"Did you see the love light in Spock's eyes? The right computer finally came along."
Harry Potter. We've all heard about him, right? (Either that our you really are an Alien and I'll be right over.) I believe half the reason he is so popular now is the huge debate over the books and movies. Half the world claims they are evil, the other half the best thing ever written.
Unsure what to think, I watched the movies and tried to read the books. (I made it through the movies and rather enjoyed them. But the books...well, that is as follows.)
I have honestly found very little I like in the books. It isn't that there has been a lot of terrible things. (No sexual stuff, not a lot of language, the violence is a bit dark but isn't violence always this way?) All in all, they seem to just be stories about good vs. evil, and we all look a story like that, right? We want good to win and we like it when an unlikely character, or characters, defeat a terrible evil.
Know that I didn't set out to dislike the books. I simply wanted to know what made them the biggest reading rage at the moment. The characters? The plot? The romance? What was so wonderfully or evil about these books?
I have found some things I like about them, I will admit that. First off is the characters themselves. Harry is supposedly hugely famous all over the world, but in school he has very few friends. Often everyone thinks he is just showing off. Some of the teachers don't like him. He doesn't get prefect grades and muffs many things. He is, in fact, a typical human boy with all the faults that go with it. And he doesn't want fame, just a normal life.
Ron struggles because his family doesn't have enough money. (As if that matters. Seriously, who wouldn't want to trade places with him and hang out with his cool family?) But, it can be hard, not having much and having a friend who can buy anything he wants whenever he wants.
Herminie is a geek, simple as that. She loves learning, which makes her an outcast. (How true is that in our own world?) And, she is a bit of a know it all and can get annoying from time to time, but she is also sweet and cares for her friends.
I also liked the fact that the main plot of the stories is good vs. evil. It isn't mushy romance. It isn't how to fit into school. It is standing up and doing what is right even when you're scared half to death.
Now, what I have not liked about the books, and what has left me wondering how they became so famous.
I didn't care for the writing style. It felt lacking in most places. Rowling goes on and on about all these details. What they were eating, what the hall looked like though we've been there before. How the first year students looked, though we were with Harry when he was a first year and we know from first hand experience that they were scared. On and on about things we don't need to know or care about. Then when it comes to how the characters are handling things, she skims it. I don't care about their food, or what class they had next. I want to know how Harry is REALLY taking being almost killed, again. And not just telling, I want to see it. I want to feel something for him, to like him. All I really know about him is he gets mad very easily and talks back so much it lands him in all kinds off trouble. (And all of this because she told me. I didn't really get to see it.) I have come off thinking of him as something of a brat who hates his uncle and aunt. (And here is where the debate begins. Does Harry have a good reason to hate his uncle and aunt? They are VERY mean to him after all - unrealistically so by the way. They make him live in a broom cupboard and eat less then their son. So, lets take a quick look at this one.)
Harry is the hero of the books. The reason we love heroes is because they make us wish to be like them. Yes, we want them to have faults, but we also want them to be better then us. We want to have a reason to admire them. Therefore, can one admire Harry?
So far, all I've found is a bitter little boy who won't forgive because he believes he has a right to hold all this anger. He was mistreated, HOW DARE THEY! Someday he will make them pay! Do kids really need this message? Someone hurts you so make them suffer, spend all your time plotting revenge? No, they come up with that on their own. What if Harry was angry with his family, and learned how to overcome it and forgive them? What if he learned to stop harboring all his hate. Wouldn't that make him a worthy hero? One everyone could love and children could look up to and wish to be like? Isn't that what of the qualities we love in heroes?
The same with Ron and Herminie. (Sorry, I keep spelling her name wrong.) What if Ron was to learn that family is more important then things, and that he has a pretty grand family. It is so rare for a husband and wife to love each other as much as his mum and dad does. And Herminie, wouldn't it be better to learn that, knowing things is fine but she needn't show off about it all and make everyone around her look stupid.
And now I think I will go, because it is late and this is already long. I will do a part two likely tomorrow.
What are your thoughts on the books, stories, movies, or all of the above?
Quote is from Star Trek, where Spock finally finds true love, in a logical computer.
Bonne Nuit
Au Reivor
Allons-y!
Unsure what to think, I watched the movies and tried to read the books. (I made it through the movies and rather enjoyed them. But the books...well, that is as follows.)
I have honestly found very little I like in the books. It isn't that there has been a lot of terrible things. (No sexual stuff, not a lot of language, the violence is a bit dark but isn't violence always this way?) All in all, they seem to just be stories about good vs. evil, and we all look a story like that, right? We want good to win and we like it when an unlikely character, or characters, defeat a terrible evil.
Know that I didn't set out to dislike the books. I simply wanted to know what made them the biggest reading rage at the moment. The characters? The plot? The romance? What was so wonderfully or evil about these books?
I have found some things I like about them, I will admit that. First off is the characters themselves. Harry is supposedly hugely famous all over the world, but in school he has very few friends. Often everyone thinks he is just showing off. Some of the teachers don't like him. He doesn't get prefect grades and muffs many things. He is, in fact, a typical human boy with all the faults that go with it. And he doesn't want fame, just a normal life.
Ron struggles because his family doesn't have enough money. (As if that matters. Seriously, who wouldn't want to trade places with him and hang out with his cool family?) But, it can be hard, not having much and having a friend who can buy anything he wants whenever he wants.
Herminie is a geek, simple as that. She loves learning, which makes her an outcast. (How true is that in our own world?) And, she is a bit of a know it all and can get annoying from time to time, but she is also sweet and cares for her friends.
I also liked the fact that the main plot of the stories is good vs. evil. It isn't mushy romance. It isn't how to fit into school. It is standing up and doing what is right even when you're scared half to death.
Now, what I have not liked about the books, and what has left me wondering how they became so famous.
I didn't care for the writing style. It felt lacking in most places. Rowling goes on and on about all these details. What they were eating, what the hall looked like though we've been there before. How the first year students looked, though we were with Harry when he was a first year and we know from first hand experience that they were scared. On and on about things we don't need to know or care about. Then when it comes to how the characters are handling things, she skims it. I don't care about their food, or what class they had next. I want to know how Harry is REALLY taking being almost killed, again. And not just telling, I want to see it. I want to feel something for him, to like him. All I really know about him is he gets mad very easily and talks back so much it lands him in all kinds off trouble. (And all of this because she told me. I didn't really get to see it.) I have come off thinking of him as something of a brat who hates his uncle and aunt. (And here is where the debate begins. Does Harry have a good reason to hate his uncle and aunt? They are VERY mean to him after all - unrealistically so by the way. They make him live in a broom cupboard and eat less then their son. So, lets take a quick look at this one.)
Harry is the hero of the books. The reason we love heroes is because they make us wish to be like them. Yes, we want them to have faults, but we also want them to be better then us. We want to have a reason to admire them. Therefore, can one admire Harry?
So far, all I've found is a bitter little boy who won't forgive because he believes he has a right to hold all this anger. He was mistreated, HOW DARE THEY! Someday he will make them pay! Do kids really need this message? Someone hurts you so make them suffer, spend all your time plotting revenge? No, they come up with that on their own. What if Harry was angry with his family, and learned how to overcome it and forgive them? What if he learned to stop harboring all his hate. Wouldn't that make him a worthy hero? One everyone could love and children could look up to and wish to be like? Isn't that what of the qualities we love in heroes?
The same with Ron and Herminie. (Sorry, I keep spelling her name wrong.) What if Ron was to learn that family is more important then things, and that he has a pretty grand family. It is so rare for a husband and wife to love each other as much as his mum and dad does. And Herminie, wouldn't it be better to learn that, knowing things is fine but she needn't show off about it all and make everyone around her look stupid.
And now I think I will go, because it is late and this is already long. I will do a part two likely tomorrow.
What are your thoughts on the books, stories, movies, or all of the above?
Quote is from Star Trek, where Spock finally finds true love, in a logical computer.
Bonne Nuit
Au Reivor
Allons-y!
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