For my final blog post I chose to
write about one of my favorite authors: J.K. Rowling. Even though her extremely
popular Harry Potter series is written about a young boy exploring the
wizarding world and finding himself, there are many positive images of women in
the books that help Harry find his way through some particularly trying times.
She has overcome great financial and marital issues in her personal life as
well and has become not only wealthy, but one of the most popular authors,
arguably, of all time. In the documentary “J. K. Rowling: A Year in the Life,” which aired
on ABC in 2007 the author describes her self by saying, “I’m a tryer.”A New York Times article reviewing the ABC documentary
about the popular author, the writer Mike Hale says, “Jo, as nearly everyone
calls her, comes across as smart, funny and self-deprecating and also as a bit
of a scold, someone whose dislikes and insecurities sit near the surface and
can quickly turn things dark.” Part of Rowling’s appeal to her fans is her
relatability and her personality. She makes snide remarks about some of her
competitors such as Twilight author Stephanie Meyer, who is not particularly
well received by many HP fans. When Rowling was asked about her artistic
process and her critics, she said: ''I just write what I wanted to write. I write what amuses me. It's
totally for myself. I never in my wildest dreams expected this
popularity…There’s no formula.”
As far as her impact, Rowling has had a huge
impact on people everywhere. One of those people was my sister, who grew up with Harry. She was
the same age as him and as each book came out she become more and more involved
in Harry’s struggle and his world. She was able to find comfort and relate to
the stories within the series.
I think that is why she is so popular and
awesome. Rowling is a woman who could write about a boy’s coming of age and
have that message transcend the gender barrier. Bell-Hooks stated, “To offer
men a different way of being, we must first replace the dominator model with a
partnership model that sees interbeing and interdependency as the organic
relationship of all living beings." In Rowling’s work, I argue that Harry
would not defeat the evil he faces without the dependency he has on his
friends, especially his closest female friend Hermione. In my opinion, Rowling
does offer an alternate way of seeing in her novel and the complex
relationships and turmoil do not focus on love or lust, but on friendship and the
greater good. That message remains strong in the movies and audiences that only
have watched the films receive the message and attract new HP lovers to read
the awesome series.
This is an AWESOME picture just for fun...
both HP and political. How could it go wrong?
Romney + Umbridge = ?
Works Cited
Bell Hook's Making Movie Magic
A Year in the Life. ABC. 30 Dec. 2007. Television.
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