Should we rewind perhaps?

[pippin_999]

--- In HPFGU-Movie at y..., "roleplayer_m_uk" 
> 
> i wonder if this difference reflects are growing awareness of 
the  complexity of contemporary life as contrasted with the 
simpler age in which tolkien was writing? <<


Er, would you really call the World War II era a less complex time 
than now? With fifty years of perspective it's easy to see who the 
bad guys were and what should have been done to stop them, 
but it was by no means clear at the time. The HP world is not as 
dualistic as Tolkien's, but dualism does not equal simplicity, it's 
just a different world view.


I think what people are overlooking here is that  *all* works of art 
simplify. Monet's water lilies paintings tell you absolutely nothing 
about the structure  the flowers. He wanted the viewer to 
concentrate on their colors. Rowling tells you very little about the 
grand sweep of wizarding history. Imagine HP as written by 
Tolkien: we'd get the names of every single Minister of Magic and 
all the merchieftains too! But we'd never go shopping or play 
Quidditch.

 Both HP and Tolkien simplify character by a similar device. 
Tolkien's human characters are seen through the Hobbits' eyes, 
as we see the adults in Harry's world through his. It takes an 
extra level of analysis on the part of the adult reader to see 
through this device and notice that Aragorn does make mistakes 
and struggle with the flaws in his character, and that Snape's 
actions are out of keeping with his supposed hatred of Harry.  
This is novelistic trick doesn't translate very well to film, IMO. It's 
interesting that in the LOTR movie Aragorn was given an entirely 
different character flaw, and that in the HP movie Snape's 
loathing of Harry is softened.

Pippin