Posted on 08/17/2005 1:10:26 PM PDT by T-Bird45
I've never read any Harry Potter. Is all this true?
Pretty much, yes.
I have to also note that Johnathan Swift wrote satire attacking the excesses of the govenment of his time, and today these satires are mostly remembered as children's stories.
In other words, it's a like England (except the no taxes part)
The best part about the Harry Potter books is that Harry and his friends continually work AGAINST all that bureaucracy and WIN!
Pretty much, yes. BUT in the Order of the Phoenix the ministry rep gets run out of Hogwarts (not quite) on a rail...
Harry Potter is an interesting read on society
The media in HP is irresponsible and vindictive, constantly pushing opinions as news. When confronted with truth, they ignore it in favor of stories that fit their view. They live by the Clintonian phrase "How can we fool them today".
The Ministry of Magic is chiefly concerned with perpetuating itself. It also takes a dim view of the truth if the truth is different from its views. If truth is different from their beliefs, truth is BAD and evil. They don't hesitate to use their police powers to guard themselves from the truth.
The House elves are bound by rules that lack reason. They love slavery and hate freedom. Anyone who enjoys freedom is considered a freak and is sometimes punished. Being kept down is a full time job with them. Slavery is freedom.
So, J.K. Rowling is more observant that we give her credit for?
She is extremely observant and wary of big government, and the books are extremely good!
I agree! Like the author's home (Britain) there are a lot of government agencies that seem to regulate everything. However, it is interesting to note that the bureaucracy is portrayed in a very negative light and the heroes constantly fight against it as well as Lord Voldemort.
BTW, I believe the author mischaracterized or exaggerated a few aspects of the Harry Potter mythos. For example, attending Hogwarts appears to be a privilege and is not free.
"The scariest implications come in the sixth book."
I think it is the fifth book that all of this starts in. The Order of the Phoenix.
Herminone is the weird one. Her family aren't witches but she knows too much inside info. She should be as clueless as Harry. It's illogical.
I suspect JK is a closet Libertarian but she'll have to play a liberal to keep her celebrity status. She owes her fortune to the media that hates Christianity. When they picked the Cathedral to film Hogwarts, the media in England and the US did story after story about the neanderthal Christian church being up in arms and howling in protest. They claimed the uneducated rabble would descend on filming with pitchforks, flaming torches and drooling mouths.
In reality, one protester showed up. The media was so disappointed. Their boogeyman didn't cooperate.
Hermione reads books for fun. Harry doesn't. That's all there is to it. As Hermione points out time and again.
Her books are subversively conservative --- ineffectual government officials "protecting" you being one of the big themes; followed by the MSM-is-a-bunch-of-lies (the "Daily Prophet" being the newspaper); wand control merely disarms the good-guys.
Etc.
There was an excellent article on NRO about Rowling being an "Inkling" --- that is, a Christian writer who weaves Christian themes and symbolism all throughout her books.
Yeah but books wouldn't explain the amount of inside info at her young age. She knows too much of the culture. I believe something will come out in the last book.
The witch hunt(yuk yuk) for Sirius Black in GOF and OOP reminded me of the Clarence Thomas mess. It's not the weight of evidence but the seriousness of the charges that is important. I loved the "Oh whatever he died" response when the PM mentions Black to the Magic Minister in HBP. The Magic Minister should be a corporate case study in covering one's arse.
Long Live Luna Lovegood and her Family!!!! Long live the Revolution
Doesn't really seem that different that normal England, I mean this is the place that has people driving around with special antenaes looking for people watching TV who haven't paid the TV tax.
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