Fantasy and Your Family: Exploring The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Modern Magick

by Richard Abanes

Fantasy and Your Family by bestselling author Richard Abanes presents a much-needed assessment of fantasy—its benefits and its drawbacks. Abanes begins with an in-depth look at folklore, myths, legends, and fairy tales, and their connection to fantasy. Part one also discusses issues involving child development, the affects of literature on children, and how those affects can ultimately change the course of society. Additionally, Abanes examines pop culture, the media, mass marketing, and the commercialization of children’s literature by corporations interested primarily in making money. This volume then looks at the life of fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien, the popularity of his fantasy works, their content, and what separates them from other fantasy volumes such as Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling and the children’s horror books by R.L. Stine. A particularly interesting survey of Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings includes a thorough analysis of its storyline, characters, and morality. These are compared side-by-side with Harry Potter. Finally, Abanes gives an overview of our culture’s growing obsession with the occult, paganism, and witchcraft. Why is it happening? When did it begin? How is it influencing today’s youth? All of these questions are answered through a concise, easy-to-understand writing style. Especially fascinating are the numerous sources of documentations that shows children are indeed being drawn to the occult via Harry Potter. Included are dozens of quotes by Wiccans, neopagans, and occultists that clearly express their belief that Rowling’s fantasy will do much to further witchcraft and the occult.

Genres: Religion, Parenting, Nonfiction, Christian Living

322 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

About the author

Richard Abanes is an American playwright, composer, lyricist, author, singer, and actor. He has had a life of diverse accomplishments in each of these fields.

Reviews

[Jaymie Starr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to read this book because I had read the "Harry Potter" series and of course there was a lot of debate about that series in Christian circles ,specifically, for a long time. Two of my favorite authors are Tolkien & C.S. Lewis and Richard Abanes uses these as examples in this book as sort of a guidline for fantasy books. As our kids have gotten older, I really want to be making good choices regarding what we allow them to read.
While I may not agree with all of Mr. Abanes thoughts on Fantasy books, I did agree with most and he really helped me to look at Fantasy/Magic type books from a new perspective and he was very insightful. Sometimes it just takes another person saying, "Hmmmm.. would this be the best read for myself or for my child or might there be something better out there?"
It made me really think through the following things when choosing books:
Does this book promote Godly character or glorify rebellion, disobedience to authority, lying or evil?
How does this book treat women- what is the perspective of women/girls?
(the "Goosebumps" series apparantly really glorifies the murder of young girls- something I did not know & have not read them, but most likely never will and certainly will not let our kids)
How much focus is spent on darkness/evil vs. goodness/purity?
How much time in a book is spent on infatuations/infatuous thoughts/kissing/dating/ etc.?
I like how he compared Tolkien & C.S. Lewis with other authors of today. I think for me and many others, after reading those authors books, found so many comparisons with the Creator, Creation, Redemption, forgiveness, His Son, and so many other Biblical ideals and then reading J.K. Rowling and the like and not really finding the same thing, but just a very sensational story that pulls you back for more, and is very enjoyable, but really doesn't go very deep. They left me feeling a bit surfacy as far as books go. I don't know if I would totally write those sort of books off totally, but for our kids at this point, I am looking for something more.
Tolkien and C.S. Lewis both have a way of just pulling you into this amazing world that has layers upon layers of depth, history, stories, songs, ballads, poems, other languages, scenery, creation, humor, unbelievable/yet believable creatures, etc, and it just goes on and on and on.
I think there are some very fine authors of fantasy worlds that are out there today, I just haven't found them yet. Maybe my expectations are too high, but I really just haven't found that depth of imagination, innocence, purity of heart, moral compass or ability to pull oneself into another world.... yet!! (still hoping) :)

[Bradley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I could not finish this book. Yes well researched, but opinion is in the eye of the beholder. I love all flavors of fantasy, even Harry Potter. Occult or not, it tells a good story. People need to find something more concrete to complain about. =)

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A DETAILED DISCUSSION OF THE ROWLING BOOKS, AND A DEFENSE OF TOLKIEN

Richard Abanes is an author/journalist, who has also written many other books... He is also a professional singer, dancer, and actor.

He wrote in the Introduction to this 2002 book, “The Harry Potter and Fellowship of the Ring movies, both of which were adapted from books, have made quite an impact not only on innumerable youths, but also on our entire culture. Their influence, however, has not been without controversy. Many parents are concerned about the books and films in relation to their depiction of occult themes, violence, evil and immorality… recent evidence suggests that a significant number of young Harry Potter fans may indeed be developing a fascination with occultism… about one out of every eight teenagers who have seen or read harry Potter say that the fantasy made them more interested in witchcraft… In light of such information, I have produced [this book] with the hope of separating fact from fiction in the controversies surrounding Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings… What I do hope to demonstrate… is that a great deal of misinformation and disinformation has been circulating about both harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings… I believe that the carefully documented information within the following pages will help everyone understand the facts with regard to the many concerns being expressed about Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings and fantasy literature in general… Al final judgments are left up to you…” (Pg. 4-5)

He suggests, “Clearly, just because a story contains supernatural beings or bizarre creatures (some of which maybe frightening), does not mean that it is bad. The important thing is how those characters are portrayed… What is the overall message of the story?” (Pg. 19)

He advises, “what is ‘fun’ for children … is not necessarily healthful… It must be remembered that children are not little adults---they need guidance. But in this day and age many children are making critical choices with regard to their own activities, including which books to read… with children making decisions that in years past were left up to the discretion of parents… the final decision must remain in the hands of parents.” (Pg. 25-26)

He clarifies, “‘magic’ in fantasy should never be confused with ‘magick’---i.e., real-world occult practices. They are two altogether different things. Magic without a ‘k’---the kind found in most fantasy books and fairy tales---is imaginary. It bears little resemblance to widely recognized occult beliefs and practices in the real world.” (Pg. 35)

He acknowledges, “Nowhere in The Lord of the Rings can be found any explicit mention of ‘God,’ churches, prayers or sacred devotion. Yet Tolkien’s story is a spiritual work through and through. He himself admitted that his mythology was a religious volume---a Christian one, in fact, with Roman Catholic underpinnings. Although this aspect of Middle-earth and The Lord of the Rings is not clearly visible, it is easily adduced from various segments of ‘The Silmarillion.’ Additional information about the spirituality of Middle-earth can be gleaned from numerous letters Tolkien wrote to his fans.” (Pg. 87-88) He adds, “Tolkien also revealed that he did not necessarily want to use the word ‘wizard,’ but was forced to do so by the limitations of English. He viewed ‘wizard’ as a translation from the Elven-tongue that unfortunately was ‘perhaps not suitable,’ but necessary.” (Pg. 88)

He argues, “When closely examined, the concerns most often expressed by Christians regarding The Lord of the Rings are without merit. Their objections commonly rest on several misunderstandings of the text. For example… Tolkien’s wizards are not the kind of wizards condemned in the Bible. They are, for all intents and purposes, angels. Readers of The Lord of the Rings must never for a moment think that his reference to ‘wizards’ suggests that have some connection to ‘wizards’ as found in occult literature… and the occult-based contemporary pagan ‘magick’ found in our Primary World… Tolkien thoroughly disliked having to use the word ‘magic,’ but he was forced to do so because he could find no other word closer to the meaning he intended… Tolkien made it clear that ‘magic’ in the context of Middle-earth is connected in no way to supernatural power.” (Pg. 99-100)

He notes, “Obviously, fantasy movies and books wherein children are portrayed as already being autonomous vis magick are going to have great appeal to youths. Such stories offer children a kind of entertaining outlet for their unmet desires to experience freedom from parents, teachers and other authority figures. These types of stories, however, pose a risk if by their content they suggest that children in the real world can indeed seize personal power over their own lives and the lives of others.” (Pg. 131)

Of author J.K. Rowling, he states that “Rowling maintains she is not a witch. Yet questions remain because of her unwillingness to discuss at length her spiritual beliefs… Whenever she is asked if she believes in witchcraft/magick, Rowling often avoids answering with an unqualified no, and instead tends to leave room for belief in SOME sort of magick, albeit not the kind found in storybooks… She displays a highly developed, vast and intricate knowledge of occultism, its history and nuances… [which] has caused many people to conclude that Rowling must be an occultist or, at least, a sympathetic observer of the occult: i.e., one who accepts SOME of its tenets.” (Pg. 136-137)

He suggests, “These issues might be less significant if Rowling’s story occurred in a place other than our world. Harry Potter would then fall into the category of mythopoetic literature… (e.g., Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and C.S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia). But Rowling’s fantasy takes place here and now, in England, only a new hours’ train ride from major British cities.” (Pg. 162)

He argues, “It is true that Harry and his companions demonstrate some praiseworthy characteristics. They display loyalty, bravery, rejection of materialism and n aversion to patently evil deed: murder, hatred, torture, etc. However, Rowling’s ‘moral compass’ is not as ‘acute’ as Potter fans assert. In fact, the morals and ethics displayed throughout Harry Potter are at best unclear and inconsistent; at worst, they are utterly confusing… Harry, Hermione, Ron, Hagrid and other ‘good’ characters HABITUALLY lie, steal, cheat, ignore laws, break rules and disrespect authority… the moral relativism permeating Harry Potter reflects what has become not only acceptable, but popular in our society.” (Pg. 165) Later, he adds, “She has skillfully obscured the MILDLY evil of her ‘good’ characters behind the HORRENDOUSLY evil deeds of her ‘bad’ characters… The result is a tacit acceptance of MILDLY evil characters as ‘good’ characters.” (Pg. 171) He summarizes, “In conclusion, the Harry Potter series presents morality inconsistently at best.” (Pg. 175)

He asserts, “Tolkien’s characters do not hone their skills via real-world occult practices that can be emulated by young readers. And none of the good characters in Tolkien resort to using the same exact spells and magic used by evil characters to defeat evil. The same cannot be said for Rowling’s good characters, who are even trained at the same schools as evil characters.” (Pg. 230-231)

He rejects the contention that “Not a single major Christian leader has even criticized Harry Potter, let alone told followers to not read the books,” stating, “This statement is simply untrue. First, since [the critic] never defines ‘major leader,’ his argument is a meaningless statement, Second, outspoken critics of Harry Potter, in fact, do include several Christian leaders, such as Douglas Groothuis… Gene Edward Veith… and Hank Hanegraaff…” (Pg. 234) Against the argument that there is violence and death in Tolkien, he says, “Violence and death are not intrinsically bad for children to read about if such episodes in fantasy are no gratuitous in nature… The key … is its placement in the story, its relevance to the plot and whether or not it … [includes] gore for the sake of gore.” (Pg. 244)

This book, while perhaps giving considerably more ‘latitude’ to Tolkien than to Rowling, is a very thorough, reasonably fair and accurate perspective on the controversies, and will be “must reading” for anyone interested in these controversies.

[Matia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up at a second-hand book sale, thinking it would give me some suggestions for some great fantasy reads. This book is much more. Very well researched, the book taught me a lot about the origins and categories of fantasy lit and the morality issues in literature, but especially as it applies to fantasy.

Now when I read, I am thinking, "How does this book make me feel? Does it make me want to be a better person?"

I loved the background information on JRR Tolkien and the writing of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

The chapter on the rise of the occult in the past 50 or so years was all new information to me, but most likely true and something to be concerned about as a Judeo/Christian society.

As a parent, a Christian, and a choosey-chooser of books I found a great deal of food for thought in these pages and I have a feeling I will come back to this book again and again.

[Denise Kettering · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book demonstrates some of the concerns Christians have expressed about two dimensions of the Harry Potter books: the moral behavior of the characters and the parallels between the magic in the Potter books and the occult. He also compares Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" series with Potter and differentiates between the two. The book only covers material through book 4 of the Potter books and so does not discuss the whole series. Also of note he does not deal with the whole Lord of the Rings movie franchise, whereas he does deal with the Potter movies. Basically, Abanes notes that particularly for younger children, the books could lead to a connection with Wicca, in part because Potter's world is so close to our world in time and place, uses historical magical figures, uses spells that in some cases parallel those found in Wicca or other occult circles, and that some in those circles have actually encouraged and uplifted the Potter books as an opportunity to explore the world of Wicca. On the moral side, he argues that often the characters in the Potter books lie, cheat, engage in violence and cruelty, and that there is no respect for adult figures. The book relies on a variety of forms of evidence, perhaps least reliable being discussion boards from various websites, but also from a variety of reviews of the books from different corners. He also, I think, significantly downplays the level of violence in the Lord of the Rings books. In his effort to demonstrate how they are not the same, he says that the Lord of the Rings books do not have the same level of violence, but I'm pretty sure that throwing severed heads over the walls of a castle could be traumatizing for young readers as well. Overall, I found Abanes' arguments the weakest when he was relying on the opinions of discussion boards and some of his apologetics overstate his case. I enjoyed reading the Potter books as a young adult, but I do think that as a parent of a tween interested in the books, his perspective at least made me aware of some of the potential topics to discuss with my child when he was reading the Potter books.

[Merenwen Inglorion · Rating 5 out of 5]

RTC

[Momma Aimee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very well written, just the same ol stuff rehashed.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great book that takes apart the arguments for Harry Potter as a good series for children to read and then answers it with incontrovertible quotes from JKR and the books themselves. Props to Abanes for getting that one right.

Yes, now that you mention it, Wicca was also discussed, which was interesting.

Not to mention this book is packed with some great literary criticism on both JKR's and Tolkein's which also inspired me as a writer to explore whether or not themes are treated superficially in any of my own work (more like planning!). I'm keeping it for this factor alone.

While I will continue to read the HP books, it definitely changed some of my views on them.

Only four stars because that's as high as my non-fiction ratings go.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know this book is old but it's very informative. Reading it has helped to shape my view on fantasy. I absolutely love fantasy books but some less so than others. This book has helped me determine why. And it helps me to put into words why the Harry Potter series isn't as grand as people make it to be.

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting if a bit dry read. For those of us who love fantasy including magic, sorcery, witches, and wizards, this books help to navigate some of the pitfalls parents can find as they deal with fantasy and their children. It helps a parent know how to broach the subjects of fantasy and reality in everyday life and the literature we encounter.

[Chloe]

I wanted to read this book cause I'm really into fantasy, and that'll probably rub off on Micah. I want to get some spiritual perspective on it.