Alas, here again I come face-to-face with my past.
I fear writing out confessions like this because one-upon-a-time I debated (frothing at the mouth) against those who would dare read, veiw, or consider (reading or indulging in) the Harry Potter books and movie series.
I remember two such occasions very clearly, but undoubtedly there were more.
Honestly, now, the most radical change in my outlook has come from a lack of fear.
To a great degree the reasons we were discouraged from ever showing interest in HP was because of the fear-mongering. "Let your child read HP and before you know it they will become wiccans!"
"HP teaches children the basic lower levels of spells. Soon they will have evil spirits they can command."
"J.K. Rowling is a secret witch. These books are an effort to make more witches and spread demon possession to the rest of the world....." etc, etc
(and no, I dont think any of these are extreme. I have heard all of these in various ways and more)
A second reason, I believe, is due to a lot more faith in myself.
I dont think I am stupid enough to believe that I can replicate spells and try them and turn into a witch.
I dont think I will be 'taken in' by this evil message. I am smarter than that and I am not afraid of it.
What is wrong with reading a novel? Is it 'sin'?
In short, no. There is NOTHING wrong with reading, or with reading books that the world likes a lot, or with reading books that may portray actions and behaviors that you might not indulge in. Like a murder mystery. Reading an Agatha Christie novel wont turn you into a killer any more than reading Harry Potter will turn you into a witch, wizard, or wiccan.
Use your mind. It is your greatest asset and your best organ. Take all advice with a grain of salt. Think through things carefully and make up your own mind.
And live!! Live fully and with joy.
What more can we desire for a good life?
3 comments:
" Live fully and with joy."
Worth repeating! =D
Totally agree. I imagine that it'd be a huge shock for some people to read C.S. Lewis' "An Experiment in Criticism" and discover that he hated literature being used to teach morals/social ideas/history/etc. He wanted things to be received and appreciated for being what they were.
Harry Potter is just supposed to be epically fun. It's not a treatise on life and it was NEVER intended to be used as such.
-I-love-my-garden
Excellent post. And Harry Potter was fun (at least the first books I did read) especially to someone brought up reading books written by British authors. Knowing yourself and your strengths is awesome. Thanks for the reminder - I have a couple books from a friend that I need to read and return. I borrowed them so I could find out what all the hype was about the movies...
Post a Comment