Sexuality! and Poor Writing! - JKR's Mistake

[sistermagpie]

> > Magpie:
> > <snip> 
> > I think she gives views on quite a lot of things in the story.
> > I thought it was pretty clear the Dursleys treatment of Harry 
> > was supposed to be bad. And then Hagrid comes and smacks them 
down.
> 
> Mike:
> I suppose this is where I disagree. The Dursley's treatment of 
Harry 
> wasn't just bad, it was fairy talishly ridiculous. He was treated 
> worse than Cinderella. Who wouldn't think the Dursleys deserved 
some 
> come-uppence? I thought they deserved a few years with the 
Dementors 
> (which Dudley only got a few minutes with). I also thought Vernon 
got 
> off way to easily, Dudley got the brunt of the retribution.
> 
> Where I disagree is that I didn't think these were JKR's views so 
> much as generally accepted views for the genre she was writing. 
The 
> mean step-family gets smacked down a few times, the traitor gets 
> scarred for life, the school bullies get punished by their peers; 
> these are all typical of this fare, imo. They may be annoying to 
> some, but they are by no means unique to this series. Can JKR be 
> criticized for using them? Yes, by all means, have at her. But it 
> seems ridiculous to vilify her and/or her story for the triteness, 
as 
> if these themes were first presented here and are just plain evil.

Magpie:
Oh yeah, I agree there. When I said she was showing the Dursleys to 
be bad I just meant that obviously we're supposed to sympathize with 
Harry. When I meant that her values come through I mean on the story 
level, not necessarily what she would say in real life. She 
obviously does get off on Marietta being marked for life, she lets 
Hermione have a lot of moments where she gets back and people and 
doesn't expect us to be rooting for the person to get back at her, 
presumably. 

But I can also understand somebody else reading the story and 
saying, "Ew, I think that's evil." It's maybe being a bit 
hyperbolic, but I can understand the reaction they're describing. 
It's a little different than just "God, I hate all these people in 
this book" because it's a bit closer to how they feel uncomfortable 
watching this group of guys triumph their way to the top of the 
world. I tend to think of it as just the difference between reading 
somebody's book and rolling your eyes and reading their book and 
saying, "You're a loony" (a la Monty Python's King Arthur to the 
Black Knight). Compare it, for instance, to JKR's own words on CS 
Lewis, when she gave her impression of Susan's being kept out of 
Narnia in the end. It wasn't just that she was saying, "That was 
vaguely annoying because I liked Susan" or whatever. She read it and 
said that to her that gave the message that sex kept you out of 
heaven. She felt there was a message there, and it was one she 
disagreed with.

-m