with the camping seen without even have that much conflict during them. I felt the way she use and treated the camping see real made the end ten time better.

I also really like the way she brought dumbledore down from the pertistal she was on. real humanized him and complicated his character. I Real like that she did this with this character because she probably could of got away with out do it. By doing this she made him into a better character. she humanized him and allow us to see in a more complex and integrate light something i real like that she did with in her books. understand his past only made what he did so much better.

"Always"

The ending of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series is perhaps the most controversial portion of the series as a whole. I’m personally a fan of the ending and am particularly fond of “The Prince’s Tale,” which is my favorite chapter of any of the books. I love Snape as a character, and I always wondered if Rowling was concealing information about him that may or may not change readers’ perceptions of him. His history with Lily Evans and consequential protection of Harry adds an entirely new facet to his character — one that makes sense and enhances Snape as a character.

In this chapter, we see how much Snape truly loves Lily; upon learning about Lily’s death, Snape wishes he himself were dead, and his patronus still takes the form of a doe. “From the tip of his wand bust the silver doe: She landed on the office floor, bounded once across the office, and soared out of the window” (687).

We had an interesting conversation in class about whether or not Snape loves Harry, and I see this chapter in particular as proof that he does — if for no other reason than the fact he is Lily’s son. “‘ I have spied for you and lied for you, put myself in mortal danger for you. Everything was supposed to be to keep Lily Potter’s son safe. Now you tell me you have been raising him like a pig for slaughter — ’” (687). Throughout the series, Rowling has been shaping Snape as a particularly multifaceted character, and the ending of the series reveals just how much depth Snape carries with him in both his past and present.

Extra Credit Blog Post, Prompt #3

One of the major themes of Harry Potter is dealing with prejudice. The main source of prejudice in the wizarding world is the concept of full-blood wizard supremacy but other characters face prejudice for different reasons. One of these characters is Luna Lovegood. Luna faces prejudice of the more social kind: nobody wants to interact with her because they believe that she is too weird and strange.

            In my opinion, it could be argued that Luna faces a degree of ableism (prejudice against disabled people). Luna isn’t disabled (as far as we know, I suppose) but the way she is treated by other students somewhat reflects the issue. Other students constantly call Luna “loony” or “crazy” as if she were mentally ill. They judge the fact that she is in Ravenclaw because they do not believe she is intelligent enough.

            However, as the series goes on, the reader sees that Luna is quite insightful. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, she is able to cheer up Harry when nobody else could. Her knowledge of death makes her more emotionally mature than other students in that instance.

            Luna herself did not exactly overcome prejudice. Rather, others are able to let go of their prejudice against Luna. In Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, Ron states that “she’s grown on me, Luna. I know she’s insane but it’s in a good way” (Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, chp. 19). Luna is finally able to have friends when the other students realizes that her being “weird” or even “crazy” isn’t a bad thing.

Complexity of Character

                   One of the major themes that I see in the Harry Potter book is complexity of character- that is to say, no one is entirely good or entirely bad. People are complex; they are not a certain set of their actions, but a combination of their decisions, situations, and character. One character who we see develop in a way that embodies this is Albus Dumbledore. Like Harry, the reader starts out seeing Dumbledore as an almost flawless character. He guides Harry and gives him answers and what some would call preferential treatment- but then again, what other twelve year old in the school killed a basilisk? Throughout the story, we see Dumbledore begin to change. In the fifth book, we see him ignore Harry, but after this stint of the cold shoulder is over, we see his empathy and caring for Harry grow. 

“I feel I owe you another explanation Harry," said Dumbledore hesitantly. "You may, perhaps, wondered why I never chose you as a prefect? I must confess...that I rather thought...you had enough responsibility to be going on with."

Harry looked up at him and saw a tear trickling down Dumbledore's face into his long silver beard.”

                   In addition to the development of empathy in Albus Dumbledore, we see his back story revealed and his complexity grow. From his involvement with dark wizard Grindlewald to the death of his sister, we see that Dumbledore is not the perfect man he has been seen as. Many other characters such as Snape, James Potter, and Neville have had complex back stories revealed, but none changed my view of a character as much as that of Albus Dumbledore. 

Extra Blog #2

                One of the best criticisms of Rowling's writing is that the character of Cho Chang is a racist stereotype. While I love Rowling, her writing here is very problematic. First, let's look at the stereotypes that Cho portrays. People of Asian descent are often expected to be smart, and excessively so. Of course, the only Asian at Hogwarts would be put into Ravenclaw house, where all of the smart people go (speaking generally, of course). Cho is also portrayed as fairly quiet, though charming girl: another stereotype. Rowling's writing also plays into the cultural narrative that sexualizes women of Asian descent, but also expects them to feel lucky for the attention that they get, which is a widespread narrative for women in general. Poet Rachel Rostad does a great job of elaborating on this in her poem "To JK Rowling, from Cho Chang." It is also pointed out that the name Cho Chang is made of two surnames, both Korean. She says this would be like calling a Frenchman "Garcia Rodriguez." This seems to be an area where Rowling definitely could have improved her writing. While I don't peg Rowling as a racist, she should have included more diversity in her books and they should have included more in the movies as well. (A personal favorite of mine is Hermione as a Black woman- it makes sense!"

Blog Post 3- The End

      The end of the Harry Potter series was not perfect, but it was still beautiful and wonderful. The most beautiful moment to me was when Harry was walking into the forest, surrounded by all of the friends and family who had passed on before him. I still cry when I read that passage, particularly the interaction between Harry and James. "You'll stay with me? 'Until the very end,' said James." To see someone so completely at peace with the worst thing that could happen to him is truly marvelous. It really shows the transformation of Harry from a confused eleven year old boy into a mature young man. 

          My feelings about Dumbledore were drastically changed in the last book. Previous to this, I had fallen into the same trap as Harry, wanting to believe that Dumbledore was this perfect figure. But it is important to realize here that no one is either entirely good or entirely bad. Everyone is complex, and we certainly learn this about Dumbledore. 

This Isn't Hogwarts!

             Hank Green, most known for being one half of YouTube's vlogbrothers channel, is, like many of us, a Harry Potter fan. He has written and performed several songs about Harry Potter; this is actually what brought the vlogbrothers out of the depths of YouTube and to the ever-so-important recommended section. One of the songs that Hank has written is called This Isn't Hogwarts!, a rock piece about the struggles of a self-proclaimed wizard attending public school- or rather, someone who wishes they were at Hogwarts rather than public school. He even says in the chorus, "public school ain't no place for a wizard" (it is, apparently, a place for double negatives). 

           This song echoes the feelings of many Harry Potter fans. I know that for myself and many others, the wizarding world provided an escape from our lives. Many of us were bullied at school, abused at home, had depression, or had a number of other problems. Hank says "They don't put you in Hufflepuff if you're not cool / Instead they sort you in the parking lot after school." Firstly, as a Hufflepuff, I take offense the uncool comment. But that is neither here nor there. Hank puts into words in this song a feeling that many in the community have; this place isn't for us. This song became somewhat of an anthem for some, including myself, who felt like they didn't belong in the Muggle world. This isn't Hogwarts. 

Extra Blog Option 1: "Draw my Life - Harry Potter" and "Ron's Parents"

1.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yan9wW6FwA0 

One of the videos I chose to write about is “DRAW MY LIFE - Harry Potter.” The “Draw my Life” idea was something a lot of YouTubers did a couple years ago, so some guys decided to take part in this phase and they created a series of videos about the lives of fictional characters. This video is a creative and musical retelling of Harry Potter’s life in a very short 4 minutes. Despite the length, it is a very fun summary of the books and the drawing add a lot quirky visuals that help convey iconic scenes from the books. Though it obviously leaves a lot out, it does deal with some of the more major plot points as well as some minor details, such as the abuse that Harry endured while staying with the Dursley’s or all the various ways that Voldemort tried to regain his power. The main focus of the video is obviously Harry and it’s remains very accurate to his character with the lyrics describing his love for Hogwarts, his mischievous misadventures, and how he lost so many friends. It even mentions how he believed that the friends he lost we much braver than he himself. The chorus lyrics sort of sum up Harry’s life quite well too: “I’m the boy who lived, I’m the boy who lived. And oh what a life it’s been.” It’s simple, but very fitting since Harry had accomplished so much, but he’d also been through a lot of hardships and lost a lot of the people closest to him along the way.

2.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBzpymVj5Po

I didn’t know we’d be watching Potter Puppet Pals in class, but I still wanted to talk about this video as well. The Potter Puppet Pals is known for being a hilarious parody of the series, and this video is know different. All of the puppet characters are zany, exaggerated versions of their literary counterparts, with Ron being of lower intelligence and Harry being a slightly arrogant hothead who often boasts about his fame. This video shows Ron writing a letter to his parents, which of course upsets Harry because he obviously doesn’t have any parents to write to, so he takes his anger out on Ron. This is something we see this quite often in the books, with Harry getting offended or upset whenever someone mentions his parents. He envies everyone else because they have something he doesn’t: a family. Of course, the video is a more playful take on it, though we all know why it’s a touchy subject for Harry. In the video, Harry also mentions how he can afford things and “buy happiness” and how Ron can’t. This brings up one of Ron’s insecurities that he faces in the book, which is his family’s low income that he often feels embarrassed about. Harry then makes Ron sing to him and convinces himself that fame and money is all he needs to be happy. However, at the very end Ron asks Harry if he wants to join his family for the holiday and Harry quick agrees, proving the fact that Harry still desperately wants a family, because that really is one of the only things that could bring him true happiness.

Extra Credit Blog - Option 1: A Very Potter Musical

Oh my goodness. What a hysterically creative piece of work this is, putting an entirely new spin on Rowling's original characters. Although the same people and general characteristics are kept, this "Very Potter Musical" has be literally rolling (no pun intended). The way that the song writers are able to intertwine aspects of the books into the lyrics of the song in such humorous ways makes this beyond entertaining.

It criticizes the original story slightly, because of the different portrayals it gives certain characters (i.e. Harry is cocky, Ginny is terribly annoying, etc.) On the contrary, it elaborates Harry's excitement to return to Hogwarts, even if it's a little bit differently than stated in the book.

I asked my roommate who is a total not Harry Potter person (never read the books, never watched the movies... yeah, she's one of those) to watch a quick clip of the video to see if her general reaction was comparable to that of the class's earlier today, thinking that this idea was laughable for almost any human being. Well, it got her to stifle a few giggles as well, and I felt accomplished knowing that I made a total muggle appreciate at least a bit of Harry Potter fandom.

The thing with Harry Potter fandom is this - everybody knows the general story, whether they've sat down to read the books or not; a magical world, the boy who lived, and so on. But with this fandom, there's this ability to reach every age group. Sure, the story goes to all different ages as it is, but the inappropriate puns or the puppets hopping up and down entertain another vast majority of people, and not just the magic-seeking half-bloods that are most drawn to the series. A special shout out to the writers of "A Very Potter Musical"... keep the creativity coming!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmwM_AKeMCk

In the final book, we were all aware that there would be death and destruction more than before. Nothing could have prepared me for the death that truly hit a little too close to home, Fred's death is agonizing to me. My heart always gets ripped out of my chest every time I read it. There is no avoiding it, no new changes, or even the avoidance of it happening at all. I am a twin, identical and as of right now the more dominate twin. My sister Tara and I couldn't be closer. There is a bond that comes with being a twin. It is different than having a sibling. This bond can't be explained easily, she is my person. I can call her and she always picks up. My sister has always wanted to travel, when she did she came back with Meningitis, she was so sick, we almost lost her. It rocked my world, she laughs now because I turned into the mother bear. We always laugh together and if she gets into trouble I get into trouble. We do almost everything together.
I know when she has a bad day, I am always in her corner. With Fred and George showing you the love they have for each other in ways of, always being together and always backing each other up whether or not they agree with each other. When George was injured at the start of Deathly Hallows you could see the fear in George's eyes.
When people talk about twins they are always talking about both. It is never just one it is always both. That is even what happens in this book. When someone talks about Tara they always ask about me. Think of a twin you know, do you think of the other as well?
I can't help but tear up trying to write this blog post. Every time I think of my life without Tara, my heart stops and I can't continue to think this way. All twins fight just like siblings but we laugh by the end of it and apologize. If there was one thing I could change about the Harry Potter series this would be it. Nothing is more heart breaking than loosing someone that you have a bond with, and a bond with a twin starts before your first breathe and never dies. In a way this is a life that never truly dies.

Sarah Barr Blog #3

Blog #3

            The ending of this series was so epic, it truly was.  The whole time I was reading the last book I couldn’t put it down.  I could feel the excitement build in me and I just couldn’t stop reading.  With that being said however, I found books 5 and 6 to be exceptionally hard to get all the way through and in fact, I technically did not read all of them.  At book 5, I found myself getting bored and annoyed not only with Professor Umbridge, but also with Harry Potter.  Harry said it himself, she’s evil, she’s pure evil and as I was reading, the way she held herself made me want to slap her across the face.  (This I realize is such a Muggle thing to say, as in the wizarding world you don’t fight with your body but with magic, I just can’t help the reaction.)  So, all the excitement for me was in the very last book.  Even at the very end of the last book, while there was so much death all around Harry, I couldn’t help but feel the thrill of being victorious, the strength in being united against evil, and the truthfulness of the power of love.  For me, the way that Rowling wrote the battle scene to the end of the book was so powerful and had such an impact on my emotions as a reader. 

            Some moments in particular that were poignant for me were when Dobby died, when Harry Potter is going through Snape’s memories, and when he talks to his paremts and Lupin and Sirius before he walks to his death.  Dobby is such an innocent character, and I believe his gratitude and therefore his love for Harry is just as strong as the love Harry’s parents, Lupin and Sirius have for him.  While all characters who died essentially died for Harry and the cause he stood for, Dobby stood in the way of death for Harry.  Multiple times he chooses to save Harry even though he knows that doing so puts himself in danger.  Reading about the way the Dobby dies in Harry’s arms almost made me cry.  As for the recollection of Snape’s memories, it tugged at my heart to see how much he loved Lily Potter.  My heart naturally is pulled to those who are misunderstood, who long for a love that is out of their reach.  To know and see the way that he loved Lily made my heart break for him.  And finally, when Harry talked to his parents as he was walking through the forest, I thought of what it would be like to live your whole life, knowing that your parents sacrificed themselves so that you could live. 

            Two characters that stood out to me were Snape and Dumbledore.  Snape’s character obviously tugged at my heart as I read about his memories.  To see how strong his love was for Lily, even in death, was so powerful, and knowing the way he died was especially hard.  Previously, as I read the other books, I could feel the hate of Snap with Harry, but after reading the last book my heart completely went out to him.  My respect for Dumbledore more than doubled upon reading the last book.  His ability to be 10 steps ahead of everyone else is amazing, unparalleled.  One quick example is the gifts he left for Harry, Ron and Hermione.  He knew exactly what they needed and when they would need them. 

Extra Credit Blog Post, Prompt #2

There have been a wide variety of reactions to JK Rowling’s revelation about Dumbledore’s sexuality. Not all of these reactions have been positive. Unfortunately, there are plenty of homophobes upset that Dumbledore was gay. However, this is not the negative reaction I will be discussing.

            In an article for Tor for Banned Books week, Emily Asher-Perrin pointed out issues people within the LGBTQA had with this revelation. She states that “there have been [..] many dissenters in the LGBTQA community since 2007’s announcement. The questions being asked of Rowling are sound ones: Why did she wait so long to tell us? Why was it never mentioned in the books at all? What kind of message does that send to fans and readers everywhere?” (“Albus Dumbledore Didn’t Come Out at the Right Time (According to Everyone)”). Asher-Perrin elaborates on this message by stating that “many non-straight youths were asking the question over and over: Why isn’t there one kid at Hogwarts who’s like me? Even tangentially?” (“Albus Dumbledore Didn’t Come Out at the Right Time (According to Everyone)”). Discrimination in the Harry Potter is discussed frequently (prejudice against Muggles, werewolves, and house elves) so many (myself included) did not understand when LGBTQA discrimination was not included when it easily could have been.

Dumbledore’s ultimately unrequited love for Gellert Grindlewald motivated him just as much as Snape’s unrequited love for Lily Potter was. Yet only one character got to have their feelings named as love in the book themselves. I personally think that is a shame. The readers only know one LGBTQA character in the entire Harry Potter universe by name and we had to wait until the books were over to even find out about him.

Article citation: Asher-Perrin, Emily. “Albus Dumbledore Didn’t Come Out at the Right Time (According to Everyone)”. Tor. September 2013. Web. April 2015. [http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/09/banned-books-week-harry-potter-jk-rowling-dumbledore-gay-icon]

Blog Post #3

I have mixed feelings about the end of the Harry Potter series. I think many characters developed a great deal in Deathly Hallows (such as Snape, Dumbledore, Neville, and Harry himself) but not all of this development was positive.

            For instance, Deathly Hallows revealed how complicated Dumbledore’s past really was. I enjoyed this in the sense that it added complexities to Dumbledore’s character but it disappointed me in the sense that it personally tainted Dumbledore’s relationship with Harry for me. There is no question that Dumbledore cares about Harry but it can be argued that Dumbledore cared about the “greater good” more. Dumbledore manipulated Harry into essentially becoming a solider against Voldemort. Even Snape seemed disgusted by this because he declares that Dumbledore was “raising him like a pig for slaughter” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, ch. 33). If even Snape is appalled at someone’s treatment of Harry, then that treatment must be pretty bad.

            Still, I found the development of Harry himself to be quite sweet. Harry has been through so much strife in his life that it was rewarding to see him finally succeed. Harry didn’t get the chance to have his blood family but he still readily sacrificed his life so no more of his chosen family did not have to die. Harry seemed so afraid when he asked the images of his parents what death was like but he still walked to his death anyway. He truly grew into a brave man.

Blog #3

I love the way the book ended. It has always amazed me how much planning J.K. Rowling did in order to write the series. I’m not at English major and have no idea how to even begin writing a novel, but it always blows my mind the amount of thought that went into all the foreshadowing and backstories in the series. That being said I think J.K. Rowling did a great job pulling the whole story together at the end. For me the ending just made everything click and fall into place. Snape is revealed as Harry’s secret guardian and all the horcrux’s are revealed to be items that we have read about throughout the series. My feelings towards Neville changes throughout the series. In the beginning he was an odd kid who seemed to lack strong courage. As the book progressed Neville found his courage. This was very evident when Neville took leading role in Dumbledore’s army and killed Nagini during the final battle. Another character that my feelings changed towards was Snape. “The mind is not a book, to be opened at will and examined at leisure. Thoughts are not etched on the inside of skulls, to be perused by an invader. The mind is a complex and many-layered thing. (H.P. Order of the Phoenix)”. This quote by Snape perfectly explains his character. His mind is a many- layered thing that becomes very clear at the end when he reveals his memories to Harry. Throughout the entire book he comes across as a mean professor who hates Harry and is on Voldemort’s side. In the end we find out that Snape is possibly the best double agent and was on Harry’s side the entire time making sure he was safe.

Extra Credit Blog Post

2. Write a response to one of the critical accusations that has been made against Rowling for certain choices she made, such as those relating to gender, ethnicity, sexuality and sexual orientation, or religion. For example, some argue (in certain cases, vehemently and angrily) that Hermione is the true hero, not Harry. Other pieces argue Rowling’s (and/or the films’) portrayal of Cho is based on unfair Asian stereotypes. There has also been much commentary about Dumbledore’s sexual orientation. The list is extensive, and we have posted a couple of articles about some of these, though, by all means, if you know of one we haven’t posted, please share. Choose one particular piece, not just a general topic. Do you agree with the piece you chose? Disagree? Something in between? Why? Be thoughtful, analytical, detailed, and specific.

A topic that has caused much uproar in the Harry Potter world is the sexual orientation of Albus Dumbledore. Although it is not specifically addressed in the books themselves, J.K. Rowling has made it very clear that Dumbledore is in fact gay. Some fans are thrilled, however, per usual of this specific topic, many are very upset and disappointed. There have been “fans” (that is what they call themselves at least) that have stopped following the series due to Dumbledore’s sexual orientation.

If you ask me, I find this to be insane. First of all, if you are a true fan of the series, the sexual orientation of a character, big or small, should not be a reason to change that. No matter if you learn of this orientation before you read, during your time reading, or after reading- it should not matter!

Homosexuality is a very controversial topic that gets much attention in this day in age. It is an up and coming norm- whether everyone agrees with it or not. So, why would an amazing author not implement it, if she is for it, in one of the most popular and well-written series of time?! I think it was a phenomenal idea to implement the idea of homosexuality into the series in some way. Not only is it implemented, but also it is implemented through of one of the most powerful, loved, selfless, amazing characters in the series- being Dumbledore!

An interesting thing that Heather pointed out to me was a tweet from JKR herself. A reader had verbalized that she didn’t really “see” Dumbledore as gay. Rowling responded, with the most awesome eight-word answer that was a total shut down… “Maybe because gay people look just like… people?” She didn’t have to get nasty, use any harsh language, or hurtful words. She instead makes it very sweet and simple, by stating that gay people look just like anyone else. This is huge and I have so much respect for her in this specific regard.

You can see the actual tweet here: http://hellogiggles.com/jk-rowling-just-schooled-twitter-lbgt-equality-dumbledore/.

Blog #3

When I was reading the Deathly Hallows for the first time, I was constantly in awe. There were plotlines and small moments that were just coming together from books that were written years before this, and it just astounded me that Rowling was able to connect things that well. I’m not sure how much she thought ahead, I’m sure she did a bit, but I wouldn’t be surprised if some of it she just connected as she went. A couple of things that stood out to me is the situation with the graveyard in Godric’s Hollow and the Percival brothers, how Dumbledore also grew up in Godric’s Hollow (where Harry was born and his parents murdered). There’s also plenty of foreshadowing that really blew me away, along with many subtle things that I probably didn’t catch. There’s a segment where Harry is trying to explain dementors to Vernon, and he is struggling but Petunia explains what they are. When she does, she says that “awful” boy told “her” about them years ago. At the time, Harry must’ve thought it was about his father telling his mother. He later finds out in the penseive that it was really a young Snape telling Lily.

Overall, Deathly Hallows is definitely my favorite book of the series. I thought it ended well and I was happy about the conversation Harry had with Dumbledore in “limbo” or whatever you want to call it; it was a nice bit of closure. I mentioned this above but I really liked the way things came together in the series. Hearing Dumbledore’s backstory was also something that I enjoyed. I would love for Rowling to write a book about his life as a young wizard. It was interesting seeing Harry's reactions as he learned Dumbledore wasn't a perfect person, similar to when he learned about the way his father treated Snape.