Harry Potter and the Arrogantly Religious Article

Here's an article I've read about Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, and its cultural impact, in light of the Harry Potter mania this July. Writer Lev Grossman rants why this series is "radical", predicts a grim ending for Harry, and suggests a reason why it will be so.

May I be excused, especially by my Christian friends, for reacting unfavorably to this and for anything else that may seem offensive. I just think that lines of thinking like the one exhibited by Grossman speak of self-centeredness and intolerance, among others. I don't mean to attack any person or belief but I want to criticize a certain attitude.

I'm listing some (there are many) of his intriguing points and giving my reactions to them.

First: Rowling's work is radical because, unlike the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, hers doesn't have a touch of Christianity in it. I don't understand what makes it radical in a literary sense. I am sure that quite a number of writers (maybe from William Shakespeare to Hans Christian Andersen to Edgar Allan Poe to Neil Gaiman to Stephen King) didn't feel the need to consciously and meticulously incorporate their faiths and explicitly manifest them in their work.

Second: Harry Potter lives in a religion-free world and was never inclined to pray. Come on now, that's J.K. Rowling's choice. It's her work anyways and she's entitled with artistic license. Oh yeah, Harry Potter was born in England not in Israel, what a shame!

Third: Unlike Frodo and the Pevensie kids, Harry Potter will have a grim ending because he didn't have God. Nonsense! What are we to make of Snow White and Sleeping Beauty and their happily-ever-after endings? Last I checked they never prayed nor was religion ever present in their stories.

Finally and the Main Point of the Author: God is the one who really dies in Harry Potter because He was never talked about nor was He turned to by any Harry. Think about it.. Hmm..

Seriously, why do some people always expect and demand that their particular belief system be manifested in the media and society? Sadly, it seems that Christian Fundamentalists are always the ones involved in this (some of them have been complaining all along that Harry Potter promotes witchcraft and wizardry). I've never heard of Buddhists loudly complaining why characters in movies or books do not desire to abide by Nirvana. I don't want to give other examples but I hope you get the drift.

By the way, Grossman is a Harvard-trained literature major. He never finished his degree though.

Also, Rowling maintains that she is a Christian: see here and here.

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Indeed, Harry Potter Mania is riding high with Order of the Phoenix released in US theaters last week and Deathly Hallows coming out on the 21st. Intriguingly, a supposedly leaked copy of Deathly Hallows is floating around the web. Photos of the pages are said to be available. Whoever reads through them has incredibly as much time to waste as the person who took the photos.

















Still, in no way shall this diminish the magic. The whole world awaits July 21. Really, what a special day that is... *wink*