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Harry Potter Article - Written by Rosie Solovitch posted on 07 Sep 2009
There is not a child in North America that has not heard of “the boy who lived.” With his lightening bolt scar and circular black glass frames, Harry Potter has become one of the most well known fictional characters in history. Appropriately, generations to come will recognize J.K. Rowling, the author of Harry Potter, as one among the best in children’s fiction. This however, is not to say that Harry Potter is not also popular among adults. In fact, adults may be more avid Harry Potter fans than kids; evidence could be seen as recently as this summer with the release of the seventh and final book in the series- adults could be seen almost everywhere with the book.
Since the first Harry Potter was published in 1997, the series (including the seventh) has sold approximately 337 million copies worldwide- and is still selling more. The books have been translated into 64 languages and according to Forbes.com have made Ms. Rowling the richest novelist ever.
For anyone who has been under a rock for the past 10 years, the series is based on the tale of Harry Potter, a boy whose parents are killed by the evil Lord Voldemort when he is an infant. Voldemort is about to kill Harry too, but Harry’s parents’ selfless sacrifice save him from death. The only evidence of his near death experience is a lightening bolt-shaped scar on his forehead (a sign which frequently relays to the wizarding public his famous origins, and is recognized worldwide in reality as his symbol). The books follow Harry in his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and his resulting adventures.
So why is this series so incredibly popular? The writing of Harry Potter is very descriptive and intriguing. The writing lets the reader feel as if they are watching the adventure unfold right in front of them. Furthermore, Rowling’s depiction of people is amazing; the reader understands the characters’ actions, feelings and emotions as if they were real live people.
As well, according to Wizarding World (www.wizardingworld.com), “Harry Potter is definitely not just a children's story” and in fact, falls into several popular categories in contemporary literature: literary satire, social satire, mystery fantasy, adventure, children's fairy tale and social science/modern psychology.
In addition, the medieval and Halloween themes also excite and interest people. Another theme, fantasy, allows the reader to escape reality for a moment and live in a completely different world; one without the superficial Paris Hiltons of the real world. People can experience anything in fantasy books. The rules of physics and gravity do not apply. Nothing has to be explained by science or logic. Yet the fantasy genre before J.K. Rowling was plagued with bad stereotypes. There were always old wizards with crazy potions, princesses that could not rescue themselves, the weak squire or helper that turns out to be the hero, etc. Then J.K. Rowling broke every stereotype in fantasy writing, with her muggles (non magical people), wizardry schools, and many other unique aspects of her books. At the same time she kept a lot of the classic elements of fantasy such as a brash hero, danger along with adventure, and dragons and other magical creatures. It is also fun and exciting because in every book Harry is always so close to dying. There may be another book afterwards, but the reader is still left curious and confused as to how he/she could possibly escape (except in the seventh- where he really may die).
So what has been the result of the massive success of the Harry Potter books? Firstly, the practice of bringing out U.S. editions of British books 6 months after they are published in Britain has been restored. They have also published Canadian versions of the books soon after the American editions. As well, there are adult’s and children’s versions of the books with different covers that are designed to appeal to the different age groups. Secondly, the American and Canadian versions of the book do not contain its original British slang and spellings to make the book more marketable to the particular consumers.
Harry Potter is a skillful mix of genres, full of mystery and excitement, and it will most likely be a classic in fantasy and literature in general.
Special thanks to wikipedia.org, wizardingworld.com, and Nita Krevans, Associate Professor of Classical and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Minnesota.
Since the first Harry Potter was published in 1997, the series (including the seventh) has sold approximately 337 million copies worldwide- and is still selling more. The books have been translated into 64 languages and according to Forbes.com have made Ms. Rowling the richest novelist ever.
For anyone who has been under a rock for the past 10 years, the series is based on the tale of Harry Potter, a boy whose parents are killed by the evil Lord Voldemort when he is an infant. Voldemort is about to kill Harry too, but Harry’s parents’ selfless sacrifice save him from death. The only evidence of his near death experience is a lightening bolt-shaped scar on his forehead (a sign which frequently relays to the wizarding public his famous origins, and is recognized worldwide in reality as his symbol). The books follow Harry in his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and his resulting adventures.
So why is this series so incredibly popular? The writing of Harry Potter is very descriptive and intriguing. The writing lets the reader feel as if they are watching the adventure unfold right in front of them. Furthermore, Rowling’s depiction of people is amazing; the reader understands the characters’ actions, feelings and emotions as if they were real live people.
As well, according to Wizarding World (www.wizardingworld.com), “Harry Potter is definitely not just a children's story” and in fact, falls into several popular categories in contemporary literature: literary satire, social satire, mystery fantasy, adventure, children's fairy tale and social science/modern psychology.
In addition, the medieval and Halloween themes also excite and interest people. Another theme, fantasy, allows the reader to escape reality for a moment and live in a completely different world; one without the superficial Paris Hiltons of the real world. People can experience anything in fantasy books. The rules of physics and gravity do not apply. Nothing has to be explained by science or logic. Yet the fantasy genre before J.K. Rowling was plagued with bad stereotypes. There were always old wizards with crazy potions, princesses that could not rescue themselves, the weak squire or helper that turns out to be the hero, etc. Then J.K. Rowling broke every stereotype in fantasy writing, with her muggles (non magical people), wizardry schools, and many other unique aspects of her books. At the same time she kept a lot of the classic elements of fantasy such as a brash hero, danger along with adventure, and dragons and other magical creatures. It is also fun and exciting because in every book Harry is always so close to dying. There may be another book afterwards, but the reader is still left curious and confused as to how he/she could possibly escape (except in the seventh- where he really may die).
So what has been the result of the massive success of the Harry Potter books? Firstly, the practice of bringing out U.S. editions of British books 6 months after they are published in Britain has been restored. They have also published Canadian versions of the books soon after the American editions. As well, there are adult’s and children’s versions of the books with different covers that are designed to appeal to the different age groups. Secondly, the American and Canadian versions of the book do not contain its original British slang and spellings to make the book more marketable to the particular consumers.
Harry Potter is a skillful mix of genres, full of mystery and excitement, and it will most likely be a classic in fantasy and literature in general.
Special thanks to wikipedia.org, wizardingworld.com, and Nita Krevans, Associate Professor of Classical and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Minnesota.
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