Abstract This paper compares the film "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and Grimm's fairy tale, "Cinderella", with the emphasis on the plot of the film. It discusses the similarities of the two stories, with both title characters orphans, living with oppressive family members, made to cook and clean, and using magical powers to escape their miserable lives. It also expands on their cultural differences, Harry Potter as a contemporary story and Cinderella from another era.
From the Paper ""Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" begins with Harry being left on the doorstep of a middle-class Englishman. Mr Dursley by Albus Dumbledore the head of a wizardry academy called, Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall who teaches at Hogwarts and ..."
Abstract This paper examines and discusses the characteristics and relationships between Harry, Ron and Hermione in the book, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets".
From the Paper "There is a common saying or assumption that a person is measured by the quality of his or her friends. In school or work groups of friends or cliques or clubs develop and people a ..."
Tags: Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, loyalty, determination, intelligence
Abstract This paper briefly discusses the growth and development of Harry Potter's character over the course of the book "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and his year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
From the Paper "Good stories usually to have good plots and story lines but they also tend to have good character development.The main characters show some type of growth or development ..."
Tags:Harry Potter, Growth, Development, Sorcerer's Stone
Abstract This paper discusses of the controversy surrounding "Harry Potter," the best selling children's series of all time. It explains that the controversy lies in the packaging of the tale in a seemingly occult-friendly world. The author contends that underneath the packaging that bothers some religious fanatics so much, lays a series of books that brings the joy of reading and growth of spirit to almost any reader.
From the Paper "Harry Potter is the best selling children's series of all time. Its first book is also the most banned book in the United States. The controversy lies in the packaging of the tale in a ..."
Abstract The paper focuses on the theme of love in J.K.Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and how it relates to the greed of Quirrell and Voldemort. The paper explains the role of spiritual love and mother love.
From the Paper "The theme of love in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone:" Love is perhaps the strongest emotion there is in the world. Most fiction is written using love as its basic theme, whether that is romantic love, friendship, love of family, love of country, of ideals, of sport, or even of comrades in arms."
Abstract This paper discusses the role of Prof. Albus Dumbledore, principle of Hogwarts, in the modern classic 'Harry Potter' by J.K. Rowling. The paper further discusses that all the major characters are at the same time simple and complex. The simple aspect is that all characters are quite clearly either the good guys or the bad guys. The complex aspect is that her characters often have depth to their characters so that it can be hard to tell at times what their objectives and plans are.
Abstract This paper explains that, since J.K. Rowling published the first "Harry Potter" book, some parents, religious groups and educators have opposed the supposed 'controversial nature' of the books saying that they are evil, while other people feel they are educational and beneficial. The author points out that Courtney Strimel in her article "The Politics of Terror: Rereading "Harry Potter" did a better job of relaying her message because she listed many reasons why Harry Potter books help children and her reasons left little room for one to argue otherwise; whereas, while making good points, Berit Kjos in "Harry Potter Lures Kids to Witchcraft" gave too many opposing positions and left many unanswered questions. The paper asserts that, whether the Harry Potter books are harmful or worthwhile will continue to be debatable; however, in this case, Ms. Strimel's article was the better of the two because she made the more convincing argument by providing strong opinions, better explanations and relevant facts. The paper includes several quotations.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Evil: Berit Kjos' "Harry Potter Lures Kids to Witchcraft"
Educational: Courtney Strimel's "The Politics of Terror: Rereading "Harry Potter""
Comparison
From the Paper "She discussed the effectiveness of the use of Harry Potter books in helping children cope with terrorism issues. She claims, "instead of making the series immoral, the magic, frightening storylines, and character ambiguity all operate together to explore a vast array of morality issues." She goes on to strengthen this argument by discussing several different issues in great detail. One such topic is terrorism, of which she states, "the lessons about terror in the Harry Potter series may be scary and confusing at times, but magical fantasy allows children to deal with timeless, realistic, frightening topics while maintaining a safe distance from the agent causing the anxiety." This is a strength because it is a very plausible and justifiable argument that shows a benefit to children reading these books."
Abstract This paper discusses how, in Rowling's novel, Harry's character develops, revealing how he matures not only as a wizard, but a person. While still young in this book, Harry learns important lessons that will help him later in life. It explains that his unusual heritage provides the perfect backdrop for the story in that Harry must learn how to be brave and have faith.
From the Paper "One interesting aspect of the novel is the voice that Harry hears early in the chapters. When Harry hears the voice say that it is "time to kill" (Rowling 137), his instinct to follow to voice in hopes to prevent it from doing any harm. This is a characteristic that Rowling continues to enhance with Harry. His instinct is to do good things and prevent evil from occurring, yet the voice is something that Harry does not understand. This lack of understanding is the source of much angst for Harry and he must learn to deal with it in a positive manner."
Abstract Since the "Harry Potter" series is such a success, it has had its critics claiming the books should not be considered literature because many critics believe that having merit and being a commercial success are mutually exclusive. This paper argues that it is important to believe in the literary merit of the "Harry Potter" series because it is a reflection of our culture. By looking at some common elements of literature and then finding them in the "Harry Potter" series, the paper argues that the "Harry Potter" series is true literature.
From the Paper "The Harry Potter series is, so far, five books by J.K. Rowling, chronicling the life of the young, orphaned wizard Harry Potter. The series is a coming of age story, beginning when Harry is eleven and following him through adolescence and young adulthood until he is seventeen. Harry's life includes all the prosaic struggles of a young boy, like interaction with the opposite sex, or questioning authority figures. Harry's struggles take place against the backdrop of the turbulent world of magic, with dragons, unicorns, trees that are bewitched to demolish anything in the path, broomsticks, and dark wizards. The series is a classic good versus evil story, with epic battles, complex villains, and moral dilemmas."
Abstract This paper explains the significance of Harry's initial sorting into Gryffindor House (especially as opposed to Slytherin House) by the Sorting Hat and other related incidents of Harry's fate within the novel, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". The paper also highlights the importance of fate in the novel, especially for Harry himself. Furthermore, the paper expands on the implicit conflict between fate and human will in the book.
From the Paper "The incident of the Sorting Hat, in which the new Hogwarts students, at the beginning of their first year are sorted into houses (e.g., similar to dormitories in American schools, in which they will live for the remainder of their studies at Hogwarts (e.g., Gryffindor; Slytherin; Hufflepuff; or Ravenclaw). Within Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (1997), the Sorting Hat incident, in which Harry is chosen by the Sorting Hat itself, putting it on his head as all students do, and having it "sort" him, for Gryffindor House, is important, in that it determines much of his fate and his future fate at Hogwarts and elsewhere. "
Abstract This paper reviews sources claiming that ?Harry Potter? is not a harmless literary fantasy, but rather, conservative Christians claim, that Rowling's wizards, witchcraft, and magic may draw impressionable young readers into the occult. The author points out that the American Library Association (ALA) reports the Harry Potter series now has the dubious distinction of being the most censored series of books in America. The paper relates that many other accepted literary treasures, such as "A Christmas Carol", ? Macbeth?, ? The Lord of the Rings?, "King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table", "Alice in Wonderland", "The Wizard of Oz", and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", also contain elements of the mystical.
Table of Contents
Specific Anti-Harry Issues Raised by Conservatives and Christians
Seeing the Truth and the Fun in J. K. Rowling's Sparkling Story-Telling
Conclusion
From the Paper "In Alamogordo, New Mexico, Jack Brock, pastor of the Christ Community Church, recently "led a mass burning of Harry Potter books"and told reporters that the books "encourage our youth to learn more about witches, warlocks and sorcerers, and those things are an abomination to God and to me".? In Lewiston, Maine, a local group called ?The Jesus Party,? led by the Rev. Dough Taylor, announced a book-burning party in the public park, but when the fire department refused to give his organization a permit, he took scissors to a Potter book and shredded it into a trashcan. Officials of the city's public library in Jacksonville, Florida, have abandoned a plan to distribute "Hogwarts certificates" encouraging young people to read. Why? Because, Boston reports, ?Local resident, John Miesburg, complained that the books promoted "the evil of witchcraft".? "
Abstract Harry Potter books have attracted a lot of controversy about their use in classrooms. This paper explains that some people feel that they shouldn't be used, either because they might "promote witchcraft", or just because there are better choices for middle school reading. This paper argues, however, that despite any drawbacks, the benefits of the Harry Potter books outweigh the drawbacks. These books encourage kids to use their imaginations, and they depict good friendships. Keeping them out of classrooms will encourage the extreme minority who want to censor them, and these books are popular and are, therefore, being read. It concludes that all of these facts combine to make the Harry Potter series a good addition for use by an educator.
From the Paper "The Harry Potter series of books, by British author J.K. Rowling, has become one of the most popular series of books for children ever published. Even though this series is so popular, there are people who believe that the books should not be read in schools. Although there are reasons for and against reading Harry Potter books in class, the reasons for getting students to read Harry Potter are more convincing. The first two books of the series, especially, when Harry is new at Hogwarts are not as "dark" as the later books in the series. One of the arguments against letting students read these books is that they are so "dark", but the first two books, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets are recommended for 8 to 13 year-olds, and should be read in middle school."
Abstract This paper explains that much social controversy has arisen within the religious community which considers J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" to introduce impressionable young minds to the art and practice of magic, witchcraft, sorcery and the occult. The author points out that, when read by normal, intelligent young adults, the psychological affects are very low, especially when read as an enjoyable experience, which transports the reader to other worlds and forces them to utilize their imaginations, not to mention that it is often an enjoyable thing to be frightened. The paper concludes that (1) Rowling is only trying to tell an enjoyable story despite being heavily linked to the supernatural and, (2) if young adult readers really wanted to become a witch or a sorcerer, it would suit them far better to read the Holy Bible, which also contains images and suggestions of witchcraft and sorcery.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Fantastic Literature
Critical Theories on Young Adult Literature
Harry Potter and the Supernatural
Censorship and Harry Potter
Conclusion
From the Paper "Any person who picks up a Harry Potter novel will surely come to realize that J.K. Rowling must have spent a great amount of time conducting research into the occult and the supernatural in order to produce such powerful and influential literary characters and situations. Obviously, Rowling has borrowed heavily from much older sources concerning the supernatural, sorcery and witchcraft, some dating back to medieval times. As one of the world's oldest religions, witchcraft is a pagan faith, non-Christian rather than anti-Christian, and is based upon the belief that nature and the universe can be controlled and manipulated via magic and the invocation of divine spirits."
This paper argues against Sam Harris' ideas in his book "The End of Faith" that religion is irrational and harmful to the world because it has caused unparalleled chaos, death and destruction.
Abstract This paper contends that, by ignoring the political implications of religion in his book "The End of Faith", Sam Harris oversimplifies the social and political impact of religion. The author points out that Harris and other secularists see religion waning in the face of the impending wave of modernity and technology, but the reality is that religion and modernity are not mutually exclusive. The paper stresses that Harris' inferred conclusion, which is that more secular Western societies are further advanced as civilizations and that Eastern civilizations are inferior, would wreak havoc on the global political arena.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
The Failure to Fix Religion
Religion's Debt to Secularism
From the Paper "An interesting case study of this commitment is the way women have faired in Islamic societies. Harris would be surprised to learn of the positive attitude towards Islam of what he calls "improbable creatures scurrying about in shrouds." Islam is actually empowering to the downtrodden. Women have the "potential...to shape the community's moral discourses... through their interpretation of Islam." Islam is not, as Harris argues, a monolithic religion dictating all of the actions and beliefs of its adherents. It does not corrupt the tenets of Islam for women to extrapolate from the Koran ..."
