Harry Potter and the Decline of the West (Spengler)

Asia Times ^ | Jul 20, 2005 | By Spengler

[OpusatFR]

"Western literature, along with all great Western art, is Christian in character, including the product of a putative heathen like Goethe, whom Franz Rosenzweig correctly called the prototype of a modern Christian.[3] It is Christian precisely because it deals with overcoming one's "inner self"."

Good catch enjoyed the post.

Very un-PC to recognize the Complete Christian underpinnings of our civilization.

BUT...I'd rather not read Young Werther again. Maybe it was the translation, but Goethe reeks. The whole thing was a whiney, superficial piece of mental vomit.

[dsc]

"Pride and prejudice are intimately related in the novel. As critic A. Walton Litz comments, "in Pride and Prejudice one cannot equate Darcy with Pride, or Elizabeth with Prejudice; Darcy's pride of place is founded on social prejudice, while Elizabeth's initial prejudice against him is rooted in pride of her own quick perceptions."

[dsc]

"Then how does one account for the enormous and continuing popularity of the Lord of the Rings trilogy (in both book and movie form)?"

One of the Warner Brothers guys that was involved with Looney Toons said that Bugs Bunny is the guy you wish you were, and Daffy Duck is the guy you're afraid you are.

[muir_redwoods]

Maybe, just maybe Spengler is overthinking this. This is a book of fiction, it is supposed to be understood as unreal. It's simple, escapist fiction.

[dsc]

" This is a book of fiction, it is supposed to be understood as unreal. It's simple, escapist fiction."

Maybe we should have a Harry Potter FAQ, where all the arguments against that position could be posted. I just don't have the strength to type them in again.

[TomSmedley]

ping

[exDemMom]

This guy admits up front that he did not even read the Harry Potter book himself. Then he goes on and attempts to do something--categorize the Harry Potter reader? critique a society that popularizes Harry Potter? I'm not sure exactly what, here, but this guy is absolutely pretentious. First of all, if he thinks to analyze the type of person who reads Harry Potter, shouldn't he at least have talked to people who like Harry Potter? He might find out that we are a very heterogeneous lot, who can only be categorized by one thing: that we like Harry Potter.

[Tax-chick]

He's right that Luke Skywalker is a petulant, self-indulgent bore. (Anakin Skywalker, too.) Left out the bad haircuts, though.

Does Harry Potter have a bad haircut?

[RogueIsland]

Wow, I can't wait for the author's critical deconstruction of Speed Racer!

Really folks, this is a bit silly. I imagine Lucas in particular would wonder why Star Wars was being mentioned in the same article as Flaubert and Dostoyevsky (which appear to have been trotted out mainly to demonstrate that the author is A Smart Person).

[Tax-chick]

Then he goes on and attempts to do something--categorize the Harry Potter reader?

Some people go through life filling in the blank on "I'm better than you, because _______," for everyone else in the world.

Boooo-ring.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

Enough with the Potter kitsch. Wouldn't Cher, Bill Clinton, or grunge bands demonstrate the decline as well? What about the continuing freedom of Michael Jackson at large? Nose rings?

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

Does Harry Potter have a bad haircut?

The mystery gets a bit deeper and...ahem... weirder. After a thorough
investigation it was determined that Harry Potter may be the lost Where's Waldo.

[Tax-chick]

LOL!

[redgolum]

It's interesting that everyone reacts by attacking Spengler.

It is also interesting that no one is trying to defend Potter beyond "It is a kids book!".

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

This becomes even more disorienting and confusing when a rival school of Potterosophy suggests that Sean Lennon, son of Beatle guitarist John Lennon and Japanese Intelligence Agent Yoko Ono, may be the real Harry Potter.

[Durus]

The Potter books do have an oversimplified view of good and evil. Some characters are naturally good, and others naturally evil, and that's that. Introspection and internal division aren't central features of the book.

You haven't read them have you.

[Tax-chick]

That's truly scary! All sorts of kooky religious stuff with Lennon and Ono ... maybe the fundamentalist critics are on to something really deep.

[Durus]

Courage, honesty, loyalty, fidelity and monogamy in love, perseverence, self-reliance, self-improvement, personal responsibility, and above all being a wimpy little twit who doesn't need any of those things, and need not suffer the consequences of lacking them, because he has magical powers.

You haven't read the books have you.

[Gone GF]

"Harry Potter has no ideals, only "feelings". He is the perfect liberal."

Yeah, I never would let my kids read Winnie the Pooh. That liberal bear was always expecting others to give him honey, like he was owed it or something. Never did see him work a job, either, so he was probably on welfare.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

At any rate, they need to interrogate the illustrator to find out who the real model for Harry Potter was. The Where's Waldo physical similarities seem highly suspicious. But one might assume any ectomorphic nerdy dork with glasses could have been the inspiration.

Just pray they don't make a goofy dork adventure series based around Cousin Oliver from The Brady Bunch - making life a recurrent nightmare for elementary school reading teachers! Then again, that might be a fitting end to Hogwarts Academy...