Hiliare Belloc Re: J.K. Rowling's fav books

[Milz]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., "Ebony Elizabeth Thomas" <ebonyink at h...> 
wrote:
> >tabouli wrote
> >"Now you mention it, I can see the influence of Hilaire Belloc in
> >                  JKR's work..."
> 
> 
> Milz:
> >Yes, his influence does come through in the Potter books. I can see 
a
> >similar dark humor of "Jim, who ran away from his nurse and was 
eaten
> >by a lion" and "Matilda who liked to tell lies and perished 
miserably"
> >  creeping into the Potter books.
> 
> 
> Hilaire Belloc was one of the first British writers I ever read as a 
child!  
> My grandfather owned "Cautionary Tales" and "More Beasts for Worse 
> Children"... does everyone have a favorite?  Mine has GOT to be 
"Rebecca, 
> who slammed a door and perished miserably"... I first read 
"Cautionary 
> Tales" when I was about four or five and was going through a 
door-slamming 
> and string-and-paper-eating phase.  (Don't ask.  *Please* don't 
ask.)  HB 
> scared me half to death... I was just getting an idea of what death 
and 
> dying actualy *were*, and reading CT didn't help.
> 
> I also can see a faint parallel between JKR and HB's bestiaries.
> 
> But Belloc influence doesn't bode well for children like Dudley, 
Draco, etc. 
>   I hope she's not to take a page out of HB's book and let something 
bad 
> happen to them to prove a point.
> 

 I grew up in a household where folk tales, fairy tales (as 
non-sanitized as possible) and fables were staple bed-time stories. 
Naturally, alot of the stories were editorialized with "they used to 
do this a long, long time ago" or "they wouldn't be able to do 
something like that now, but.." or "now don't YOU go that!" and "what 
soandso is very kind; soandso is a good person". "Cautionary Tales" 
was also heavily editorialized. 

I think the Draco-ferret and the ton-tongue toffee incidents are 
Belloc-ish in the vaguely cautionary tale: don't fight dirty and don't 
be greedy.

Milz