How many of you think harry potter is childish?

Yes and as kaylynwrong mentioned above, the issue with ethnic superiority was superbly handled. Class divisions and social justice are hot topics in the UK today and it would have been so easy for Rowling to shy away from these real issues in a series about witches and wizards.

 

I think its great when children's books are intelligent and have issues that you can absorb as you grow up. I love so many young adult books, often because the author needs to pace it to finish the book in 40-60,000 words you get wonderful condensed messages and there is generally no attempts of pretension you get in books for adults. Not to mention I can read it in about three hours then Also a lot more of them are written in alternative POVs you are much more likely to get a first person work in young adult.

Mind you I still look forward to the new Julia Donaldson or Winnie the Witch to come out lol

 

Who is this "Harry Potter"?

 

A hirsute clay craftsman. (wiseguy)

 

I thought he was the Singeing Defective

 

Okay, just consulted my dictionary....

Harry: to plunder, ravage or destroy.

Potter: to busy oneself in a desultory way; to dawdle.

So, "Harry Potter" - a rambling savage. It begins to make sense.

 

okay, but it's really time to get back on topic

 

Are you serious? Kids flying on broomsticks? What's adult about Harry Porter? But then it's meant to be childish and it's probably written well (only seen the movie), so heads off to the creator.

 

I think you mean hats off.

I don't think it's fair to answer the question based solely on the movies, especially as this is under Book Discussion.

 

Unless your a memeber of the Headless Hunt...

Hmm is Harry Potter Childish? I suppose there are some elements that could suggest that. But some of the themes of the book are definitely are not so child friendly. It regularly has racial issues running through out the series. In particular Hermione being a Muggle Born. Then of course there is the whole Voldemort wanting to like kill all muggles and create a pure wizarding world.

But if you can enjoy the story does it really matter?

 

I don't think Harry Potter is childish in the least bit. In fact, there were quite a few disturbing (more disturbing then what a children's book should be) events throughout the series.

I've also thought the same thing about Black Beauty, which is considered a children's classic.

 

*stupid grin* Honest mistake, or was it?

Point noted. I was actually planning to borrow Harry Porter from my nephews and read it, but unfortunately I saw the movie and the flying kids first

 

Dude, don't give up on the books because of the movies. They're sooooo much better.

 

You must really be anti-flying brooms then. Besides the books are so, so much better then the movies and worth a chance... even if there are a few places where they fly.

 

I'd still recommend giving it a try at some point in the future. The books are definitely interesting and the first few are quick reads. The book isn't all about Quidditch either. But wouldn't you fly on a broom if you had the chance?

 

The whole racism theme bugs me no end.

I'm sure JK Rowling wrote the series with good intentions but let me summarise how I see the Harry Potter universe. Two societies, for the most part completely separate from each other and all because one society decides that it for the others societies own good. The fact that such a state of affairs produces such incredibly bigoted individuals like lord Voldemort and his followers isn't really that surprising.

 

Ultimately though it is a story people often forget that with books. I have heard people complain that Thomas treats trucks in a racist manner and now there are stories dealing with that where he learns they are not that bad after all etc

I am also not sure there is anything wrong with a cloistered society, I have a friend that is a Prior in a religious order in Canada have had no real contact with him for ten years though as the order decided MSN chatrooms were a violation of his vow of silence, but it is right for him to live that way..

 

The issue of racism and prejudice shows up repeatedly in Harry Potter. Not only in the Purebloods theme embraced by the Slitherins and the Death Eaters, but also the treatment of house elves and of goblins by magical humans, the bias against half-giants like Hagrid, and the touchy relations between centaurs and humans (to Dolores Umbridge's downfall).

Much of the misery of the times is caused or exacerbated by prejudice.

 

Often you'll find people calling something 'childish' simply because they disagree with it. In many cases, the term is thrown out as a dismissal so they don't have to come up with a decent argument.
This is also known as an ad-hominem, which is a form of sophistry, and debating with this sort of person is usually fruitless for anything but a good measure of character.

 

I don't really understand your point. Are you saying that writers shouldn't produce undesirable characters? Just because Rowling creates a fractured society doesn't mean she's in some way complicit with the likes of Voldemort?! It's like saying a person who creates a racist character is racist.

Where would we be in literature if we wrote about bunny rabbits and chocolate?

 

We would never have had greats like Lolita and The Heart of Darkness if we did. A lot of literature is dark, even YA, and with good reason.

 

I couldn't agree more.

The characters are not the author. Maybe next time you see something objectionable in a character, you should a) remember that it is fictional, and b) try and think about what point the author is trying to make.

I like my fiction dark, in general. The darkness is where you'll find the true nature of humanity, and of the world. It's not dark because authors are all evil bastards, it's dark because it has a point to make.

 

One might wonder why the "good" wizards & witches want to separate themselves from ordinary humans, especially when it produces such bigotry and prejudice.

As I see it, it's a problem with the internal logic of her world, not ideology.

 

its the best way to tell the story and not sure why its much different to belonging to a religious order. I don't see why people can't opt to seperate themselves.

 

What, and there's no bigotry and prejudice in the world of ordinary humans? Rowling created a parallel world of magic separate from the human world, but with similar themes. There would be no conflict in literature at all if there were no bad guys. The bad guys certainly exist in their droves in the real world in any case.

Similarly, if we are talking about the internal logic of the series, what would the good witches and wizards have to gain in teaming up with ordinary humans? The whole premise of the book is that Potter is an otherwise ordinary boy who has unknown magical status. Half the comedic value of the books is based on the carnage caused by the real world and wizard world colliding.